Navoto fights roaming with Skype

Verizon's Skype mobile apps for Android and Blackberry, tied to Verizon's Wi-Fi, won't roam internationally. The new Navoto GSM Gateway for Skype offers a way around this. The gateway connects your hometown wireless carrier to your on-the-road mobile phone.

Omri Navot was one of the first to pioneer hardware that added value for Skype users. Skype Journal introduced his SkyQube from Singapore's Qool Labs in April 2006. Now his own company, UGI Telecom, an original design manufacturer in Rehovot, Israel, is releasing the gateway today.

Getting set up takes about ten minutes. Plug in the cables and install the software. Before your trip, take the SIM card from your mobile and put it into the gateway. When you arrive at your destination, get a local prepaid SIM and put it in your mobile phone. Then "pair" your new SIM by texting the gateway.

Once Navoto knows your new SIM, it starts to work. Calls to your mobile number at home are forwarded to you through a SkypeOut call.

You can make calls through Navoto's ringback feature. Ping the gateway, it calls you using SkypeOut, you hear dialtone and make your call. You can also setup speed dial contacts to make it easy to reach phone numbers or a few of your Skype contacts.

Let's look at the gear, in this case a prototype from a few months' ago.

The front of the box has a slot for your local SIM card. By putting your mobile phone's SIM card in the box, Navoto looks like your mobile phone to your wireless carrier.

You eject your SIM card poking a paper clip into a small hole.

The back of the box has (from left to right) a power jack, two RJ11 phone line jacks so you can keep your home phone connected, a USB port to connect to your home-town PC, and a connector for the GSM antenna. 

The GSM antenna lets the box talk with your home-town wireless carrier. 

The software running on your PC is a Skype plug-in, talking to your Skype desktop client. None of this works unless Skype for Windows is running.

The Navoto desktop software has many features.

Voice mail, call recording, voice messages, simple configurable IVR (phone menus), voicemails sent to your email account, SMS texting, and scheduled mode changes (home, work, offline, etc.).

Navoto Gateways are entering the distribution channel this week.

In my experience, the prototype gateway works as advertised.

However it is still very early for this product and I haven't worked with final production versions of the software or the gear. Both the hardware and software are improving quickly in response to known bugs and feature requests. I experienced installation bugs with the email feature, for example. My version of the box, one of a handful of production tests, didn't have final CE FCC certification, packaging, finish, labels,  or documentation. I look forward to giving the finished product another look.

International calling is the largest (only?) growing telecom sector. Skypers called for more than twelve percent of all international minutes in 2009. Demand for cross-border calling is proven. How much is due to travel? How many billions of dollars does the international roaming market collect? Omri Navot aims to find out.

tags: navoto, hardware, software, gsm, mobile, gateway, skype, skypeout, israel, is, emea

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
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Photo on wood table: Navoto. Other photos and chart: Phil Wolff.

Orphaning Skype for Windows Mobile users shows Leadership

UPDATE: Added explanation of cow photo.

When is Windows Phone 7 Series coming to market? September 2010? Seven months from now? That's a long time to be making WinMobile users hate your brand. Or to keep investing in code that only runs on 6.5 with a short shelf life. In that spirit, Adobe announced it's suspending engineering for 6.5 flash products.

The cow to the left is being immobilized for humane slaughter. Photo: Dr. Temple Grandin. Do you love your product? Product portfolio managers set those feelings aside so they can end-of-life them at the right time.

Similarly Russ Shaw yesterday killed the Skype Lite for Windows Mobile thin client and the Skype for Windows Mobile app. Shaw is Skype's new VP/GM for its mobile business unit. Customer dissatisfaction with those products hurt Skype's reputation as easy, reliable and sensual. It took fresh eyes and a clear mandate to kill Skype's current offerings without a replacement ready. The user experience -– complaints of abysmal audio quality and improper hardware setup -- hurt Skype's business more than it helped.

Skype pulled these releases from distribution; if you have Skype installed on your Windows Mobile phone then you can Skype away all year.

Practicing product management sometimes feels like raising livestock. We have great hopes, spend time nurturing them, and get the most out of them during their productive life. When that productive life is over? Take them to the slaughterhouse and kill them. Make room for the next generation.

Skype's mobile services are available on most handsets yet Skype is still just starting to partner deeply with mobile operators. While the product portfolio is diversified, Hutchison Whampoa's 3 has been the only large carrier to seriously partner with Skype. Skype's partnership with Verizon is a great start at diversifying mobile revenue partners and expanding United States distribution. 

Hat tip to WMPoweruser for breaking this.

• Jim Courtney: Skype for Mobile – Now Focusing on a True Skype User Experience.
• Jim Courtney: Skype for Mobile: An Interview with Skype’s Russ Shaw.
• Russ Shaw: 2009 in Mobile, December 2009

tags: skype, windowsphone, mobile

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private technologist roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Gifts for the Skype crowd

Gear: The Better to Hear and See All Year Long

Cute 3-D Webcam from Minoru. For the friend who wants even more than Skype's High Quality and considers 3D glasses the height of fashion. Cheerful, stereoscopic, and works wonderfully with Skype. Minoru videos on YouTube (and wear your 3D specs). Review. Amazon. $89/£50/€80.

Point 2 View (P2V) USB camera. Skype in-focus close-ups in your video call. You show the grandkids your stamp collection, they show you the bugs they found in the back yard. Armature stand included. Review, Overview, Gallery, FAQ, Tech specs, Downloads. Ipevo Store. Amazon.

Touch Screen Videophone from ASUS. The ASUS SV1TS gets the PC out of the way of Skype video. You drop it in the kitchen or living room, plug in the power cord, connect the Wi-Fi, touch the screen, and talk. Large, clear picture. Amazon. $230.

MXL AC-405 USB personal computer speakerphone. Absolutely the best audio quality anywhere near this price from Maxell, world experts in microphone engineering. The AC-405 shares technology with their high-end music and television studio microphones. Amazon. $55.

Freetalk Wireless Stereo Headset. Still one of the best for looks, quality, comfort and ruggedness. More than five hours of talk time and even then it works while recharging. I use it daily without tripping over cables. Review. Amazon. Skype store. $80.

Software: To Record and Share

Vodburner records Skype video calls on Windows. The Vodburner Beta includes easy editing software (see screenshot below) that automatically switches the shot between the two of you depending on who is speaking. Publish meetings, interviews, and training sessions on the web. A subscription runs $9.95 (USD) monthly.

Pamela Professional Edition, the Skype Assistant. Proven software with built in voice mail, birthday reminders, and in-call sound effects. Like Vodburner, it records calls but without an audio or video editor. An all around utility kit for Windows Skype users. I've been using Pamela for many years. PamSoft. €19,95.

Skype Journal Video Grooming Kit:

Teeth: Rembrandt 2-Hour Whitening Kit. Whiter teeth take years off. Feel free to smile.

Hair: Kent White Bristle Hair Brush for those stray hairs. (Ah, I remember the days when I had hair on the top of my head worth brushing.)

Inspection: Jerdon First Class Mirror so you know you look good and bounce a little light your way. See yourself the way others see you.

Skin: Avon mark Cheat Sheet Shine-Blotters to remove oils from your face that shine in the light. (I always thought it was a reflection off my eyeglasses that blinded viewers, but it was the glare from my forehead. )

Wardrobe: Everyone looks better on camera in a clean, dark blue shirt: Soffe Men's Base Layer Long Sleeve Crew Tee. White clothing creates glare and throws off your camera's sensors. Keep a clean, dark and solid top by your desk for the unexpected Skype call.

Lights: Natural light makes you look marvelous. I use the Verilux Original Natural Spectrum Deluxe Desk Lamp, so the camera can see my face. (Despite requests to turn it off.)

Lens: Keep your webcam lens clear with the Nikon Complete Lens Cleaner Kit or the LensPEN Lens Cleaning System. (This doesn't seem to help me: I always turn out smudged no matter how clean the webcam.)

Chris Pirillo extols traveling with the IPEVO S0-20 Wi-Fi Skype Phone

Chris says you save on roaming and keep connected with Wi-Fi when cell coverage is spotty. The IPEVO S0-20 WiFi Phone for Skype on Amazon.

AmperorDirect has a detailed unboxing video.

This is IPEVO's best selling Skype phone in 2009. Be sure to upgrade the firmware for the latest version of Skype's software.

Caveats: the SO-20 doesn't come with a web browser; many Wi-Fi hotspots require you to log in before getting a connection. It doesn't appear to import SkypeOut contacts.

See also: VoIP Planet review. CrunchGear review. Skype forum feedback.

tags: skype, wi-fi, wifi, phone, hardware, gear, gift, mobile, ipevo, so20, s020, s0-20, so-20, so2o, confusingname

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private technologist roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Review: The new IPEVO Solo adds Wi-Fi, lowers cost

IPEVO updated their IPEVO S0-10W desk phone (pronounced "solo") with Skype inside. Wi-Fi adapter is now included (so you only need a power cable), the handset is now black like the rest of the unit instead of a contrasting white, and the price is down 36% to $109.99 from $169.99.  More for less.

We've reviewed this phone before and liked it in January 2008. 

Things I still like:

• It's really pretty. Ipevo's been making the classiest Skype phones for years. Every edge, button, and cable has a designer's elegance and an engineer's usability. You'll look good on a budget.
• The audio is clear. Not music quality in either handset speaker and microphone or the hands-free speaker. But as clear as any off the shelf PSTN phone. Even better, other software doesn't consume CPU or disk Skype needs, so audio quality is consistent.
• The buttons and control layout are big and easy to use. It's nice to just reach over dial a number when you have to. Or scroll down and pick a name.
• No PC required. So I can put this in any room in the house.

Things I don't like:

• Audio quality is limited to old CODECs, so you don't get High Quality audio from Skype's SILK codec.
• Skype's built in software is clunky and awkward, far from Skype's more elegant and engaging software for Mac, Windows, and iPhone. It represents Skype's first efforts around 2006-2007 to design compact user interfaces for devices.
• Some simple tasks can be difficult. Scrolling to find someone's name in a long list can take a very long time. Adding a contact takes many steps and is unforgiving.
• No more than 500 contacts. No big deal for most people. But you can cross that limit if your company is on Skype, or you import your Google contacts, or you are the editor of Skype Journal.
• It spontaneously logs out from the Skype network. Darned software leaves you back at the sign in form. It does not remember my Skype login, so I have to rekey it each time. Because it may be logged off from Skype, I can't rely on it ringing when someone Skypes me.
• Cable still required for handset. Cordless phones, handsets and headsets rock.
• Firmware not automatically updated.

Skype hasn't issued a major refresh for embedded software in a while. The average Skype phone won't be much smarter until the design aesthetic used in Skype's Mac and MID products finds its way into the embedded codebase.

Bottom line: This is a useful PC-free Skype desk phone. The addition of Wi-Fi and the lower price makes this a reasonable deal.

Buy it from IPEVO Store. Amperor Direct. Fry's. Amazon.

tags: skype, ipevo, deskphone, desk, phone, telephone, solo, s0-10, firmware, embedded

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private technologist roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Labor Day thoughts on the 2009 Skype sale

1. eBay's post-Whitman management gets credit for doing something right. Staffing the right executives in 2008. Letting the new leaders turn the startup into a company worth selling. Sending the right signals to potential buyers. Getting the deal done. Not rewarding the founders for their Joltid extortion. Nice way to turn things around!
2. Silverlake controls everything. With Silverlake Partners owning more than 50% of Skype Ltd., it's their call when to float Skype stock in the future or sell Skype to another company.
3. Skype will fund its own expansion. Don't expect cash infusions for acquisitions, infrastructure, labor intensive services, or advertising. Skype has been producing more than $10 million monthly in free cash. Skype's roadmap will chew up all of it just for internal growth and to create cash reserves.
4. Skype will keep its overall direction and product strategy. Skype doesn't need to rethink its business anytime soon.   
5. The SEC pipeline of data will be gone. eBay's 2009q3 10Q report (coming this October) may be the last detailed reporting of Skype operations and finances ever. Privately owned companies need not report performance unless they float stock.

Five product changes I expect from Skype in the next year.

1. Better P2P. Skype will first deploy a simple functional replacement of the Joltid P2P engine. They will improve it, building in six years' of real world experience Joltid never had. Skype should be able to make its P2P network more resistant to Internet outages and blocking, more resilient in the face of damage to the peer fabric, more efficient in finding and routing connections between users.
2. Better video. Perhaps their own video codecs. Higher resolution video as cameras and PCs catch up. Multiparty video calls. Better use of processors, including video digital signal processors. 
3. Skype Inside. A clearer platforming strategy, building on their experience with Skype Lite (clouds of Skype supporting thin, mobile Skype clients) and Skype For Asterisk (adding UI-free Skype clients to someone else's servers). Think "Communications as a Platform," where you can build Skype messaging, presence, and calling into mobile, desktop, and server applications.
4. ID anguish. Skype has an immature user identity model, left over from instant messaging services in the mid 1990s. We'll see greater conflict between Skype's two identity systems. Skype's consumer and corporate Skype names (user IDs) aren't interchangeable although their users and markets overlap.
5. A little less anti-social. Skype's great at talking with people you know. It does nothing to help me find interesting, entertaining, or useful strangers. Almost nothing (do birthdays count?) at helping me curate my friends and cultivate my relationships over time. Skype backed off from supporting its Skypecasts service (hosted calls with moderated Skype chat backchannels) and Skype public chats (web links to group text chats). Skype will research how to help people do more during a conversation (collaboration) and how to add more of the value found in other social media (discovery, ridiculously easy group formation, social gestures, non-conversational messaging).

tags: skype, silverlake

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

photo credit: underlying photo CC BY 2.0 by Casey Serin.

GigaOm: No Skype for Palm Pre yet.

"As things are evolving quickly in this space, we will continue to keep our eye on Palm’s Pre and webOS platform, which seems to be getting good traction in its first weekend. But we have nothing to announce at this time" a Skype spokesperson told Jennifer Martinez per her Skype: No Palm Pre App for Now report.

Of course, if Skype opened up their Skype Lite server farm as a platform, developers could build their own Skype clients for the Pre.

tags: skype, palm, pre, palm pre, webOS, mobile

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Could Plantronics launch the first SILK Bluetooth headset?

Someone has to go first. Plantronics' teaser campaign promises Bluetooth and vague delights. But what I really want is a great Bluetooth headset, a digital signal processor with Skype's SILK codec inside, and a superwideband highest-fidelity microphone (so you can hear the real me). Launch is set for nine days and seven hours from now.

 

tags: plantronics, headset, bluetooth, silk, skype, mobile

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Skype for Mac 2.8 Beta 2 (2.8.0.324)

Download the latest. 59 bugfixes. New: edit your account inside the Skype client, added a screen sharing spectator window.

For programmers: "get skypeversion", "get chat x dialog_partner", and "ping" are now in the Mac's Skype API. via Peter Parkes.

tags: skype, apple, beta, mac, download

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Skype Mobile Battle: iPhone vs. PSP

Guest Post by Andy Yang of The Mobile Experience Blog

Skype, one of the most used IM/Chat/VOIP/Video-Conferencing application for PC and Mac is slowly working its dominance up the mobile alley and we love it! I've always known it's support for Windows Mobile, Nokia devices and Wi-Fi Phones (Skype Phones) but it was the recent integration with Sony's Playstation Portable firmware upgrade as well as the hot-off-the-press Skype for iPhone/iPod Touch that is really cooking up some serious mobile progress. With Skype application for BlackBerry phones coming soon, Skype is in a very good position to become one of the leaders in mobile application. Having Skype on the go across multiple platform is definitely going to enhance our mobile experience, this is very exciting indeed.

In this article, I will attempt to compare Skype for iPhone vs. Skype for Playstation Portable. I'll update this entry when the BlackBerry version becomes available.

The iPhone (iPod Touch) and Playstation Portable is arguably two of the most popular gadgets for travelers on the go. When I review communication gadgets or software, I always like to imagine myself traveling abroad where I would not have access to a local cell phone and would like to keep in touch with friends or family at the luxury of my own mobile gadget. The appeal of Skype has always been there for me for that reason, that is why a laptop has been essential for all my travels until smartphones started to feature applications to support various communication needs such as Fring. That said, I think iPhone or Playstation Portable (PSP) are two of the most carried devices for travelers. I can just see myself in an airport lounge dialing international long distance over Wi-Fi to keep in touch with loved ones via either device.

Skype for iPhone

The iPhone and iPod Touch needs very little introduction. With a large touch screen display and portrait layout, it makes a very good UI candidate for Skype (much like its desktop counterpart).

Everything is integrated so well together on this handy little app. For example, your contacts from your iPhone is automatically hooked up with Skype in addition to its default contact list. To see who is online, you can easily toggle the software button towards the top of the screen.

One of the big advantage of iPhone is it's integrated microphone that Skype can take advantage of without the need of additional headset. The VOIP function will only work in a Wi-Fi environment (at home, coffee house, airport lounges, etc...) whereas the text Chats can work over your phone's standard data plan.

I love the fact that this little app does everything its desktop counter part can do, including editing one's profile or add more Skype-out funds over the handset. Overall, its an amazing application that has been done right, I love it and its free to download!

Pros: Excellent UI and layout, very easy to use and intuitive. Perfect integration to leverage iPhone's hardware (buttons, camera, etc...) Everything your desktop Skype can do can be done here!

Cons: No VOIP over 3G data, no web-cam video conference, app must be installed separately (only mentioning this because PSP is part of firmware OS)

Skype for Playstation Portable (PSP)

I love the convenience of having my beloved PSP-3000 as a gaming device and knowing it can also surf the web with Flash while keeping up with the communications needs via Skype.

No application to install here, its part of the firmware 3.90+ upgrade. While the PSP doesn't have a touchscreen UI and the horizontal layout is not taking advantage of the screen real estate as much, it does offer a full suite of Skype features. The SkypeOut and VOIP PC calls are there along with text chat.

Because the onscreen keyboard is driven by the directional keys and based on the 12-button numeric pad, it can be frustrating when compared to the overall iPhone experience.

The one part I have to gripe about is the need of an external microphone. My Griffin Tune Buds Mobile with integrated mic works great but if I forgot my headphones at home then I am stuck with only text chats capabilities. While Sony and Skype recommend you buy their official headset/mic kit, the iPhone OEM headset with mic should work as well. Sony should have integrated a mic solution, after all, this is their 3rd revision to the PSP franchise.

Lets hope Skype will be available for the DS or DSi someday. Overall, I still enjoy having the option of running Skype on my PSP. While its unlikely I'll be traveling only the PSP, I can see myself using the PSP for Skype to conserve the battery life for my iPhone while traveling abroad. Due to the nature of not having any data connection, the entire operation is rendered useless if I am not nearby a Wi-Fi hotspot.

Pros: Fully integrated as part of PSP firmware, no application install required. PSP's large display is great for Skype.

Cons: Lack of integrated Mic (and Camera for profile picture, etc...) Wi-Fi is required all the time for any communications (including text chat)

Winner: Skype for iPhone! With voice call quality being relatively the same, I have to go with iPhone because you just can't beat the convenience of having your iPhone with Skype with you at all times. The integrated mic makes the entire package there and ready to go 24/7. The touchscreen plays well with the UI and it has instantly become one of those default applications I must have on my iPhone.

tags: skype, psp, sony, playstation, apple, iphone, iskype

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Skype for iPhone – the screenshots

Slide show: (screenshots below)

Splash screen:

Connecting:

Contact list:

Contact profile:

Recent conversations:  

A chat:

Calling:

In a call, speaker on:

In conference call:

Conversation history:

My profile:

Set profile picture:

screenshot credit: Skype.

tags: skype, iphone, screenshot, screenshots, pictures, apple

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.