Google has integrated AIM messenger into its Gmail Web mail service, making it possible for users to chat with their AIM colleagues alongside their GTalk buddies.

An excerpt from the GmailBlog:

Today we are happy to tell you about a new feature we’ve started to roll out which will enable you to sign into your AIM account and chat with your AIM buddies right inside Gmail. When you log in to AIM through Gmail chat, your AOL buddies will appear in your chat list with friends from your Google Talk network, and you will see the yellow “running man” logo to the right of your AIM friends’ screen names. To your AIM friends it will look like you are logged in to AIM as usual.

The AIM integration option will be only available in English version of Gmail for the time being. The option to sign into AIM sits at the drop-down menu that is used for Chat. Be sure to disable pop-up blockers to see the AIM login screen.

In addition, the AIM integration has several new features, including group chat, color labels, and emoticons. Recently, Gmail users had faced performance issues with their updated Gmail accounts, but the incremental feature roll-outs are going well.

Do you like the new Gmail features, especially with the AIM integration?