This came through on the Wall Street Journal's Twitter Feed this morning. Download for free. TruPhone has been working fine, but now a direct offering from Skype. EBay Inc.'s Skype unit plans to release a version of its Internet-based phone software for Apple Inc.'s iPhone. The move, set to be announced Tuesday, puts Skype more directly in competition for wireless voice services with network operators such as AT&T Inc. and Verizon Wireless. Skype's iPhone application allows free calls to Skype users on computers or supported cellphones with Wi-Fi. Skype's software, which can be downloaded free, allows iPhone users to call other Skype users on computers or supported cellphones free if they are in a Wi-Fi hot spot. Or they may call land lines for a fee, typically 2.1 cents a minute Mr. Durchslag said Apple's terms of service for software distributed through its iPhone App Store forbid Skype from accessing the AT&T 3G data network Skype already offers software for smart phones using Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Mobile operating system, which the company says has been downloaded 12 million times since 2005. It released a version of the software in January for the Android G1 phone, a product backed by Google Inc., and says it will introduce a version that works on BlackBerry devices later this year.
(For a contrarian and European view on this development, check out the BBC's tech blog today. Includes a video). Is Skype on the iPhone a big deal? Rory Cellan-Jones BBC News 30 Mar 09, 14:08 GMT So, after plenty of rumours, and even more leaks, the "free" internet calls service Skype will finally come to Apple's iPhone on Tuesday. Is this the moment that Voip - to use the ugly jargon - finally makes the leap from the laptop to the mobile? After a quick play with the new application, I must say I'm sceptical. More... SW
Well, TruPhone, Fring have had the same capability as the iPhone Skype for quite some time, so yes there is not much new here...unless you are already paying for a skype account. The real question is why did it take so long for Skype to issue this? Of course TruPhone is a UK company; Skype from Luxembourg
Just a guess (speculation, you name it) until recently AT&T had a clause in their T&C explicitly forbidding the use of VoIP on the cell phones, and they would've undoubtedly opposed a release of such application. The clause has recently been removed...
TruPhone and Fring have been official applications in the iTunes store, since before October (?). Uses only Wifi. The way I understand it, Skype uses the same VoIP on Wifi, so it's not clear why it took so long. iCall, still not out, is different. They wish to switch an incoming call on 3G to wifi, on the fly. I think they have problems with ATT.
Hard to say without actual knowledge of everything involved, but there are so many different reasons software gets delayed, it's not even funny. Could be any number of quality or legal issues.
The Skype iPhone application was launched on Tuesday. Today, Wednesday, it received over 5,000 reviews. Nearly split, 50/50. 2000 reviewers gave it a 5 stars; 1800 gave it 1 star. Constant crashing is the most common complaint, or never even starting up at all. Good thing it was for free! It seems like they launched it a bit too early. Haven't tried it myself even.
I downloaded it last night. Skype worked fine on my iPhone. It worked with the Apple headset, and never crashed. So maybe they fixed any of the bugs in the last day. I did get a hint from the reviewers that jailbroken phones had a problem, but even that seems fixed, as reported by the reviewers. Skype did post on the application page that "Skype was not responsible for crashes or errors that were a result of changes in the underlying iPhone OS" - i.e. jailbroken phones. Anyhow, it did work for me and seems on par with TruPhone.
