Tag: skype

Categories
Facebook

Voice Calls To Facebook Friends Coming Soon?

An interesting bit of rumor has been doing the rounds lately across the blogosphere. According to some Facebook users, the popular social network might be testing a new ‘Call‘ feature on the user profile pages. These users have reported to have noticed this button appear on the top right of their friends’ profile pages. However, pressing this button did not initiate any calls and neither have their friends reported to have received any alerts.

It is being speculated that Facebook may integrate its service with Skype’s VoIP calling service. It is worth noting that both these companies had signed a partnership late last year that will make it easy for Facebook users to call and video chat with their friends using Skype. Is the partnership already bearing fruits? We will await an official confirmation in this regard.

Categories
Mobile Software and Apps

Skype Issue With Untethered Jailbreak Fixed On New Beta Release

For those of you who have been working with the iPhone Dev Team in their beta testing of the new untethered jailbreak solution, you must be aware of some issues that prevented Skype from working correctly with Redsn0w untethered jailbreak. The Dev team has now released a new beta software – the sixth such release – that apparently fixes these Skype issues.

Users who already have a jailbroken iPhone running the beta 5 version can run the latest version directly over this version. These users have to “run beta6 and deselect every checkbox”. The Dev team has acknowledged a few other bugs that are still present on the beta test version – primarily with the Wi-Fi Sync app crashing the JB Monte process. We expect these issues to be sorted out in the next release.

Also, the Dev team has pointed out that a Windows version shall be released “only if we can make it less painful“. No time frame has been given for the completion of this.

Categories
Software and Apps

Group Video Calling On Skype Business Version Releases

After rolling out group video calling to consumer clients on desktop and mobile platforms, Skype has now rolled out the feature to the Business version of the VoIP service. The new feature will allow 3 to 10 business users to connect via Skype to engage in video conferencing. The Business version of Skype lets enterprise administrators to deploy Skype to employees besides turning on or off the various features that Skype comes with. The group video calling feature is available on Skype Business accounts at a price of $8.99 per user per month. Long term subscription plans also come at a discounted price.

Skype has also revealed a few other interesting details in their media report. They note that 37% of Skype users have used the service for a business purpose at least once. Also, 41.5% of Skype minutes in the second half of 2010 was consumed by group video calling. Quite clearly, Skype sees a lot of promise in this new feature in 2011.

Categories
Software and Apps

Skype Video Calling On iPhone Available For Download Now

Skype has made its highly anticipated video calling feature available for download for the iPhone. The roll out has definitely caught a number of people by surprise since it was widely believed that Skype could be making an announcement in this regard during the Consumer Electronics Show next month. We had earlier noted that Skype was inviting media for a conference on the sidelines of CES and this was seen as the platform when the new video calling features could be enabled.

The new feature will be available on iPhone 3GS/4, iPad and iPod Touch 4G users to share real time video with friends and family on other iDevices as well as on Windows, Mac or Linux devices. The service is free to use and can be accessed over Wi-Fi and 3G networks. You can check out a video demo of this feature in action below.

Download the new Skype app for iPhone here.

Categories
iPhone Apps Software and Apps

Skype Video Calling On iPhone Rolling Out Soon?

Looks like we were right in our speculation. Earlier this month, there were reports that Skype was calling up for a media interaction on the sidelines of the Consumer Electronics Show getting underway early next month. We had speculated that this interaction could be to introduce users to video calling functionalities on the next version of Skype’s iPhone app.

In fact, Skype is learned to have signed up for a panel discussion titled “Video Calling Gets Ready For Primetime” as well as has told a number of industry observers that the company will be making a number of video related announcements.

Now, a freshly drafted Skype help document has become public that indicates that a new Skype iPhone app version 3.0 could be rolled out soon that could bring video calling features to iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPod Touch 3G/4G and the iPad. It is worth noting that the current version of Skype app on the App Store is numbered 2.1.2.

So there you go. Get ready to start video calling your friends via your iPhone soon.

Categories
Mobile Software and Apps

Skype Video Calling For Android & iPhone Coming Next Month?

As of now, the only mobile phone that can make video calls over Skype is the Nokia N900. If you are the owner of an iPhone, Android or any other smartphone, you are unfortunately out of luck since Skype video calling is still not available on these devices.

That could possibly change soon. According to reports, Skype has called up for a media gathering on January 6, 2011 on the sidelines of  the Consumer Electronics Show. Speculations are rife that Skype could be announcing a new mobile application for a number of platforms like the iOS and Android that will come equipped with video calling functionalities.

To be fair, there is nothing explicitly mentioned in the invitation itself and this is just a speculation based on the invitation list that includes blogs focusing on Android platform. So if anything, at least something big for Android is on the cards. So keep watching out.

Categories
Mobile Software and Apps

New Android Skype App For HTC Wildfire-Like Low Resolution Devices

If you an Android handset like HTC Wildfire that has a pretty low resolution compared to other popular smartphones in the market, then you may have realized that the current version of Skype app for Android does not support these devices. Now, the popular VoIP communications company has announced a new version of their Android app that brings their service to Android devices with smaller resolution like 320×240 and 240×400.

Apart from this additional resolution compatibility, Skype for Android 1.0.1 now also comes with additional features like support for hardware back key, improved performance on accounts with large contacts lists and reduced power consumption in idle mode. Also, the new application consumes less space on the device and unlike the earlier version, the new app automatically exists the Skype app while signing out.

You can download the latest app by visiting the Android market or by visiting skype.com/m from your Android phone. Do you like the new version?

Categories
Software and Apps

Group Video Chat On Skype For Mac Now Available [Video Demo]

Following the release of group video calling on Windows PC in September this year, Skype has now introduced the functionality on the Mac. The new Skype 5.0 for Mac is now available for download in public beta and comes with a number of new features besides support for video calling.

Most importantly, the user interface seems to be reworked quite a bit. The contacts address book is now available as a floating bar for easy access and it is also integrated with the Mac address book. There is also a new calling bar that makes it easy to hang up the call from any screen. If you are a user with a pretty weak internet connection, you should also happy about the new auto-reconnect feature.

But group video calling is definitely the highlight of this new download. You can watch a demo of the application in the video embedded below. Click here for the download link and here for the latest from Skype.

Categories
Gadgets Verizon

No Skype Over 3G On Verizon Samsung Galaxy Tab

Those of you in the US who want to go with Verizon’s Samsung Galaxy Tab do take note. Your tablets will not come with the ability to use Skype’s voice calling facility over 3G. A recent report on PC Mag notes that the Skype app will come pre-loaded on Verizon’s Galaxy Tab; but this application will only work over Wi-Fi and will not consume any 3G data.

This is interesting from more than one perspective. Firstly, Skype and Verizon have been partners for sometime now after the companies signed a deal last year that brought Skype’s 3G calling feature pre-installed on Verizon phones. The move was to counter the influence of AT&T iPhone that had, at that time, prohibited the use of 3G data by third party VoIP services. Secondly, though Verizon is only selling Wi-Fi versions of the iPad on its stores, these tablets are bundled with a Verizon MiFi device that makes use of the carrier’s 3G network to offer a wireless hotspot for mobile surfing.

Interestingly, other VoIP clients like those from Fring, Nimbuzz and Qik are expected to work over WiFi as well as 3G on the Verizon Galaxy Tab. That makes the absence of 3G Skype on the Verizon Tab all the more intriguing.

Categories
Mobile

Hacked Skype App For Android Lets You Make Calls Over 3G

Didn’t we see this coming? Earlier this week, popular VoIP communications service, Skype announced their new app for the Android platform that will let users make VoIP calls to their friends for free from their mobile phones. While the application enabled users to make calls via 3G as well as Wi-Fi across the world, the VoIP over 3G functionality was blocked in the USA to the disappointment of many.

However,a newly hacked version of the Skype app now makes it possible for American users to make Skype calls over their 3G network. This is thanks to the popular Android developer nicknamed Xeudoxus who is famous for the Dark Edge Android UI. Xeudoxus has now released a tweaked version of the Skype Android app that removes the restrictions placed on the official app. What’s impressive is that this hacked version does not require users to root their Android phones and can be downloaded straightaway by clicking this link.

Like this tweak? Don’t forget to make a donation to Xeudoxus here.