Mobile

Some excellent news for people who use Skype on the move on the 3 mobile network in the UK: there are now no data charges or top-up fees for either contract or pay-as-you-go customers who use Skype on 3's network. Pay-as-you-go users no longer need to top up at least £10 per month to use Skype on the go. The change is in effect for 3's current lineup of phones (including the 3 Skypephone S2 and the INQ1 phone), and by the summer Skype will be available to anyone on 3 with a compatible 3G phone, whether the phone came from 3 or not.

I'm really excited about this--3 really seems to understand the importance of being able to use Skype wherever you are. It means free calls from your mobile to other Skype users (or SkypeOut calls using your Skype credit) without having to top up your phone. If you and a friend are in the UK and both have Skype-enabled phones from 3, it's free to talk to one another forever. You can learn more about calling for free on 3 in the UK here.

It's been a busy week for Skype in Barcelona at this year's Mobile World Congress. As you might have seen on the main blog, there were 2 big Skype-related announcements: A new partnership between Skype and Nokia which will put Skype on Nokia NSeries phones (starting with the Nokia N97 later this year), and the release of Skype 2.5 for Windows Mobile (as well as a Skype Panel for the Windows Mobile-based Sony Xperia 1).

I'll hopefully be able to try out Skype on the N97 when it's out later this year. For now, here's a look at the new version of Skype 2.5 for Windows Mobile:

Continue reading "A look at Skype 2.5 for Windows Mobile" »

MIDs (Mobile Internet Devices) are an interesting product category--they're portable, with big touch screens (5-7 inches generally) and often no keyboard. They tend to have Intel Atom processors and run a flavor of Linux. They're even smaller and more portable than netbooks. Skype has been available on MIDs for quite some time now, and I finally had the chance to play with Skype on two different MIDs this week. The ways you can use Skype on the go keep growing, with the 3 Skypephones, 3 INQ phone, Skype Lite on Java-enabled phones and Android, WiFi phones, Nokia N800/N810, Windows Mobile... the list goes on. These Linux-based MIDs provide another great way to use Skype wherever you are.

Continue reading "Skype on MIDs" »

Today I had the chance to check out the new INQ1 phone from 3. Like on the 3 Skypephones S1 and S2, Skype is built in--you can make calls for free using Skype (or for cheap using your Skype credit) from wherever you are. The phone is also big on Internet features and Facebook integration. It will be available from 3 in the UK very soon.

Hardware-wise, the phone feels quite solid in your hand, and the flipping open the keypad is quite satisfying. The buttons offer a good amount of feedback. Software-wise, the BREW interface is clear and clean, and it has many nice features, including widgets on the home screen and an automatic change from portrait to landscape mode in the browser when you turn the phone.

Here's a video I made showing off the INQ1's user interface and Skype functionality.



Check out some more photos of what using the INQ1 is like after the jump.

Continue reading "Hands on with 3's new INQ1 phone" »

Earlier this week, American Airlines began offering in-flight WiFi on domestic flights in the US. This is great news for business travelers clearly, but it's also nice for the rest of us who need our regular fix of email, news and YouTube during what would otherwise be dead time. However the service provider, Aircell, is blocking Skype and other VoIP services; this article suggests that it's because 'phone calls' are prohibited by law on flights, not differentiating between calls over the internet and calls over mobile phones.

What a bummer. Skype would be ideal on a flight (so long as you're not being loud and obnoxious and disrupting your neighbors), especially when those air-to-ground phones cost so much. There does seem to be at least one way to push voice over the network through flash, but I'd like to use Skype. So I got to thinking: Aircell does say that it supports VPNs, virtual private networks that allow employees to appear as though they're on their company's network. VPNs usually mask traffic--could Skype possibly work from behind a VPN?

Fortunately for me, I'm actually taking an American Airlines flight this week and do have access to a reliable VPN, so very shortly I'll be able to test my hypothesis and report back. But for now:

• Do you think Skype should be blocked on flights?
• Could there be a lack of bandwidth on the plane's connection to the internet (which I assume is via satellite)?
• Would chatting be annoying for other passengers? Would you find it annoying if someone was on the phone next to you during a flight?

Let us know what you think in the comments.

Photo by Yodel Anecdotal

It's been quite a while since we've mentioned the Nokia N800 and N810 Internet Tablets. What's new with them? Well, the open nature of Nokia's Linux-based OS2008 has allowed people to continue to add new features and exploit the devices in new ways. We already know that the N810 and N800 provide a great way to use Skype on the go, but what's been improved since they came out and how are people using their Internet Tablets?

• Last month Nokia released the OS2008 Feature Update, which adds better GPS support to the N810, over the air firmware updates, and an improved email client and other software improvements to the N810 and N800.
• People are talking about using the N800 as a laptop substitute and running Java applications on the N810.
• Some enterprising coders managed to install Google's Android operating system on the N810, an interesting proof of concept
• New applications make it possible to run Palm applications on the N810/N800 and geocache more easily
• And of a (only slightly) less technical nature, here's how to crochet a pouch to hold your N810 or N800.

It's great that people keep finding novel ways to use their Internet Tablets.

Here are some recent stories about Skype gear in the news:

• Video: in the classroom, at the conference, and at the Cannes Film Festival
• 3 Skypephone: reviews and commentary
• Skype at work, anywhere

It's all after the jump...

Continue reading "Skype Gear News Roundup" »

You may have already heard about the Skype Nomad--intrepid Australian Rebecca Campbell is travelling the world for 33 days, only sleeping while on the move, blogging about her trip, and raising money for charity (Motivation). She's using Skype to stay in touch and plan parts of her trip (you can send her recommendations and tips--she's 'theskypenomad').

In addition to all her travelling and photo-taking and blog writing, Rebecca's been writing a column in the UK's Telegraph. But one thing that she hasn't mentioned yet is the full list of gear she's carrying. There are tons of ways to use Skype on the go, but Rebecca is perhaps taking it to the extreme--when you're constantly on the move, light gear is of utmost importance.

Here's her full list:

• 3 Skypephone
• Nokia N810 Internet Tablet
• Nokia N95 8GB (for Skype for your mobile)
• PSP and headset
• Macbook Air (with 3 USB broadband dongle)
• Solar powered battery charger
• Panasonic HD Video camera
• Canon IXUS 70 (SD1000) Digital camera

She's got some neat stuff with her--and with the 3 Skypephone and 3 broadband dongle she can get online really easily whenever she's in a 3 territory. Still, she's already found that WiFi isn't exactly ubiquitous and you can't always be connected.

Rebecca's going to be passing through the UK later on her trip, and I'm going to try to be one of the many meeting up with her when she's stopping at Skype's office in London. Do you have any questions you'd like me to ask Rebecca? Leave 'em in the comments.

Here's a video of Skype for your mobile running on a Nokia N95 8GB. You can learn more about Skype for your mobile from my full post about it and you can download it for your phone here. Don't forget that it's beta software: known bugs are here, and you can report any you find here.

Whoa whoa whoa! Hot on the heels of Skype's new global calling plans comes (in my geeky opinion) some even more exciting news--the release of Skype for your mobile beta!

So what is it and what can you do with it?

Skype for your mobile (beta) is a 'thin' client for Skype that works on Java-enabled mobile phones. It lets you use many of Skype's features on the phone you already have. On the main information page (here), you can get instructions for how to install it on your phone and you can see a list of phones that Skype for your mobile has been tested on (though it may work even if your phone isn't listed, the phone needs to be Java-enabled).

Using Skype for your mobile beta, you can

• Make Skype-to-Skype and SkypeOut calls
• Receive calls from Skype contacts and from people calling your online number (SkypeIn)
• Send and receive instant messages (including group chats)
• See whether your contacts are online
• Set your online presence
• Adjust your account settings

There are a couple things to be aware of though:

Continue reading "Hello, Skype for your mobile!" »

Skype on the go was a major theme of this year's CES. Another cool Skype-related announcement was the Sony mylo ("my life online") COM-2. It's a small internet device with a touchscreen and keyboard that supports Skype out of the box and improves upon a lot of the features of the original mylo.

The Skype integration is great--it means you can make and receive free Skype calls and instant messages (as well as make SkypeOut calls and receive SkypeIn calls) from anywhere you have internet access via WiFi. One nice thing for American mylo COM-2 users: WiFi access on the Wayport network is free until the end of 2010.

There's also a lot to do with the mylo when you're not Skyping...

Continue reading "CES Spotlight: Sony Mylo COM-2" »

So as many of the slightly geekier readers of this blog may be aware, this past week was the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2008 in Las Vegas, Nevada USA. Skype was out there (though I didn't get to go ) and announced / showed off several new things. One of the coolest is that Skype will be making its way onto a new series of mobile internet devices based on Intel mobile processors and chipsets called (wait for it) MIDs (as in Mobile Internet Devices).

The specs on these MIDs will vary by manufacturer (though they'll all have Intel chips), but it's safe to say they'll have touchscreen LCDs, WiFi or WiMax, and will run Mobile Internet Linux. Skype will be preinstalled, so free calls, instant messaging and group chats can be made from the get-go. And some MIDs will have cameras for video calls on Skype--pretty cool.

If these seem a bit similar to UMPCs, another Intel-based small form-factor mobile computing platform, you're right, though the major difference is that MIDs are smaller and run Linux rather than Windows. Engadget as done a nice post noting all the differences, which you can check out here.

Intel MIDs running Skype on Mobile Internet Linux should be available during the first half of 2008. You can learn more about the MID platform here.

 

Several interesting bits of Skype Gear-related news from the blogosphere recently, on a variety of devices that show off many of the different ways you can use Skype.

- Video: great story about usage and a Logitech QuickCam Orbit AF review
- Mobile: Results to 3mobilebuzz's recent contest: Why I need a 3 Skypephone
- WiFi phone: Netgear SPH200W one of Time's top 10 gadgets of 2007
- Headsets: A look at the FREETALK Stereo Wireless Headset

My full take after the jump...

Continue reading "Gear News Roundup: A little bit of everything" »

You may recall the great fanfare with which I welcomed Skype on the Nokia N800 Internet Tablet last summer. Well, now the N800 has a new sibling--the Nokia N810 Internet Tablet--and it also runs Skype. It's now shipping in the US and will be available very soon in Europe.

I think it's fair to call the N810 a sibling to the N800. The insides of both are nearly the same: they have the same processor, screen, connectivity through WiFi and bluetooth, amount of RAM and battery life. The main difference is that the N810 adds a slide-out keyboard and GPS receiver. The N810 also has a fixed camera on the front where the N800 has a pop-out camera that rotates, and the N810 has 2GB of memory built in (but only one SD slot where the N800 has two). Look here for a nice comparison.

The Nokia N810 runs OS2008, Nokia's Linux-based operating system for its Internet Tablets, and in mid-December (according to this page) a final version of OS2008 will be available for N800 users, bringing many new features to the older tablet (I love a good firmware update!).

Last week I was able to play around with a pre-release Nokia N810 and was quite impressed. I'm not prepared to give it a full review (as it was beta hardware), but I have a few observations...

Continue reading "Nokia N810 Internet Tablet (with Skype) is out!" »

It hasn't exactly been a secret, but today is a big day for the Skype team. It's the launch of the 3 Skypephone!

It's Skype in your pocket, wherever you go. It works with 3, the mobile provider in the UK (and Australia, Austria, Denmark, Hong Kong, Italy, Ireland, Macau and Sweden) that's already providing Skype on its compatible handsets (through its X-Series internet offering and more recently on all its Mix & Match tariffs if the phone supports it).

The 3 Skypephone does work as a regular mobile phone (on 3 pay as you go or pay monthly), but as you might have guessed from the name, it's the first phone to build Skype functionality into the core of the device. You can import your Skype contacts into the phone's contact list and there's a single call history list for Skype and regular mobile calls. You can always broadcast your Skype status and make unlimited Skype-to-Skype calls wherever you go (subject to a very reasonable fair use policy).

It's also a pretty slick piece of kit: it's a 3G phone with a 2 megapixel camera, bluetooth, a 2" 220 x 176 screen, and a microSD slot to add up to 1 GB of memory. It has an internet browser (with 3's Launcher for easy access to popular sites like eBay, Facebook and YouTube), a music player, and it runs Java applications and games. And did I mention you can make unlimited Skype-to-Skype calls? All in all it's pretty awesome.

The 3 Skypephone will be available at 3 stores in the UK for £49.99 on pay as you go and for free on pay monthly from this Friday, November 2 (it'll also be available in the Skype Store in the UK before Christmas). So over the course of this week I'll be going in depth on the 3 Skypephone--showing off its functions and talking to some of the people who put it together about what it means for Skype, 3 and the mobile internet. I'm excited, I hope you are too.

Check out Villu's post about it on the main blog, and the press release for more information.

It's been promised for quite a while and now it's finally here--Skype is running on the Nokia N800 Internet Tablet. I've been testing out a unit with Skype for about a week now and in a nutshell I think it's a great addition that really increases the functionality of the device. Read on for my full review.

Continue reading "Skypegear Roadtest: Skype on the Nokia N800 Internet Tablet" »

Big announcement from Skypeland today: if you have Skype Pro (available in these countries), now you have a new feature--the ability to call internationally from your mobile using your SkypeOut credit. Skype calling on the mobile you have now? How does it work? Read on.

Continue reading "Skype To Go: call internationally from your mobile at low SkypeOut rates" »