1. The Road to Skype
We consider land-line replacements in the form of Skype-compatible desktop phones and mobile phones. 7 phones are evaluated, but fewer than 3 make the cut.
Perhaps it started when I called AT&T and asked the folks there to reduce my cellular family plan to be competitive with T-Mobile and Verizon. After all, I figured that T-Mobile was offering more total voice/data/messaging service for about $50 less per month. A friend of mine had gotten his rates adjusted with a phone call, so why not me? But no, AT&T wouldn’t budge, perhaps because we’d gotten my wife a new BlackBerry in December under a fresh, shiny two-year contract. Knowing I was stuck between a rock and a $175 premature termination fee, they kindly bid me good day.
Okay, I thought, where do I come up with $175 in savings to counterbalance pulling the plug on ol’ Ma Bell if I so desired? That was when a friend happened to instant message me on Skype. Hmm...Skype.
We’d ditched our home landline many months ago and gone cellular-only, but that hadn’t been quite the coup I’d hoped. Turns out that a couple of particular family members on my wife’s side chew up a lot more minutes and text messages than I’d thought, resulting in plan overages and having to upgrade our service. Now the savings from going cell-only have practically evaporated. For two BlackBerry phones with unlimited data on AT&T, we’re paying nearly $200 per month.
A Vonage disaster two years ago had soured me on residential voice-over-IP (VoIP), but times change. Perhaps it was time to give VoIP another shot. I know there are many options in the market, and I was sorely tempted to give the MagicJack and Google Voice a whirl. However, given its market prominence, third-party support, and my natural desire to consolidate as many communication modes as possible under one interface and/or service, I decided to give Skype a shot. Just maybe, Skype could become my new “land line” and take the strain off of both my cellular plan and monthly budget.
- 1. The Road to Skype
- 2. Skype Details
- 3. Phone Quest
- 4. Belkin Wi-Fi Phone for Skype
- 5. Belkin Wi-Fi in “Use”
- 6. Belkin Internet Phone for Skype
- 7. Belkin Internet Phone in Use
- 8. ASUS Videophone Touch AiGuru SV1T
- 9. ASUS Videophone in Use
- 10. IPEVO TR-10i Speakerphone for iChat & Skype
- 11. The TR-10i in Use
- 12. Nokia N900
- 13. Nokia N900 in Use
- 14. HTC Pure
- 15. HTC Pure in Use
- 16. Skype: Are We There Yet?
- Smartphones,
- Nokia,
- HTC,
- Ipevo,
- AsusTeK COMPUTER,
- Skype ,
- Phones ,
- Video
You can also use google voice to control the flow of phone calls. Get a google number then have it go to skype and cell phone at the same time. Answer where appropriate.
I think one of the devices that you should have checked out was the PSP. Skype on the psp using Wifi is great. The only bad part is that you have to purchase the headset, but if your playing socom or something like that you already have the headset. When I went to Korea on business, they have free Wifi at the ariport and I called home for free on my psp and it was frreeeeee!
why the nokia n900 phone wont reconize #* when you have to use it to top up you cell ph
Perhaps Tom's can do a similar comparison for the open standard SIP based phones? They can carry both audio and video depending on capabilities of each phone and would be a goood read for those of us who already have a SIP based phone server (Like me
).
I have to keep in touch with my long distance fiancee who lives in the middle east. If it weren't for Skype, we'd have to go for many weeks without seeing or hearing each other. The money that I saved through Skype I am spending on plane tickets.
My Skype setup is your standard laptop, webcam, headset setup. But on the go I use a Nokia E71. I use Fring, the other apps were dire. Fring does the job of having all of my IMs and phone calls in one place. Thanks to a relatively good 3G coverage near me, I only lose calls in the countryside. And, well, I can put up with that...
You're forgetting Ooma, another Voip company that doesn't require a PC to work, and NO MONTLY CHARGES
You're forgetting Ooma, another Voip company that doesn't require a PC to work, and NO MONTLY CHARGES
Ooma has some benefits (and also remember that Skype has no monthly charges for pc-to-pc calls) but the trouble is that if your friends aren't already using Ooma it is tough to get them to switch. Skype has the installed base for now...
We use a Zoom 5900 with our old Dell 700m with a set of Panasonic Dect 6.0's. It works fairly well.
In response to Tomsguiderachel, concerning Ooma, there is no need for others to be on Ooma to use it yourself. Once you've installed it to your router and plugged in your normal telephones (wired or cordless), it works just like any other phone. The people you call don't need to have an Ooma device. All domestic calls are free and international calls are similar and even slightly cheaper than Skype.
In response to Tomsguiderachel, concerning Ooma, there is no need for others to be on Ooma to use it yourself. Once you've installed it to your router and plugged in your normal telephones (wired or cordless), it works just like any other phone. The people you call don't need to have an Ooma device. All domestic calls are free and international calls are similar and even slightly cheaper than Skype.
Thanks for the info. Might be worth a try for some people!
Haven't done any research, but i'm pretty sure there are Skype compatible USB to RJ-11 connectors that would allow you have a home server type box set up in a closet hooked into the house's telephone wires and let standard phones hook in as usual. Seems like these could be a great solution for many homes with existing corded/cordless phones. I may be dreaming though.
I don't live there but we manage to get an Ooma device here in a country in Asia. It works well considering no monthly charges, good as our Vonage phone. It is also a bit better since has more features.
It was either Phillips or Panasonic had an excellent Skype phone, but they quite making it. I really want a Skype phone I can plug into my router so I have access to Skype without my PC running. But I have yet to see a phone that isn't either way over-priced, a piece of junk, or looks very uncomfortable to hold.
Great article(s)!! What about using Skype over GSM/3G/4G on the cell phones? For me the huge killer in my cell phone bills is when I have to call outside the USA (Canada or Europe). If I could use Skypeout, that could lower my costs significantly but I am afraid of what the quality will be like and I can't seem to get a straight answer (surprise, surprise) from any cell phone provider.
benzimidazolone I've used Vonage to make over seas calls, and it was clear as bell, I have never used my skype to make any overseas calls, but VOIP pretty much works the same regardless of the app. About the only negative thing I can say about VOIP is using Magic Jack, lot complaints of drop calls and cut-outs.
dude, you are missing the point...what I mean is using the Skype app with the iPhone or other smart phone over the GSM/3G/4G network, not[uover a conventional internet connection (wired or wireless).
I use Skype with my Linksys CIT200 Skype cordless phone. I have been using it since 2006 and it is just great. Works like a land line phone since it is cordless and has a 2.5 mm headphone jack, I can roam around the house while on a call! This phone has a base station and I am amazed at the clearness of the calls and distance I can go. Why did they stop making this phone!
I had Belkin desktop phone but the problem with those are you cannot enter number after a call is made. Like, when you hear "Dial 1 for English" and you try to enter 1 nothing happens. I called Belkin and they said the chips on those phones do not allow this feature. I returned the phones and got Linksys phone and all is fine now.