AmperorDirect Blog » Skype release

Initial Reactions on Skype 4.0

Larry — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 17:21:44 +0000

There appears to be a lot of complaints about the latest 4.0 release. Most are related to the new user interface that it takes up too much valuable space.

Another complaint is the compatibility with existing Skype equipments. You may want to stay with version 3.8 until this issue is resolved. You can get an older version from here.

Major Skype Announcements in 2009 CES

Larry — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 23:39:05 +0000

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.

Skype 4.0 Beta 3 – View Outlook Contacts Review

Larry — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 15:47:44 +0000

After I installed Skype Version 4.0 Beta 3, I found the “View Outlook Contacts” function and I was excited. I expected to be able to make SkypeOut calls to my Outlook contacts – a very convenient feature.

Since I did not know what to expect, I searched through Skype Help and found the following features related to Outlook contacts. This is certainly a reasonable list for first attempt in integrating with Outlook.

View Outlook contacts in Skype contact lists.
Make Skypeout calls to Outlook contacts.
Send SMS messages to Outlook contacts.
Add Outlook contacts to contact groups.
Update Skype contact lists automatically when changes are made to Outlook contacts in Outlook.

I was really excited about these new features and would like to try them out; however I soon discovered that my excitement was too premature. Of the five bullet points listed above, only the first one is functional. I can see my Outlook contacts and all the phone numbers in the Skype contact list; however I cannot call any of the numbers nor send any SMS messages. In additional, there is an error message at the bottom- “You don’t have a mobile number saved for …”; however the mobile number shown at the tab is corrected.

OK… I have to wait for the next release.

Skype releases Version 4.0 Beta 3 for Windows

Larry — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 20:43:56 +0000

Skype has been working on the beta version 4.0 for Windows for quite a few months already and I suspect that the offical release will come soon. I have been playing with the beta version for some time now and I like it — a lot. Here are some of the new features I like best:

Friendly User Interface
Full screen, high resolution video calls
History search by contact and event type
Automatic detection of hardware settings
Better record-keeping functions
View contacts from Microsoft Outlook
Import contacts from Microsoft Outlook, Hotmail and Yahoo! Mail
Better integration with PayPal
Better and faster installation process

I will review some of the new features later.