19 May 08 Skype on HTC Touch from Bell Mobility – works fine but… not for voice calls (yet!)
OK, so my super-duper HTC Touch Vogue which I have on the Bell Mobility CDMA network is still in a serious love affair with me (or vice versa)…
I did indeed manage to install Skype Mobile (Pocket PC for Windows Mobile) on the Touch and it works great for Skype instant messaging but… not so great yet for outgoing Skype voice calls. I’ll be investigating to see if this is something that Bell Mobility has perhaps locked out of their ROM version on the touch because I know other people are indeed doing Skype calls from their PocketPC touchphones…
If you’ve got similar experiences, or solutions, leave a comment please!
Tags: Bell Mobility, Hardware, HTC Touch, Skype, touchphones, VOIP, Wireless
13 Dec 07 Dell Day 11 of 12: Netgear SPH200D Dual Mode Cordless Skype Phone for $99
OK, a quick article in between sandwich and a soup for lunch.
Ahhh Christmas is getting closer and those fun lovin’ corporate multinationals have more and more enticing ways to separate you from your hard earned (?) money.
So, without further ado, today on Dell Canada, the star is the Netgear SPH200D Dual Mode Cordless Phone & Skype Support for $99 down from $189.
What makes this phone interesting, besides that it works as a standard phone over the PSTN (public switched telephone network) is that it also works as a stand-alone Skype phone using your broadband (cablemodem, DSL, etc.) Internet connection. You basically log in to your Skype account directly from the phone, and you can make calls from anywhere in the house within range of the receiver. This is nice because it gives you that classic telephone feel with a handset… and you can relax on the couch or in your bed a bit easier than with your laptop.. (or full tower PC hehe).
The device supports 12 hours of talking and 120 hours of standby time (figure 1/2 that in real-world usage) and a nice 3-line color LCD screen.
Definitely worth getting, and I’ve been a satisfied Skype and SkypeOut user for a couple of years and a few versions of Skype on both desktops, portables and Windows Mobile devices…
Other deals include the Dell SP2008WFP 20″ Widescreen LCD Monitor with a built-in Webcam… sounds great for $229.. but no thanks. As of today, no LCDs under 22″ in size, 16/9 or 16/10 form factor and…. native 1920 x 1080 resolution. That is the new minimum – 1920 x 1080 to support full HD.
There is a cool James Bond (err, Jason Bourne…?) style TrendNet TV-IP312W Wireless 2-Way Audio Day/Night Internet Camera System which lets you REALLY play big brother… and everyone else within range of it hehe. It’s a fun gadget for $139 down from $270. The TrendNet products (AV surveillance especially) tend to get mixed reviews on the performance and stability side, but I haven’t heard enough about this unit to pass judgement yet. Leave a comment if you have any opinions on it.
Since Dell now sells EVERYTHING… there’s also a “Dell exclusive” Ferguson Hill FHOO7 Mini Speaker System for $549… hmmm?
Tags: VOIP
21 Nov 07 Sergey Brin does live video demo of actual Google Android Phone – not a gPhone but on the gWireless gLobal gNet.
A quick lunchtime post – was watching an interesting video presentation of a mobile device powered by the new Google Android mobile operating system platform. Obviously, it is a gPhone. Yes, it is. Notice the G icon on the top of the device screen – next to the bricks/bars indicating signal strength. This icon changes with up and down arrows depending on whether the device is uploading/downloading data to their protoype gNetwork at the GooglePlex. 
Tags: VOIP
03 Nov 07 Amol Sharma of New York Times confirms Google Phone launch on Monday
Actually, Sharma quotes inside sources at the Googleplex as saying:
Google about its big plans in wireless … … announcing an alliance with various handset makers and cellphone operators around the world that are willing to push its “open” platform for cellphone applications
It appears that HTC from Taiwan is one of the forerunners to build the actual gPhone hardware although other handset heavweights Samsung, LG, and SonyEricsson are also being whispered to be involved.
Tags: VOIP
31 Oct 07 Videotron launches Softphone : computer based fully featured VOIP but also video – competing with Vonage, Primus etc…
Now those of you who know me know that I am an early adopter of technologies I believe in. I was the first residential customer on the south shore of Montreal for Videotron’s cable internet service – that was in 1996-1997. Installation was $69 and three Videotron boom trucks spent close to 3.5-4 hours tweaking cable connections from my residence in Greenfield Park to the nearest HFC (hybrid fibre-copper) station nearby. The only other cable internet client was the Future Shop retail store on Taschereau boulevard … and that was to demo the Videotron product.
So here I am 10+ years later – and a fervent happy customer of Videotron Cable HFC Internet service – and their customer service over the years… and a digital Illico TV subscriber… and a cable telephony subscriber … my only service with Bell Canada now is my mobile phone (which is out of contract, so unless Bell Mobility has one HECK of a sweet retention offer to make me…)
So now I get this press release from Quebecor / VTL about their new Softphone offering… I have tested it in beta – it launches officially today (Halloween) and there are already TV spots running..
Basically – access ALL your videotron home phone line and features from your computer ANYWHERE in teh world for $19.99 per month ; A full review and screen shots to come shortly…. enjoy the official press release for now :
Montréal, Wednesday, October 24, 2007 – After launching its cable residential telephone service two years ago and its wireless telephone service in 2006, Videotron is introducing a softphone service to provide individuals with greater mobility. Available as of October 31, 2007, Videotron’s new computer-based service provides users with more flexibility when travelling, the ability to make local calls anywhere in the world, and new communications management capabilities.
Tags: VOIP
