I came across something today that you don't see very often: online retailer Amperordirect.com have a great blog which lets them communicate directly with their customers. And rather than just using it for bland corporate communications, there's a real sense in the blog of their passion and knowledge for Skype hardware.

Not only does the site give detailed video reviews such as the one above from the company's product testing engineer Howard Chang (who also edits the blog) and reviews of hardware the shop has just taken delivery of, but it also has some interesting views on the future for Skype hardware, competitions, and a flickr album of the latest devices in stock.

Amperor also sell via eBay, and just by looking at their fab user feedback scores you can see that they are really paying attention to looking after their customers. I caught up with Howard at Amperor with a few questions:

1) Could you tell me a little bit more about you and also about Amperor - how long have you worked there, what's the best bit about your job, how big are Amperor and what do they do?

"I have worked at Amperor for 6 years. Amperor started to assemble the US e-commerce team in early 2005. Since then, we have brought Marco (our sales and marketing manager), Todd (our customer service specialist and webmaster), Sheila (our shipping coordinator), and Larry (the boss) on board. My title is project manager and I was the first one on the team. Because of my engineering background, I’m also responsible in qualifying new products. We are based in Houston, Texas."

2) How long have you been selling Skype hardware?

"In 2000, Amperor started its first e-commerce store in the UK to serve our customers directly. Since then, we have opened several on-line stores all over the world. See the links at: http://amperordirect.wordpress.com/about/. Several technical pioneers within our company heard about Skype and decided to give it a try in early 2005. Overall we were pleased with the voice quality, convenience, and the BIG money savings Skype offered. We started to spread the Skype experience to all our offices. Now, almost all employees in Amperor use Skype in their daily communications. For an international organization like Amperor, Skype is truly an amazing communication tool."

3) Which countries do most of your orders for Skype hardware come from? Have you noticed any interesting trends in terms of particular phones in particular countries?

"Among all our websites, Amperor's US e-commerce team focus primarly on Skype accessories. The reason behind it is simple: we have not seen Skype grab the market share it deserves in US. We want to arouse people’s interests in Skype by bringing more Skype related products, solutions, and gadgets into the US market. We are hoping, one day, all our vendors and customers can be found and reached on Skype. It will be more convenient and more fun to do business."

4) When and why did you start the blog?

"We started the blog in August this year. The purpose of the blog is to share our new product qualification results with end users, give end users the idea of what’s coming next in the Skype accessory world, and eventually help them make the right decision when they want to buy a Skype accessory. We have found that the blog can be a very effective communication tool. With the minimum effort, we can post our ideas on the blog, in a timely manner."

5) What features do you think Skype hardware manufacturers should be looking at for upcoming phones? Is there any existing product that has really caught your attention?

"According to the hardware manufacturers, the Skype embedded, corded dualphone will be available in Q4 this year or Q1 next year. If the hardware manufacturers can control the manufacturing cost of the new PC-less Skype phone and can still offer good sound quality, easy installation and usage, this can be the product we are waiting for to help Skype achieve better market share.

As you can see on our blog, the Skype WiFi phone is a product that caught our attention. We heard rumors that Attcon is working on the solution to make the WiFi phone hotspot compatible. If they can find the solution, the Wifi phone can be the perfect gadget for the road warrior.

Right now, we are also checking on the web cams and some fun Skype products. We believe that people will eventually want to see each others in the communications. And, adding some fun into the communication is a plus."

No firmer news on Howard's rumours above available at time of press I'm afraid, but the question has to be asked: why aren't more retailers taking this open form of communication with their customers? The combination of blogging with communicating with customers via Skype offers a real two-way channel which means not only can customers get in touch more easily, but retailers can communicate new products, explain current issues they may be having and also provide a human face just like Mr. Chang's above...