Skype for iPhone and iPod Touch Confirmed, Available this Week
Anyone that has a signed deal with a mobile carrier knows that sometimes all those minutes included in the plan are not nearly enough to address your communication and socializing needs. There are now good news for all the iPhone users out there that do not want to overpay for their phone calls, and that good news is that Skype will launch an iPhone (and iPod touch) app this week (presumably Tuesday).
There is an upside and a downside to this story. The upside - because we always like to hear the good news first and the bad news second – is that you will get some iPhone specific apps (things you will not get in the mobile version of Skype for other such devices). The downside is that Skype for iPhone is missing some of the capabilities you may have seen in other mobile or desktop versions of the VoIP software.
Here are the bits and pieces you can expect to get with Skype for iPhone and iPod Touch:
- You must connect to Skype via WiFi and not 3G. Support for calls made over 3G networks is missing. You can however chat using Skype over your cell phone network.
- Making a call to a landline will set you back 2.1 cents per minute.
- Support for group chat and conference calls. There is a little catch here: you cannot initiate conference calls, but you can accept an invite to join one.
- Apple Address Book integration, meaning you do not need to duplicate number lists.
- SkypeIn, SkypeOut, Skype Chat.
Noticeable absences from Skype for iPhone and iPod Touch:
- No video calls. Skype Chief Operating Officer, Scott Durchslag: “We're considering video carefully but we have a really high bar on the quality. If we do it we will have to do it incredibly well.”
- No SMS and no file transfer, feature that has just recently been added to Skype 3.0 Beta for Windows Mobile - details here.
- You cannot initiate conference calls, but you can accept an invite to join one.
- You cannot directly purchase SkypeOut credit. You can however click the link in the My Info window and go purchase SkypeOut credit.
UPDATE: Skype for details shows up on iTunes just as scheduled - details here .
There is an upside and a downside to this story. The upside - because we always like to hear the good news first and the bad news second – is that you will get some iPhone specific apps (things you will not get in the mobile version of Skype for other such devices). The downside is that Skype for iPhone is missing some of the capabilities you may have seen in other mobile or desktop versions of the VoIP software.
Here are the bits and pieces you can expect to get with Skype for iPhone and iPod Touch:
- You must connect to Skype via WiFi and not 3G. Support for calls made over 3G networks is missing. You can however chat using Skype over your cell phone network.
- Making a call to a landline will set you back 2.1 cents per minute.
- Support for group chat and conference calls. There is a little catch here: you cannot initiate conference calls, but you can accept an invite to join one.
- Apple Address Book integration, meaning you do not need to duplicate number lists.
- SkypeIn, SkypeOut, Skype Chat.
Noticeable absences from Skype for iPhone and iPod Touch:
- No video calls. Skype Chief Operating Officer, Scott Durchslag: “We're considering video carefully but we have a really high bar on the quality. If we do it we will have to do it incredibly well.”
- No SMS and no file transfer, feature that has just recently been added to Skype 3.0 Beta for Windows Mobile - details here.
- You cannot initiate conference calls, but you can accept an invite to join one.
- You cannot directly purchase SkypeOut credit. You can however click the link in the My Info window and go purchase SkypeOut credit.
UPDATE: Skype for details shows up on iTunes just as scheduled - details here .
