That type of workflow will not work on today's multitasking devices for very long; the battery will die pretty quickly. I can testify to this having done it on

That type of workflow will not work on today's multitasking devices for very long; the battery will die pretty quickly. I can testify to this having done it on the G1. For the meantime (next year or two), until batteries get better and hardware more efficient, push notifications are a pretty good way to solve this. Why does the handset need to keep these connections open when a remote server can do this more efficiently, not draining the battery, and then push a notification when an event happens? There is a fundamental limit to the amount of information that can be conveyed on a 4" screen. Everything else "running" in the background, in a single tasking environment, can be taken care of by well written apps and services. More of a pain for the developer, yes, but a godsend for one's battery and CPU time.