I just tested Skype for Pocket PC again, and got my best results ever: call quality that's only slightly worse than talking into a tin can at the bottom of a well, relayed via satellite from Iraq.
I've used the Pocket PC version of Skype on three or four devices now, and I'm always amazed at what a foul dog this program is. Echoes? Check. Static? You bet. Device slowdowns? De rigeur. Clear conversations? Not on your life. Never mind that the thing only works through wired headsets, killing off twenty-five years of the trend of holding up phones to your ear, but neglecting to anticipate Bluetooth.
Go onto the Skype support forums and you'll find a bunch of Skype fans desperately trying to sew a silk purse out of this thing: "It works using Build 42, but not Build 41, as long as you open Internet Explorer first, propitiate the rain gods, and hold your phone upside down." Forget beta - is there a letter before alpha?
Skype's attraction is low cost international calling. But there are other solutions which leverage the ease of use and quality of service of the actual voice cellular networks, yet lower your per-minute international charges, such as drugstore calling cards and Rebtel. I imagine there are also a few desperate cheapskates out there who want to make ordinary domestic calls without signing up for as many cellular minutes as they need to use. But the cost is just too high in terms of installation headaches, battery burn and awful, awful, miserable quality.
I'm not against all VOIP. Vonage gets the formula right: make it look and work just like the good ol' phone network. I've never cottoned on to those PC softphones like regular Skype -- do you really want to rely on the legendary stability of Microsoft Windows for your phone service? But I see analyst Davis Janowski chatting on his PC all the time, so I assume it works OK in terms of voice quality.
But not the Pocket PC version. It may be free, but it's not worth the price.
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August 23, 2006 7:16 PM
I've recently tried Skype on pocket pc. My axim runs @ 624MHZ, and my quality was good. I call from pubilc Wifi and my own Wifi. It sounded good no worse that cellular.
August 23, 2006 8:02 PM
It doesn't surprise me horribly much that mobile skype has a ways to go; I'm no VOIP expert by any stretch of the imagination, but the only things I've read is that even hard-wired its just too prone to problems and has bugs lurking before it's a real, reliable mobile telephone system. I can only imagine the problems you'll have on mobile devices. It may just be possible that most mobile devices just aren't beefy enough to deal with Skype at this point. Alternatively, we could see great things from Skype Moble once it comes out of beta, but I'll leave that to be seen. I'm still skeptical of mobile calling technology that depends on the kindness of strangers (ie, available wifi) to make calls.
August 23, 2006 8:20 PM
Mobile Skype works fine on my Dell x30 Pocket PC at 624MHZ. The quality is good, but Skype on my desktop computer is better.
August 23, 2006 10:15 PM
I just got the HTC TyTN and am looking to try out Skype on 3G Networks... however, I'm wondering if it'll be a waste of time if there problems even with normal Wi-Fi connection... Ideally it should work sweet on 3G networks as well.. Anyone tried it yet?!..
August 24, 2006 2:14 PM
Jajah allows you to call internationally for about 2 cents a minute and works with any phone, and has no maintenance or setup fees. You only pay for what you use. The quality is great.
August 24, 2006 3:16 PM
Admittedly, the devices I've been trying Skype on have less powerful processors than Curtis's and Alex's: a Treo 700w, a Cingular 8125, a T-Mobile MDA and a Sprint PPC-6700. But they're technically within Skype's specs. Michael, I've tried Skype over EVDO networks, thoroughly 3G. It's not sweet. It's sour. Very sour. It's sort of like talking to an astronaut drifting helplessly off into space.
August 24, 2006 3:37 PM
I use it occasionally on my iPaq H5500 (not exactly state of the art hardware) over wifi networks and it works. It's not perfect but as they say the price is right. As to using it like a phone it works just like a phone, I hold the iPaq up to my ear. Sure I get better quality using Skype on my laptop, but sometimes I don't want to setup my laptop (or even have it with me). In the states I use my cell phone, but when I am in Europe that costs extra money and my 1000 minutes on t-mobile don't count outside of the USA. So I call on Skype.
August 24, 2006 4:21 PM
The VoIP service, while inexpensive (they are currently not charging for usage) works fine among other Skype users. The Skype to land line connections are really bad. I hope they get it fixed soon. They certainly are good about asking users for their comments, but the service remains poor on frequent occasions.
August 24, 2006 4:30 PM
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August 24, 2006 4:50 PM
My Dell Axim X51V works very well with Skype, even on public WiFi connections. I agree that Bluetooth is an issue and even though you have to hold the PocketPC upside down... you can't beat the price.
August 24, 2006 5:04 PM
From my experience, Skype on a Pocket PC across WiFi is only really feasible with with a headset. The call quality otherwise is just unacceptable. I have been trying to get it to work on several Pocket PCs (I had this dream of Skype on a Pocket PC connected to a Bluetooth headset using WiFi) On a normal end user device it can work OK, but it actually is fully usable on commercial devices with industrial strength radio and battery components - with a headset. For example, the Symbol PDT8100 works for hours on Skype with excellent voice quality if you have a decent headset. Few people, however, are going to spend that kind of money on a device just for decent Skype calls...
August 24, 2006 6:55 PM
i m not a big fan of skype, i start using it couple weeks ago. b4 tat, i have vonage, they both about the same. except vonage might have a little more fancy features tat i may use it 1ce in my life time. i never try the pocket pc version, but the desktop version works awesom, mayb pocket pc version is really borken or mayb u just didn't buy enough bandwidth. At this moment, the biggest advantage on skype is "FREE" calls anywhere from US to Canada til the end of this year(2006), anythin can beat tat? i guess not, finally, i do have 2 thx skype 4 givin me "FREE" service till the end of this year. sorry, guys, i m just 2 poor 2 support my phone bill.
August 24, 2006 7:42 PM
Skype, at times, has had excellent sound reception. It has worked quite well when talking from computer to computer and it works very well most of the time when I call from computer to land base or cell phones. When I can call anywhere in the world from anywhere in the world for 2 cents a minute, you bet your bottom dollar I am going to use Skype. I haven't tried Skype on a cell phone yet, but I would rather pay 2 cents a minute for Skype that be robbed blind by the phone carreiers in the USA. The USA is the only country that I know of that charges for received calls. The USA is the only company that locks the phone number into their phones thus, not allowing consumers the freedom to change phones without changing phone numbers. I will use skype until the phone companies in the USA joins the rest of the world by treating the consumer fairly.
August 24, 2006 10:33 PM
It works for me on my iPaq HW6965. The quality is good. I have no complain.
August 25, 2006 3:53 AM
I was in the middle east, had no calling card, and needed to call family in Germany and in the U.S.. Downloaded the CAB installer onto my Axim x50v and installed it to my SD card (usually, that can kill some programs, but Skype still worked). I paid for 10 bucks of Skype Out. First call ... AMAZING! It worked! I called other friends just to say that I was talking to them from the middle east on my pocket calendar! NO HEADSET NEEDED - I just flipped my Axim upside down and the mike and speaker worked just like a cell phone. I talked too loud at first, but then did a test with a friend and discovered that I could speak in quiet normal up-close volume and it didn't sound much different to him -- so Skype must have an automatic gain control. VERY VERY GOOD. EXCELLENT in FACT. And this was my very first time ever to try Skype.
August 25, 2006 12:35 PM
I found that Windows mobile 5 refuses to work with a bluetooth headset because of a different bluetooth stack built into the OS vs. 2003. However, when running Windows Mobile 2003 on my Axim X50V and using a Plantronics 320 or 510 (I have both) sound quality is good enough to hold a full conversation on. The downside? Guess how long a 624MHz CPU, WiFi, and Bluetooth radios all working together will last you? Somewhere in the ball park of 45 mins from a full charge. Not that impressive. But it does work!
August 25, 2006 12:39 PM
Will Skype works with Symbian OS e.g. on Nokia N-70 ??
August 25, 2006 8:51 PM
Skype on August 15 released a beta upgrade of Mobile Skype -- version 2.1 updating from 2.0, which is probably the version Sascha Segan reviewed. The new version is supposed to have killed some bugs and may work better.
August 30, 2006 11:54 PM
Many people are familiar with the VOIP(sip) soft-phone called xlite.... well that same company makes a pretty darn good Windows-Mobile based sip-softphone as well. search google for xlite if you want to find their URL, i'm not going to plug =p
August 31, 2006 7:20 AM
the owl deal is to hold the connection to the main side or all this game will fall to the end for no man on air
September 27, 2006 9:12 AM
it is a pleasure to give this comment that the main information of this area must be look in and charge for real world
October 9, 2006 9:44 AM
so long a time to make this up fast is the best way