AmperorDirect Blog

At the Consumer Electronics SHow, Skype COO Scott Durchslag made three major anouncements. Judging from these announcements, Skype is spending a lot of its R&D effort on finding more ways that people can make Skype calls. Smart Move!

The first announcement is the availability of a new Lite version of Skype for over 100 Java-enable phones. These phones are based on the Android platform and from companies like LG, Motorola, Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericssion. These phones are based on the Android platform which was initiated by Google and its partners. It would be interesting to see how this would compete with Apple’s iPhone.

The second announcement is the release of Skype 4.0 in early February. This version has been available in beta form for many months and provided major improvements in audio and video qualities. I am really interested to see its integration with Microsoft Outlook. It did not work when I tried it on a beta version.

The third announcement is Skype 1.0 Beta for Intel-based Mobile Internet Devices (MID). MID is a multimedia-capable handheld computer with wireless internet access capability. It is bigger than a cellular phone, but smaller than a ultra mobile PC or tablet PC. It runs mostly on Linux and its derivatives, although it is also capable of running Windows XP and Vista.

Unlike most Skype Wifi phones, a MID would have a browser and can be used in any hot spots around the world.