All VoIP Feeds

O-FONE takes on Skype

Gareth Beavis — 1210592880

A new Symbian s60 application has been unveiled that can be downloaded to Symbian-capable mobile phones, transforming them into VoIP-ready handsets.

Skype’s penetration of the mobile market has been steady if not spectacular; with native applications for a number of Three network phones, and the Skype phone as well.

Utilising data packets to transmit voice calls, VoIP mobile telephony makes a lot of sense, though still hasn’t taken off in the way anticipated by revolutionising mobile and landline call costs.

O-FONE promises to make the whole process a lot easier and more transparent, enabling users to transfer their existing mobile contacts to the application.

You need your friends

However, like so many similar schemes before it, the only real advantages appear when a large number of your friends take up the scheme too, so it means a huge marketing push will be needed to make-or-break the technology.

In fairness, O-FONE is also trying to make the process of managing your account a lot simpler. They “promise they will be the first global MVNO 2.0 based on VoIP technology, which will include on-line multi-level billing and an on-line secured payment system.”

While this may seem a bit complex, essentially buying the necessary credits / paying your bills will be a lot more transparent and safe, and may incite potential users to try out the application at least.

However, the company does ask you to ‘try out what you’ve been missing for the last 200 years’ on their website…it’s hard to believe, when the first call was made back in 1876 with the famous phrase "Mr Watson — Come here — I want to see you", the recipient thought: “Well, this is OK I guess. I just wish I could send these sounds as data packets on the move to save on my line rental and call charges, and some transparency to the online payment system would be nice too.”

Skype unveils £6.95 unlimited, phone anywhere subs

Adam Hartley — 1208789293

Skype has unveiled its new paid-subscription packages today, claiming to offer UK residents 'unlimited' calls to over a third of the world’s population (well, their landlines at least) for a mere £6.95 a month.

Skype informs us that: "The new subscriptions signal the first time Skype has offered a single, monthly flat rate for international calling to landline numbers in 34 countries."

However, it also defines "unlimited" as actually meaning a limit of 10,000 minutes per month. Which is still more than enough minutes for most, TechRadar feels, if not strictly unlimited. A minor point, but still...

Natural step

Stefan Oberg, VP & GM telecoms at Skype said: "This move is a natural step for Skype. Skype was founded on the principle of making free voice and video calls available to people all around the world. And now we’re making it even easier for the Skype community to call their friends and family who are not yet on Skype. Our subscriptions give people an easy, hassle-free choice for how and when they want to catch up with their loved ones."

There are now three packages on offer for UK Skype customers from 'unlimited' calls to landlines in the country of your choice through to landlines in 34 destination countries worldwide. They range from £1.95 per month for "Unlimited Country" to £2.95 a month for “Unlimited Europe” up to £6.95 each month for "Unlimited World".

Some 309 million people worldwide currently use Skype and there’s no need to sign yourself up for long-term binding contracts if you don’t want to. Users that sign up for a 3-month or 12-month period before 1 June 2008, will receive a further 33 per cent discount.

Single white Skype mobile seeks available FON

J Mark Lytle — 1205134757

The latest Skype VoIP phone from Panasonic might cost a hefty ¥29,800 (£144), but it has a trick up its sleeve in the form of software that enables it to connect to the FON Wi-Fi sharing network for free calls.

The KX-WP800 goes on sale in Japan at the end of this month. It's a pretty standard Skype handset apart from that FON application onboard and a dedicated mini Wi-Fi router that creates an open FON hotspot at home.

Free Wi-Fi calls

The 802.11b/g router is designed to be taken on the road by altruistic souls who wish to spread the FON gospel from hotels and the like. The Spanish organisation behind FON clearly has Japan in its sights, as there are now over 30,000 open Wi-Fi connections on its network there.

As for the handset, it's pre-programmed to automatically log onto any FON spot it comes across, but can - of course - also use a plain vanilla connection instead.

Battery life is decent too - 55 hours of standby and 4.5 of talk time, while the 100g weight makes it just about viable to take this thing out alongside a regular mobile phone.

Rumour: Two Google phones on the way

Anna Lagerkvist — 1203423217

Rumours are again suggesting that a Google Phone may be on the cards. And not just one, but two handsets, 9to5Mac.com reports.

Last year, when announcing its Android mobile operating system, Google said it wouldn’t release an own-brand handset, but would instead develop software for ‘thousands of Google Phones’.

Smartphone

Robert X Cringely, better known as US tech journalist Mark Stephens, writes on his blog that Google is planning two Google Phone handsets. Both will reportedly run the Android platform and bear Google’s name. According to the blog post, the handsets will be released later this year and during the first quarter of 2009.

One of the rumoured handsets will be a smartphone, Cringely claims, while the other will be a humbler, lower-end offering.

“Here is what little I know, dropped in my lap this week by a loyal reader (you know who you are). There are two gPhones slated for release with the first coming in September and the second probably not appearing until after Christmas," Cringley writes.

"Given that the first is the high-end model and the second is cheaper, Google will probably expect to make as much money as possible on the higher-margin units at Christmas before revealing the budget model even exists. How Apple-like, eh?”

Wi-Fi enabled handsets

Both handsets will reportedly be Wi-Fi-enabled, and will possibly also feature a VoIP application. Samsung has been named as the manufacturer.

“The high-end phone will look somewhat like a Blackberry Pearl, but the screen flips up and there is a keyboard for texting. No word on pricing for the high-end phone, but the second model is intended to be less than $100 - AFTER Christmas,” said Cringely.

A Google press officer told TechRadar there are no plans for a Google-branded handset, but that the first Android-powered phones are still on course for later this year.

Fring adds mobile file transfers to VoIP

Anna Lagerkvist — 1202230396

VoIP firm Fring today added mobile file transfers, better chat functionality and more language options to its popular free to install mobile VoIP application.

The new Fring version (available as of today) lets you swap files instantly from mobile to mobile or mobile to PC or Mac. There’s no cost for transferring music, photo, video or data files, which can be as large as your network operator will allow.

There’s no need for MMS, cable, Bluetooth, or Infrared connections. The cost will be paid through your handset’s mobile internet capability using the already paid for data plan, meaning there’s no extra charges.

Talk, chat, interact

As with previous Fring versions, you can also talk, chat and interact with all your IM contacts – Fring brings together all your contacts from MSN Messenger, Skype, ICQ, AIM, Google Talk et al into one big contact list. Versions for the Apple iPhone and handsets powered by Google's forthcoming Android mobile operating system are also in the pipeline for 2008.

You can see when your contacts are available, and whether they are contactable by telephone regardless of the IM application they use. You'll also get an indication as to what kind of connection they're currently on (Wi-Fi, 3G and so on) so you can decide whether it's worth calling them, or stick to chat. Chats take place in real time, and you can navigate between different chat windows just as you would on a computer.

New language options were also added, making Fring available in English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Russian and Chinese. It’s currently available in some 160 countries, and will add more languages over the coming year.

‘Breaking down barriers’

“Fring is breaking down the barriers that have traditionally existed between the fixed and mobile internet environments, making it easier than ever for people to stay connected with all of their online buddies and communities and enjoy a rich and exciting mobile internet experience,” said Avi Shechter, co-founder and CEO of Fring.

“We are witnessing something of a revolution; Fring is changing the way people interact with their mobile and internet worlds on a daily basis. Fring is bringing freedom of choice to people allowing them to declare their mobile independence, and take control of how they make and retain connections with each other.”

Fring is available as a free download application. You’ll need a compatible handset – a Nokia phone running Symbian Series 60, a Sony Ericsson handset using UIQ, or a Windows Mobile 5 or 6 device – and an internet connection; Wi-Fi, 3G, GSM, GPRS or EDGE.

Skype arrival on PSP delayed by mic problems

J. Mark Lytle — 1201162248

PlayStation Portable owners waiting eagerly for the recently announced arrival of Skype for the PSP will have to wait a little longer - at least in Japan - as Sony has been unable to meet Skype's microphone specifications.

The company revealed yesterday that it has postponed the scheduled 24 January release date for the microphone add-on and Skype-ready firmware upgrade.

Skype standards problem

According to its press release, "it was found that the microphone did not meet the Skype specifications in part". It concluded by adding that no new release date had been fixed for the package.

Given that the revelation came just one day before the product was due in Japanese shops, it's slightly hard to believe Sony's assertion that the roll-out in the rest of the world won't be affected.

Still, as the company has never set an exact date for that, it'll be true whatever happens. We just want to know why we can't use the existing PSP camera to Skype - after all, it already has a mic and does video to boot.

Skype cracks the whip over faraway robots

J. Mark Lytle — 1197590400

If we diplomatically ignore the almost-constant echoes and crackles it creates, we have to admit that Skype is actually a pretty useful tool that we'd never want to do without, but we never imagined it could be used to send orders to robots on the other side of the planet.

Admittedly, it's hard to imagine why it might be necessary to remotely control a toy robot to this extent, but that's exactly what Skyplen from Systec Akazawa does. The proof of concept uses the company's Plen kit robot and a Skype connection at both ends.

Wiimote possibility

Skyplen takes input from anything from a mobile phone to a Wiimote controller and translates it into a Skype text message that gets sent to the remote PC. The machine then uses a Bluetooth connection to pass on the good word to the 23cm robot.

The ¥262,500 (£1,155) metal man can already do plenty out of the box, including roller skating, skateboarding and the de rigueur robotic dance moves, so what could be more natural than asking him to get busy from afar?

Next big thing: Jaxtr's online phone service

Anna Lagerkvist — 1197504000

VoIP firm Jaxtr has announced that its userbase has grown 10-fold to five million members in the 140 days since July.

Jaxtr claims it is the "fastest growing internet communications service in history ahead of Skype, Hotmail, and ICQ", posing the question: which web giant will get its wallet out first to snap up the Jaxtr phone/web link-up offering?

As a Jaxtr member, you can make and receive phone calls in 220 countries using your regular landline or mobile number, thus bypassing international calling charges. Mobile VoIP calls don't even require a computer or an internet connection, says the company.

Follow the link

But how does it actually work? When you sign up for the Jaxtr service, you receive a link that allows your friends and family to call you using their regular landline or mobile phone. When someone wants to call you, they click on the link, enter their number and when you pick up your phone, their phone rings to let them know that the call has been connected.

Callers can save the local number provided by Jaxtr and use it whenever they want to call people overseas without being tied to their computer. There's nothing to download, and you don't even need an internet- or Wi-Fi-enabled phone. If you have voice minutes included with your subscription, you can use these to make international calls from your mobile phone.

You can also link up all your phone numbers (home, work, mobile) if you want, and then choose which one to pick up when you receive a call.

Use your existing phone and number

Rebecca Swensen, a research analyst of VoIP services for IDC, says Jaxtr is one of a new breed of VoIP providers. "The new wave of VoIP services allow users to enjoy the benefits and simplicity of placing phone calls through their existing phones by selecting a name from the contact list and hitting the green 'send' button."

The rapid growth of Jaxtr surely means that it's only a matter of time before it gets snapped up by one of the web giants. We've seen it before: YouTube being snapped up by Google; MySpace being bought by NewsCorp; and VoIP firm Skype being touted by eBay. Jaxtr is not yet in the same league of size as many of these purchases, but it has one thing in common - questions over how it will make money.

Jaxtr doesn't rely on advertising so it will have to make revenue somewhere. But, give Jaxtr its due; the service only launched in March this year. We predict it will have a line of suitors before its first birthday.

T-Mobile to offer Samsung's Wi-Fi VoIP mobile

Anna Lagerkvist — 1197331200

T-Mobile has started selling the much-rumoured Samsung Katalyst Wi-Fi VoIP handset in the US. Available at just £40, the question is when it will reach us here in the UK.

The Samsung SGH-T739 Katalyst allows you to call your friends and family free of charge using VoIP services when you're within range of a Wi-Fi network. When you're not, the phone automatically switches to a mobile GSM network so that you can continue yakking away without interruption.

The slider handset features quad-band GSM/GRPS/Edge connectivity, a 176 x 220 and 262,000-colour screen, 1.3-megapixel camera, expandable microSD card slot up to 2GB and Bluetooth 2.0, Register Hardware reports.

The Samsung SGH-T739 Katalyst is said to offer around five hours of talk time and up to 240 hours of battery life in standby mode. The handset is available on T-Mobile in the US, from around $80 (£40), depending on what contract you're on. T-Mobile could not confirm a UK release date.

Critical Skype security hole plugged

Anna Lagerkvist — 1197244800

Skype has fixed a critical security flaw that put Windows users at risk of being infected by malware.

The security hole existed in the latest version of Skype for Windows users, and could have allowed hackers to load and run malicious code on user's computers without their knowledge.

The problem was caused by the software handling web addresses in Skype, which is said to be liable when handling short URLs. This apparently opens the Skype software up to a memory violation that allows code to be written to memory, ZDnet reports.

Security research firm Secunia rated the flaw as 'highly critical', the second-highest rating. If you're worried about being infected by the Skype security flaw, check out Secunia's Software Inspector, which should determine if your computer is vulnerable.

Skype urged all its users to make sure they are running Skype version 3.6, the latest update of the VoIP client.