One of the things I try to do on this blog is try things–new consumer VOIP products, downloads, etc. You can get commentary on industry news like who’s buying who, or who just closed shop, in places like GigaOm.

Admittedly, I don’t get to try a lot of hardware, just software mostly, but if you’re looking for that kind of thing, VOIP and Gadgets or Smith on VOIP are good bets.

But this week Andy Abramson, in Living with Softphones, posted a neat-and-tidy roundup of some VOIP tools he’s been using, and I like it because he lists only what he’s used (or experimented with), and explains how he uses them. I think this kind of post is really useful. Don’t you really wanna know just how you’re supposed to use all this stuff in the real world? I know I do. Thanks A. Alec Saunders also posts quite often on VOIP adventures with his Blackberry, and Phoneboy writes about handsets he’s using (because all other hardware is just too boring). Check them both out too.

For my part, I use on a regular basis:

Skype: for chat and calls to Skype buddies
Gizmo: for general softphone calling
PhoneGnome: for long distance calling to reg phones
SightSpeed: for video calls
GrandCentral: for simplifying inbound calling. I’m using it to funnel calls through my Gizmo account.
Fring: for mobile calls to Skype buddies (still experimenting mostly)

Since I cancelled Vonage in August, I haven’t signed on with another subscriber service. However, I’ll be trying one soon.

With so many companies assembling at the starting line for the race to mobile VOIP world domination, I wonder if we’re seeing a hurry-up-and-wait sort of thing. On the VOIP Service Blog read about mobile VOIP in a nutshell.

In Canada that is. We just had our Thanksgiving weekend and thus begins a week of hot turkey sandwiches and leftover root vegetables. Needless to say, I’ve haven’t been blogging, I’ve been eating. 

Although fellow Canadian Alec Saunders sighs about not being able to blog from the dinner table on Sunday because of a Blackberry problem (for heaven’s sake, put that thing away and pass the pumpkin pie), I’m reminded that Turkey Day or no, the VoIP world marches bravely on.

What caught my eye? Reviews of Sony Mylo and the AMD Live Communicator powered by SightSpeed. In my world, I’m anxiously awaiting the arrival of my PhoneGnome.

Luca got the scoop on this one this morning. (Or is it afternoon for him?) Fring now works with SIP services like Gizmo Project, VoipCheap, VoipStunt and Free World DialUp. It’s still in beta mode, but I’m going to download it today and see what’s what (handy to do on my Nokia N80i).

Fring is a free application for your mobile phone that lets you talk with fring, Skype, GoogleTalk, MSN and now SIP-based applications over VoIP, GSM, WiFi and PSTN networks.

I’ve used it most with my Skype buddy list. On my phone, I can see who’s available on Skype and who’s not, etc.

At present, fring is only available on certain Nokia handsets (Symbian 8 - Series 60 and N Series phones). See a visual list of compatible handsets on their web site (look under “Minimum Requirements”).

By now the VOIP world knows of Truphone’s victory in court over mobile giant T-Mobile. Yesterday, UK Truphone won an injunction against T-Mobile blocking calls to Truphone users: For the last month, anyone calling a Truphone number on T-Mobile network would hear a "Number not in service" message. By Monday, July 23, T-Mobile has been instructed to start routing these calls.

There’s plenty of cheering on the Truphone website, http://truphone.blogspot.com/2007/07/truphone-wins-court-injunction-against.html but I have yet to find T-Mobile’s official or unofficial response. I couldn’t find anything on their website. In the spirit of gathering the whole picture, let me know if you find a company statement or interview anywhere. 

This is my first post in awhile. I checked out during the holidays (for me the “holidays” consist of the day the kids are out of school ’til the day they go back–that’s a week from now). But my-o-my, the blogging community has been going strong, even over the break. I guess the VOIP world waits for no woman. All hail the tireless VOIP bloggers…through rain, sleet, snow, etc. etc. Andy blogged from Frankfurt on Christmas Eve, PhoneBoy survived a major storm and power outage, and I can see at glance that instead of sleeping in or sleeping it off, many bloggers, Ted Wallingford among them, had something to say on New Years Day. Alec Saunders generated a great list of top VOIP bloggers if you want to keep up with these guys.

As for me, I’m excited in the near term about trying the Nokia N80i (just out the box, yippee!), FINALLY diving into iotum, and hopefully getting a new Canadian GrandCentral number.

Alec Saunders reviews Talkster, a new service that lets you make inexpensive cell phone calls anywhere in the world, and mobile to IM (Instant Messenger) calls. In Talkster’s words: “There are a couple of cool perks to note with the Talkster service; some of the most important being that there is no subscription to the service to buy (ala Rebtel), there is no software to download (ala Jajah), it works on the cell network you are already used to using (no 3G requirement ala Fring), and it works on the phone you already have today (not just select Java phones). It also works today, with popular IM services MSN, GoogleTalk, and Gizmo Project. In a nutshell, Talkster is the first company to enable mobile-to-PC Voice over IM (VoIM) calls, that works without software, on virtually any phone.” That sounds like something worth trying.

Alec reviews it using his Blackberry and he’s impressed by how easy it is to browse his list of contacts, view their online presence, and make calls. While the service works without software on virutally any phone that supports a browser, in reality only browser-friendly phones need apply. For example, my cell phone has a browser, but the phone itself is of the entry level variety so using the web enabled capabilities is awkward (I find). I’ll be giving Talkster a try with my basic handset and with my husband’s fancy one and I’ll add my comments to the mix.

 

Gizmo Project announced today an new update to their popular softphone. Read reviews by Om Malik, Luca, and Tom Keating. The biggest addition is the ability to now call Windows Live and Yahoo Messenger contacts in addition to Google Talk, Jabber and other Gizmo users.

Today, if you’re already a Gizmo Project user you get the download and install the new version from the web site, click here. Sometime tomorrow or Thursday, the Gizmo folks will add an automatic install feature that prompts you to install the new version the next time Gizmo starts up. I like that.

As for using it, I’ve made a few test calls to Windows Live Messenger. Just enter the MSN ID in the  call field, pretty easy. However the only way I can see to save a MSN or Yahoo contact to the contact list, is to select GoogleTalk in the Contact Type box. I don’t know if this is the intended use but….users don’t always do what they’re supposed to do…

On the receiving end, the incoming call didn’t look like me. It looked like GTalkToVoip was calling (who in the world is that?). Answering the call and hanging up seem fine, but after that, the whole process seemed to crash Windows Live (receiving end). I don’t use Windows Live for voice at all so I’m not an expert. In my opinion, you’re better off just inviting your friends to join Gizmo.

 

 

Carolyn Schuk from Voxilla has an interesting post on TelTel, who she calls one of IP communications’ best kept secrets:

“With an estimated 2 million registered international users for its service, TelTel is probably one of the best-kept secrets in VoIP. By comparison, Jeff Pulver’s much better-known Free World Dialup, has some 600,000 users.”

Now, two million is a pretty big number so I thought I’d give the TelTel softphone a try (I’ll be honest and say I hadn’t heard of them unitl now).

I was pleasantly surprised by the packaging. The software has a nice look and feel to it and I think the installation and account setup really have the novice user in mind. For new users, the first tip of the day is a handy glossary of screen symbols. Unfortunately, there’s no way to find it again once you dismiss the window. Oh well….

Further exploration of the software revealed a few problems. I experienced delays and serious hang-time as I clicked various screen elements and links (such as Buy Credit, Help and the user forum of all things). Plus, when I tried to make a call, I got the add contact dialog box instead. 

I’m also not sure what’s free about this service and what’s not. TelTel subscriber to subscriber calls are free, and TelTel to landline phones are subject to low calling rates (nothing new here), but what about TelTel to SIP phone numbers, or SIP phones to TelTel?

While the marketing message is that TelTel is Skype-like but SIP-driven, I’m going to stick with GizmoProject until this softphone lives up to its looks.

I’ve been chatting with Craig Walker of GrandCentral over the last little while mostly about new GrandCentral features and the Canadian phone numbers coming soon (yeah!), but I also asked him about Project CARE (Communications and Respect for Everybody). It is a social program they started right out of the gate aimed at helping homeless people more easily communicate with family, employers, social services, doctors, and so on. Using GrandCentral, individuals  in need receive a free local phone number and voicemail box for life. The program is currently offered in the San Francisco area but there are plans to go nationwide.

What impresses me about Project CARE is that GrandCentral saw how their technology and services could really benefit people in need, right from the inception of the company.

“We always wanted to use our services to help the community around us” says Craig, “and we strongly feel that private companies can be very effective when deploying new and enhanced technologies to help social problems.  We focused on the homeless because we realized that without a local phone number of voicemail system there is virtually no way to get out of the cycle of homelessness.  How do you get a job if there’s no way to reach you?  Housing?  Health Care?  We also started working with a number of battered women’s shelters who have similar issues of needing an ability to communicate with the outside world when everything else is lost.”

We had a recent dump of snow in our area, enough to close schools for a day and wreak havoc on commuter traffic, and my son asked me about what the homeless do in weather like this. Well, what do they do? I think it’s an unfortunate fact that we don’t generally think of people in desparate situations until our own situation turns a little upside down. Indeed, living on the street in winter is something my kids can’t comprehend. Kudos to GrandCentral for putting their great product to greater use.