I’ve just come up to use this brand-new service just released by Big G named Google Buzz, so I’m going to report here some first impressions trying to make a quick comparison with Twitter, along with I think Google Buzz is sharing the basic idea (but probably only that). Anyway, I’m not going to talk about FriendFeed (which is probably more similar) but just because I’m not using it, or about Facebook and other popular social networks.

Like Twitter the key concepts are very simple:

• There are followers and following people
• You can share short messages

Unlike Twitter:

• There is no limit to the number of characters you can type in (140 in T.)
• The service is embedded within a mailbox platform (T. offers integration through its APIs) *
• Messages are editable even after the submission
• You can post private messages
• You can insert images from your computer or picasaweb (with T. you need to use additional services like TwitPic)
• You can share videos and see them from inside the messages (eg. Youtube videos)
• You can express appreciation through the button like/unlike
• You can hide a conversation through the option mute/unmute
• You can continue or just move a conversation to a chat (GTalk) or to emails

Google Buzz confirms again Google’s main goal, gather as many users as possible to enlarge the network and increase the time adopters spend on the offered services. In fact this new service will soon provide Google with more information about users’ behaviors and preferences, obviously resulting in more earnings in terms of advertising (main Google’s business). My only question is: will Google Buzz be used as a “real” social network? It’s not easy to fit into a market already dominated by many other competitors, even though with Gmail I have to admit things have gone pretty well.

* UPDATE - Google Buzz APIs also available.

Almost out of Facebook I’m slowly migrating to Twitter, considerabily less time-consuming and more specialized on its single task, the exchange of quick and frequent messages also called tweets. To whom who mistakenly tends to compare Twitter with what’s already in Facebook I can state here that the different context, certainly less funny but more thoughtful, sometimes even very engaged politically (i.e. as for recent events in Iran), makes it more interesting and significant. I just hope it won’t change its way..