[Jim Beam]

I keep hearing about Skype. Is it any good ? Do I need a headset or special phone to use it from my PC ?

[Mike Aiken]

Jim

I am using VOIP Cheap http://www.voipcheap.co.uk/en/index.html which is similar to Skype.

You have to initially pay £10 to set up your account, but dont worry you dont lose that, any calls that are chargeable which are mainly to mobiles or premium rate lines such as 0845 and the like (and very cheap rates they are too) are deducted from this £10 which you keep topping it up.

The nice thing with VOIP Cheap is that you can phone normal landlines. UK landline calls are free, excepting to usual premium rate lines, but also calls to landlines in the rest of europe and the states are also free.

The other bonus is you are given a telephone number, which you can give to people, and if you use the divert feature to divert any incoming calls to your landline, you done even have to have your computer on.

Hope this is of help.

Mike

[LadyStardust]

Hi there all. I've been using Skype for about a year now and it's so useful and hasn't caused me any problems at all. I have it installed on my desktop PC at home which has speakers and a microphone. That's all you need - plus your broadband connection of course. I am in the UK and regularly "talk" with friends who also have Skype installed based in New Zealand, Spain and Australia. It's free, easy to use and doesn't cost you a penny. If you have a webcam (preferably at both ends) then that works reasonably well, although the transmission can be a bit stilted.

Just make sure you have up to date anti-virus software on your PC and you'll be fine.

Enjoy! It's good to talk.

[Venomator]

Useful thread this as I've been toying with getting Skype for a bit. Thanks for the positive stuff LadyStardust - helps me anyway.

Whereabouts in WS Lady ? ... I'm born & bred in buggered Bognor - now living Herts !

[Jim Beam]

Thankyou Mike for your response. I dodn't relaise you could call normall phones aswell. Still lots to learn.

Also thankyou LadyStardust, I feel a bit more confident now, although a webcam might scare a few callers to me

[P-E]

Yes I use Skype here and at work.

Just use it like MSN Messenger at home but at work I have a microphone.

[Highgord]

Jim

I installed Skype recently on my PC and added a PC World web cam (£20). The cam has a built in mic. Ten minutes later I was looking at and talking to my nephew in New Zealand! Very pleased with it.

[Dave]

Well Steve & I use it to comminicate on a daily basis, via PC's With a decent headset the quality is so much better than your normal phone

We have experienced some dropouts now & again, but nothing to worry about.

I would say most important thing is the headset if you intend to talk for any period of time. I did have it through the speakers with a sepreate mike, but a) I sounded like I was in a box & b) the rest of the family get annoyed with not disturbing you.

[Griff]

Must give this a go at some time. Can you get more than 2 people on a call . Eg . Conf call ?

[institches]

Originally Posted by Griff

Must give this a go at some time. Can you get more than 2 people on a call . Eg . Conf call ?

Works fine, but call quality has been dropping over the last few months with recent releases. More bells and whistles, but a less robust product. Colour me cynical, but it seems to coincide with becoming part of Ebay/ Paypal. Their srvers are probably overloaded and the standards of their software development are ... frankly depressing.

[Steve]

Its funny how conversations change and lead you onto other things After reading the above I had a look around the web and stumbled across this on the register...

The traditional home phone number could become a thing of the past as more and more people opt for fixed-mobile services and VoIP.

That's according to analysts at Jupiter Research, who say location will cease to be important for either making or receiving telephone calls. Indeed, its research has found that three in ten consumers are interested in using their mobile phone in place of their home telephone.

"VoIP will convert the home telephone from analogue to digital, and once digital, the home telephone number will become unfixed," Jupiter's Ian Fogg said. "It will no longer only be available just at home, but also in the office, in internet cafes, and even on mobile phones. VoIP telephony is attractive to consumers because services are digital, cheap, and flexible."

Earlier this week, IDC published its latest outlook for VoIP predicting that internet telephony will be the "next generation of technology to change the telecommunications landscape". Although the market for consumer VoIP is still in its infancy, IDC predicts that the number of residential VoIP users in the US will mushroom from around 10m today to 44m in 2010

IDC reckons that "mobility, simplicity, and on-demand telephony" are top of the list of trends that will drive growth in consumer VoIP services.
"The opportunity for an alternative phone service combined with simple setup and hardware requirements is what will make VoIP a practical addition to homes," said the research outfit.

"The potential for VoIP to combine with mobility will provide alternative service choices and devices that give users the experience of being able to communicate anytime, anyplace, anywhere."
Tiscali has become the latest outfit to join the world of VoIP following the launch of its NetPhone internet telephony service.

The winds of change