September 29, 2006
Skype Ubiquitous On Mobile Phones? Not Just Yet
So it's not just me. According to a CRN article, Skype on mobile phones and PDAs has some technical hurdles to cover before it'll function correctly. Skype CEO and co-founder Niklas Zennstrom specifically mentioned Symbian phones being more difficult than expected. PocketPC-based phones and PDAs do have Skype, but a lot of other mobile communication devices do not. Or when there is a Skype-related mobile solution, such as SoonR, there are still technical glitches, depending on your phone. So I can almost sympathize with Zennstrom.
In fact, Skype isn't really the only VoIP service having this problem of achieving ubiquity on mobile devices. I've had little luck getting anything to work on Palm Treo 650, a very specific phone. Mino Wireless works, and Chris from EQO says that EQO Mobile should work, too. (I'll try it this weekend.) But as for actual mobile Skype, well Niklas Zennstrom says that have nothing to offer yet and no timetable besides.
Too bad. I guess I'll be waiting with bated breath, and keep my outrageously expensive cellular wireless data network plan going in anticipation. Wonder how many additional active users Skype'll gain when they do go mobile? Maybe Skype needs to start acquiring a few companies with some of that US$2.6B they got from eBay last year. In the meantime, though, Skype-specific Wi-Fi and dual-mode phones do seem to work, so you might want to consider one of those for a bit of mobility.
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