Source: goebel.net

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A commentator to my last post "Why Truphone and Gizmo5 applaud that Nokia turns it’s back on mobile VoIP" doubts my argumentation by asking:

I thought Truphone is based on the built-in SIP client? Then it would seem unlikely that Truphone applauds Nokia dropping the mobile VoIP stack from certain models.

My answer is the following:

Yes, Truphone until now works on top of the built-in SIP client. But the Truphone software develops more and more into a standalone application: with the inclusion of SMS, callthrough where no Wifi is available, presence information and so forth. They aren’t afraid of building their own SIP app since it ties the customer even more to them. Therefore Gigaom wrote:

Truphone isnt waiting around for Nokia to do something. A company spokesman told us: From Truphones perspective Nokia has removed the VoIP client from all the N-Series phones for the planned future. We are putting in a replacement client functionality so that existing customers are not orphaned.

Don’t forget that Truphone has a very high pricing for Wifi calls! Their software is convenient to install, but many other VoIP companies are three times cheaper. That’s why they would be very happy to be your only mobile VoIP provider. Vyke already launched their own client, as you can read here, and Gizmo5’s CEO Michael Robertson officially applauded Nokia’s move in a FierceVoIP article.

The only losers are the cellphone users, since these 3rd party apps are much more difficult to use than the native SIP client. Read this insightful comment, posted at Phoneyboy’s blog:

"Im using VOIP on Nokias phone via my own asterisk server. How can Nokia expect me to develop my own Internet telephony application so that I can continue to use it? There are simply thousands of small users out there for whom this is beyond what they could do. This will leave them out in cold.

And further comment. Any third party application will have hard time to match the comfort of integrated symbian UI, where normal and internet calls are integrated together and one push of a button decides which one to make. Just compare this with Fring whose UI is just terrible."

We tinkerers who use Asterisk, Voxalot, Voipstunt, PBXes and Iptel.org are out of the game for the new Nseries devices. I am afraid that the Nokia E71 is the last cool device for a VoIP aficionado like me. Hopefully the Android devices will have more to give. Phoneboy calls us, who use 10 VoIP providers on our Nokia devices, a "minority". Nevertheless he "understands the frustration". Thank you!

But still I think that he is wrong, or maybe just blue-eyed, when he says: "It sounds like the problem is only limited to these two handsets". The problem affects all Symbian Series 60 3rd generation Feature Pack 2 (S60 3.2)! This means: All new handsets from now on are affected. Nokia’s VoIP isn’t revolutionary disruptive anymore, but has changed to a big boys’ only business.

Source: andyabramson.blogs.com

Octro Talk is a new voip and presence application that works on Symbian Series 60 phones.

What’s more interesting to me is that client Nokia has introduced the new 6300i that includes more than a SIP stack. They included a full SIP based VoIP client that is easily configurable. That means users of SIP based VoIP who are able to obtain their SIP credentials from the carrier can be totting around a VoIP phone that works over WiFi. The phone, which will retail for less than $300 doesn’t have 3G capability.

A third company, Tpad has introduced a Truphone like clone that takes advantage of the stack already present in the N and E Series devices to create a full VoIP service.

Source: goebel.net

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One thing I heard in Barcelona was that the mobile network operator 3 is not so happy with the 3Skypephone. People are allegedly using it like crazy and 3 is required to install more and more servers from the US startup iSkoot which powers the service. As you remember the 3Skypephone doesn’t do mobile VoiP but makes an GSM call from the phone to the 3-iSkoot server, which then cannels them over the fixed line internet to Skype. The data connection is only used to show the presence of the Skype buddies. These iSkoot servers must be quite expensive.

Skype on mobile phones is generally a problem, said Eric Lagier, Business Development Director for Mobile at Skype, last year. A native version exists only for Windows Mobile devices because only they have a strong enough CPU. Symbian users already gave up all hope for a native Skype on their handsets. For more than two years they are waiting for Skype to solve its battery drain and latency problems. Only a prototype was reported in February 2006. Symbian users still have to rely on 3rd party applications like Fring, iSkoot or Mobivox most of them eat up phone minutes.

But now a real native Skype version for Symbian cell phones will come out, I have been told at the Mobile World Congress. Maybe next week already. It will enable to make Skype calls over 3G and Wifi. The most interesting fact is that this software will NOT be released by Skype and also not by the Israeli software maker Fring, which until now was the only option for a Skype data call. Stay tuned and remember that you read it here first! I am quite excited to see when this rumour will really come true. Unfortunately I cannot tell the name of the company to not ruin their surprise.

Source: voip-tech.blogspot.com

Its name is Fring, it’s a software still in beta test, to allow owners of phones with Symbian operating system (Nokia at first) with GPRS or Wi-Fi Internet connection to make phone calls by the phone.
The cost is just the one of the GPRS connection or similar of your phone company; So it is possible to call Skype™ users and Google Talk users just paying your cellphone’s internet connection and use SkypeOut credit to call regular phones.
If you want to try this software just surf to http://www.fring.com/ or directly to the download page http://www.fring.com/download/, fill the registration module with the requested data: cellphone brand and model, nationality, e-mail address, cellphone number on which Fring will be installed; almost instantly will be sent an SMS to your cellphone containing a link to download and install the software. This link must be "clicked" by the browser of your cellphone, Fring will be downloaded and installed like a normal Symbian application.
After Skype for Pocket PC and Skype for Windows Mobile will Skype release a version for Symbian Phones? Cellphones with this operating system are largely diffused…

Source: snapvoip.blogspot.com

San Jose, CA — January 31, 2007 – HelloSoft Inc., the world’s leading provider of VoIP products, announced today that Skype has licensed HelloSoft’s Internet-Telephony technology which will be incorporated into Skype’s communication software. HelloSoft’s technology will allow consumers to enjoy free, high-quality voice calls anywhere their smartphones and Pocket PCs can connect to the Internet.
“HelloSoft products being a low-footprint design are extremely cost-effective and power-efficient,“ said Krishna Yarlagadda, HelloSoft’s President and CEO. “Our technology will support today’s mobile and wireless generation as they use Skype™ on the go. We are excited to be working with Skype to enhance the performance of Skype for Windows Mobile.” “We are always looking for ways to enhance the voice quality for Skype users,” said Eric Lagier,
Skype’s Director of Business Development, Hardware and Mobile. “Working with HelloSoft will not only help provide millions of Skype users around the world the voice quality they expect from Skype, "voip niche com violates other people’s posts" but helps deliver the same clarity on their mobile devices that they get on their computers.”
HelloSoft’s award winning VoIP technology is the industry’s most optimized and comprehensive software solution including SIP, media subsystems, vocoders, and IMS/VCC. HelloSoft has a range of VoIP products to meet the price and performance needs of multiple high-volume markets, including next generation multi-mode mobile handsets, PDAs, IP phones, and ATAs.
About HelloSoft
HelloSoft’s vision is to empower, enable and expedite the converged communications eco-system globally, by providing highly optimized, power-efficient, cost-effective, mass market, communications technologies and solutions. A pioneer in feature-rich customizable VoIP platform, combined with its best-of-breed Cellular and WLAN Intellectual Property (IP) portfolio, HelloSoft’s offerings enable costeffective,
low-power and high performance mass deployment of multi-mode mobile and portable
communication devices for the converged market place. HelloSoft is the inventor of RISC-only implementation, which has been adopted by 30+ major semiconductor and OEM/ODM companies worldwide. HelloSoft strategic partners include Texas Instruments, Intel, ARM, MIPS, Symbian and LongBoard.

Links;
News Source

Source: voipcentral.org

With the launch of X-Series Service by the Hutchisons 3 networks, there is a rumor that Skype would be available in the Symbian phones. Is it really going to happen from the first of next month?

Two days back, Hutchison has announced as part of its X-Series Service, the Skype services would be provided to UK customers on the two handsets, Nokia N73 and the Sony Ericsson W950. Eventually, both these phones require a Symbian client to operate. It leads us to believe Skype on Symbian phones.

However, an Om Malik post says,

You see what happened was that iSkoot2, a Cambridge, MA.-based company cut a deal with 3g wireless service provider, 3, part of the Hutchison empire. As part of that deal, 3 would install iSkoot3 in some of its handsets including two Symbian based phones, the Nokia N73 and Sony Ericsson W950. iSkoot is not an official Skype product, and despite a tepid endorsement by Skype, and its capabilities, cannot be qualified as Skype for Symbian.