Skype
Trying to find ways to make calls without forking over ridiculous roaming surcharges on 
my mobile, I ran into a free* software called Skype. You basically download their software (free) and you can call other Skype users for free, or you can call mobile phones anywhere in the world for ~$0.05/min. Yes, in the days of VoIP, this sounds like such a 2002 service -- and I hear that the popular messenger programs offer similar features -- but (1) I think that ones that come with messengers might be a substandard feature, (2) I'm technically very unmotivated.
So one night, I spent about 10 minutes downloading and setting it up (as painless as it gets) and after fiddling with some PayPal stuff (never used it before!), finally got $10 worth of credit to call US at whim... well, as much whim as you can get, stuck in front of my notebook computer -- as if spending +10 hours at work is not enough.
So far, I've been using it at an average of about 20 minutes each day on my hotel connection in Toronto (around 2-4 megabits/sec), considering that I don't have a headset setup (I use the basic built-in mike and speaker), my experience has been REALLY good.
Usually, from my side, a slight lag is noticeable, but not bothersome. The receiver mentioned a faint feedback, but again, nothing annoying enough to be a deterrent. Both problems are probably beautifully remedied by a cheap headset. There was only one night when the connection was bad -- the receiver kept fading on and off -- but I noticed that the internet connection at the hotel was very finicky that evening. On best days, there's no lag or feedback; call's almost as clear as a land-line!
In my mind, what sets this product apart are:
1. User interface is intuitive and well designed (there are skins available for download)
2. Skype-to-Skype is free, and you can make Skype-to-mobile calls using same interface
3. There are advanced features such as conferencing and video calling (both not tested)
I've yet to try it with my buddy in Germany or my friends in Korea, but at least for Toronto-US communication, this totally works.
my mobile, I ran into a free* software called Skype. You basically download their software (free) and you can call other Skype users for free, or you can call mobile phones anywhere in the world for ~$0.05/min. Yes, in the days of VoIP, this sounds like such a 2002 service -- and I hear that the popular messenger programs offer similar features -- but (1) I think that ones that come with messengers might be a substandard feature, (2) I'm technically very unmotivated.So one night, I spent about 10 minutes downloading and setting it up (as painless as it gets) and after fiddling with some PayPal stuff (never used it before!), finally got $10 worth of credit to call US at whim... well, as much whim as you can get, stuck in front of my notebook computer -- as if spending +10 hours at work is not enough.
So far, I've been using it at an average of about 20 minutes each day on my hotel connection in Toronto (around 2-4 megabits/sec), considering that I don't have a headset setup (I use the basic built-in mike and speaker), my experience has been REALLY good.
Usually, from my side, a slight lag is noticeable, but not bothersome. The receiver mentioned a faint feedback, but again, nothing annoying enough to be a deterrent. Both problems are probably beautifully remedied by a cheap headset. There was only one night when the connection was bad -- the receiver kept fading on and off -- but I noticed that the internet connection at the hotel was very finicky that evening. On best days, there's no lag or feedback; call's almost as clear as a land-line!
In my mind, what sets this product apart are:
1. User interface is intuitive and well designed (there are skins available for download)
2. Skype-to-Skype is free, and you can make Skype-to-mobile calls using same interface
3. There are advanced features such as conferencing and video calling (both not tested)
I've yet to try it with my buddy in Germany or my friends in Korea, but at least for Toronto-US communication, this totally works.
posted by choongster at 9:45 PM
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