I ask to learn. And I'm not saying anything about your needs. You obviously use this feature very much.

When it comes to what is said in advertisements, I do try to separate "actual value" from "this looks good in an ad".

For someone who uses email as IM, this definitely has its uses (given 24/7 connectability). I just let my email client check more often or use an actual IM client. To each his own.