Skype-internet Based Phone Service

[slippery when wet]

I have recently heard about Skype.

1)Could you tell me what benefits the system has over using, say for example MSN to chat on line to wifes family overseas. Presently living in the UK and wish to contact Thailand, have been using MSN for some while but many people have recommended this Skype system but I know very little about it.

2)Is it a free service

Thanks.....

[Kringle]

Free sign up and free calls to anyone habving the program and can also make cheap calls to landlines by paying for that service. Go to www.skype.com for more info. No spyware or adware. I use it almost daily.

[stumonster]

Skype (IPA pronunciation: /skaɪp/, rhymes with type) is a proprietary peer-to-peer Internet telephony (VoIP) network, founded by Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis, the creators of KaZaA and competing against established open VoIP protocols like SIP or H.323. The Skype Group is headquartered in Luxembourg with offices also in London and Tallinn. The system has a reputation for working across different types of network connections (including firewalls and NAT) because voice packets are routed by the combined users of the free desktop software application. Skype users can speak to other Skype users for free, call traditional telephone numbers for a fee (SkypeOut), receive calls from traditional phones for a fee (SkypeIn), and receive voicemail messages for a fee.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skype

[spacebass]

The price of a call using Skypeout i.e. to an ordinary landline is determined by where you are calling to, and it is very cheap to call all the sensible places , like UK, USA, Australia etc so cheap you don't really have to think about the cost of the calls.

Other computer to landline providers often charge different rates according to where you are making the call from and these rates although cheapish are not drop dead cheap like say Skype from Antartica or Bangkok to London/New York.

So one of the major advantages is if you want to call to a regular phone from say Thailand to England/US/Aus etc. it is very cheap.

[chuchok]

I have recently heard about Skype.

1)Could you tell me what benefits the system has over using, say for example MSN to chat on line to wifes family overseas. Presently living in the UK and wish to contact Thailand, have been using MSN for some while but many people have recommended this Skype system but I know very little about it.

2)Is it a free service

Thanks.....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The quality of the sound is far better than MSN/Yahoo or even direct telephone link.(To new Zealand anyway)

[bkk_mike]

Compared to MSN, it works more reliably... (i.e. To get video AND audio working at the same time on MSN often takes a few tries... - pre-Skype 2.0, we used to share webcams on MSN, and talk on Skype)

One other advantage with Skype is you don't need to sign on to an email address to use it. i.e. I set up Skype accounts for my kids - even my three year old can call her grandfather on Skype - with no requirement to login to a hotmail account. (and it's easier to use than MSN too - just ensure people install version 2.0, not 1.4 if you intend to use webcams.)