Back in the 1990s, we all thought that videophones were a groundbreaking technology that would soon be in every household. However, the videophone idea didn’t really take off, and the advent of VoIP pretty much killed it – unless the videophone enables you to use a popular VoIP service like Skype. Today, Asus launched a Skype-certified touchscreen videophone called the ASUS Videophone Touch AiGuru SV1T. This standalone device has a large 7-inch touchscreen that works with the built-in webcam, mic, speaker, and WiFi capabilities so that you can make unlimited video calls for free without having to use a computer.

Last year, Asus also announced a Skype-enabled videophone, but the Touch AiGuru SV1T is far superior than its predecessor. For one thing, its icon-based touchscreen interface is simple to use and takes away the complexity involved in making VoIP calls. Anyone, even the most technologically illiterate, can easily make Skype-to-Skype video and voice calls. You can even use it to participate in conference calls, making the Touch AiGuru SV1T and inexpensive video conferencing solution for small businesses. Aside from unlimited Skype-to-Skype calls, the Touch AiGuru Sv1T also lets you call mobile phones and landlines at really affordable rates. If you have a Skype number, you can also receive calls from any mobile phone or landline phone.

I can totally see Touch AiGuru SV1T units ending up under the Christmas trees of grandparents and parents whose children live far away. Available now at the Skype Shop for $264.

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VoIP has changed the way we communicate. By using the Internet as the medium by which voice and video travels, making long-distance and international calls can cost as much as pennies. If you’re calling a fellow VoIP user, the call may cost nothing at all. Today, there are a number of VoIP providers that offer “free calls” worldwide. And while some of these services do actually offer free calls, there are still some things you need to consider before sinking your teeth into their offer.

First, there’s the definition of “free”. While most companies offer free calls, these offers may have a catch or two. VoIP to VoIP calls are always for free because they use the Internet to send voice and video data in the same way email does. However, if you use VoIP to call a person’s mobile phone or landline, your call will have to go through regular telecom carriers. This is where you will start getting charged.

What makes one VoIP provider different from the other is the features and rates they offer. While most of them offer legitimate good service, there are some intrepid developers that try to rush ahead of the pack and charge basement rates for unlimited VoIP. Many of these offers are risky and might leave you with the short end of the stick.

Then, there’s the features. VoIP providers with completely free services definitely have a catch somewhere, so try to find out what this is. Do you have to pay a maintenance fee to stay a subscriber? Do they offer limited customer support? Do you need to invite two or three new subscribers to avail of certain cheap rates? Be wary of the offer and read the fine print so you can decide if the service is worth the catch or not.

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Video calls over the Internet is the next best thing to being with your friends and loved ones who live far away from you. Logitech is known for being the first to develop superb webcams just for this purpose and recently, they’ve simplified video calling by adding an intuitive VOIP software that comes with the hardware. Vid is a VoIP service that comes free with every Logitech webcam purchase. As soon as you plug in your new Logitech webcam into the USB port, Vid will automatically get installed onto your machine. No need to create screen names, download third-party applications, or go through other complicated set-up procedures. You can start using Vid by finding family and friends through their e-mail address. Your friend will then respond to your e-mail request to participate in a video call over Vid, and you’re both connected and ready to talk!

Even if you don’t have a Logitech webcam, you can still use Vid for free if a friend or family member invites you to chat. If you get invited to a Vid chat but don’t have a Logitech webcam, you can use Vid for free for 30 days. After the 30-day period, you can use Vid for free when you purchase a Logitech webcam.

Vid is compatible with PCs and Macs, as well as stand-alone and embedded webcams. For more information on the service, visit www.logitech.com/vid

In this day and age, hardly anyone ever uses landline phones anymore. On the other hand, people don’t want to use up their cellphone credit just chatting with friends. Using your computer to make calls over VoIP is simple and easy, no matter what your OS is. Check out some of these VoIP applications for Linux that works great for personal or small businesses.

Skype for Linux

Skype is usually the first service that comes into mind when it comes to VoIP or video chatting online. Skype for Linux is equipped with all the features you’ll find in its other OS versions, like screen sharing, quick add, group chats with up to 150 participants, and conference calls. You can also use Skype to call mobile phones and landline numbers for a very small fee.

Asterisk

Asterisk is an open-source VoIP engine with a tool kit often used by small business owners who want to keep communications costs down. Its features include call waiting, call transfer, caller ID, and text-to-speech recognition among others.

Ekiga

Ekiga is another open-source VoIP and video conferencing application especially designed for GNOME. Its features include an advanced contact book, call hold, forwarding, and transferring, configurable sound events, and others. It can also handle several network interfaces at once and integrates well with Novell Evolution and Asterisk.

Linphone

Linphone can work with most webcams to provide voice conference and video conference calls for users, as well as an instant messaging/text chat capability. Although you can use Linphone to call mobile numbers and landlines, you’ll be charged a small fee. Linphone is ideal for users who want a simple VoIP app without the bells and whistles.

Callweaver

Callweaver is an independent, cross-platform, open-source VoIP app that was derived from Asterisk. It supports digital and analog PSTN telephony and has standard VoIP features like conference call, call forwarding, and call queue management. It even has support for fax-over-IP.

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This week, Nimbuzz launched their social networking and VoIP app in the Android marketplace, with brand new features for Android users. Exclusive features to the Android include support for Skype, a new buddy list layout, a time-sensitive user interface, auto-reconnect, and local social network support, making it the most sophisticated social messaging app for the Android. The

The new buddy list layout displays the avatar and presence information at the same time, as well as resource information (e.g. lets you know if your buddy is on the PC or mobile).

The time-sensitive user interface detects how long you hit a buddy’s name. With a light touch, you can open your profile, but a strong tap starts a new text conversation.

Home screen notifications let you know activities like incoming chats while Nimbuzz runs on the background.

Clickable URLs let you share YouTube videos, websites, and other links through the chat window. Simply click on the URL and a browser window will open, and you can simply switch back and forth to Nimbuzz.

Finally, the auto-reconnect feature. When Nimbuzz detects that you’re out of range from a WiFi network and there isn’t a WiFi hotspot nearby, it connects you to 3G and vice versa.

The Nimbuzz app is now available on the Android Marketplace.

We’ve all been hearing a lot of news about Google Voice lately and those who haven’t been following every single development may be a bit confused about the service. What exactly does Google Voice do? Is it VoIP? A phone redirecting service? Voicemail? We’re hoping this short guide on Google Voice will enlighten you a little on the service and why you might want to use it when it becomes available to the general public.

Before Google acquired the service in 2007, Google Voice used to be GrandCentral, a service that essentially worked as a personal switchboard operator. It let users register a number that can be redirected to ring multiple phones, as well as collect messages, listen to voicemail, and tell a specific number that your phone number is no longer in service (perfect for those avoiding stalkers). When Google bought GrandCentral and relaunched it as Google Voice, they did more than just put a pretty logo on it; they’ve added a couple of useful features and made it into a must-have for early adapters who could use the service by invitation or as a former GrandCentral user. Let’s take a look at what Google Voice can do.

Calls

The most basic calling service offered by Google Voice is call forwarding. You can forward calls to as many numbers as you like, and forward them to other phones depending on who’s calling. You can also set certain individuals or groups to get automatically redirected to your voicemail, spam folder, or block the call. Google Voice also lets you screen callers and give you the option to answer or send them to voicemail, which is useful for numbers you don’t recognize or when you’re too busy to pick up. As they leave the voicemail message, you can listen to what they’re saying and pick up if it appears to be an important call.

Another nifty feature is that users register phone numbers from any area code as well as get vanity numbers, e.g. words that your number can spell out. The disadvantage is that you can’t port an existing number you have to Google Voice.

Voicemail

The most interesting feature offered by Google voice’s voicemail is that it automatically transcribes voicemail messages and sends the transcription either through e-mail or text message. Not only is this far more efficient than listening to the message repeatedly to get the details, but it also provides users with a written record you can keep to look at later on. Of course, the transcription isn’t entirely accurate, but you can fill in the blanks through the context of the message. And if you really have to, you can just listen to the recorded message itself.

SMS and other features

SMS messages received work similar to how calls are handled; you have the option to have the message sent to one or more mobile phones. When you reply to the message, your reply will be sent from your Google Voice number even if you sent it from your phone, thus protecting your privacy. Another cool part is that you can receive SMS messages right from the Google Voice web interface, which is very useful if you’re always in front of a computer. You can also archive your SMS on the website for easy search and retrieval.

There’s no news about whether or not these services will remain free when Google Voice is finally launched to the public. Based on their other services, it seems unlikely that Google will charge regular users for Google Voice; they’ll probably monetize it by creating a Google Voice version for businesses. If you manage to get an invite to use Google Voice, try it out if only for the voicemail transcribing and call filtering features.

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Apple may have made a bad move rejecting the Google Voice application, but that doesn’t mean you can’t integrate Google Voice with the iPhone. The Google Voice Speed Dial Bookmarklet generator allows you use your Google Voice number to make calls. Just head over to http://www.ironicsans.com/gv/ and follow the instructions, then enter your Google Voice code, your iPhone number, and the number of the contact you’re calling.

Once you’ve entered all those numbers you’ll hit Generate, and the tool will give you more instructions to follow. In the end, you’ll end up with a quick-dial bookmark in your mobile Safari that you can use to speed-dial specific contacts, making it faster to call people than going to the mobile Google Voice site.

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Microsoft just released the 2007 version of their Office Communicator Mobile program and its interface looks a whole lot like Google Voice. This handy software allows fast and easy inter-office communication over VoIP, and even lets you receive calls from your office number even when you’re not at your desk. One of the development team’s goal for this update is to make it easier to join conference calls on the go. Instead of dialing a number, the new UC Conferencing capability lets you join a conference call just by clicking the Join Conference button. This automatically authenticates the participants and lets them join the conference call.

Users can also avoid roaming charges when they are outside their provider’s network. When you need to make a call, Office Communicator will not log you into a roaming network, but it will automatically log you back onto your provider’s network when you return. Simply select the option and the program will take care of the rest.

Finally, a new plug-in for Windows Mobile 6.5 will integrate Communicator with the home screen. Through the plug-in, you’ll be able to see the number of ongoing conversations and your presence status. The plug-in will also enable you to make a call through your work identity right from your phone dialar, allowing users to dial extension numbers to reach their colleages.

The Windows Mobile 6.5 plug-in won’t be available til the fall, but you can download the Microsoft Office Communicator Mobile from the Microsoft download site.

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The millions of users who depend on Skype as their alternate to a landline phone may have something to worry about. The creators of Skype and its new owner eBay are in a little bit of a tiff right now. eBay purchased Skype way back in 2005 but its creators Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis still retained some of the rights to the VoIP’s peer to peer technology. Now they want to pull the peer-to-peer software they own from Skype, which would pretty much render it useless. To prevent this, eBay filed a lawsuit against Niklas and Janus and is working on a new software that can run Skype without the original peer-to-peer client. But not only is eBay’s new software expensive; they also admit that it is unlikely to work. Of course, shutting down Skype is not even an option eBay would consider, but with the way things are looking it’s probably best to start finding alternatives to Skype.

Fortunately there are many other free VoIP providers that can provide the same voice chat and video chat features, like Oovoo, Google Voice, TeamSpeak, and Fring, to name a few. Still, I hope it doesn’t come to the death of Skype.

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Did you know that Gizmo5, the Skype-like VoIP service, provides convenient, straight-up dialing through your Google Voice number? If you have a Gizmo account, you can make US and international calls through your Google Voice number by going to your account settings and entering your Google Voice email address and password. Then you can log onto the desktop client or the mobile site using your 1+10-digit Gizmo 5 number and password. Making outgoing calls in this manner won’t use up any of your Gizmo credit – the outgoing call gets automatically routed through your Google Voice number.

Currently, Google Voice is still in its beta phase, meaning you can only use it upon invitation. Gizmo5, on the other hand, is free to sign up and use.

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