Skype Has People Talking

The popular, Internet-based phone service boasts some innovative features. But it's not ready to replace your landline

by Olga Kharif

Editor's Rating:

The Good: Set-up is easy, and basic features work well

The Bad: No service if your computer is down, and no 911 support

The Bottom Line: A nice service that can help lower your long-distance bills

Reader Reviews

No wonder eBay (EBAY) was willing to shell out $2.6 billion for Luxembourg-based Skype. After trying the service, I've developed a lot of respect for its well-thought-out basic features. And while some of its more advanced functions had glitches, I was happy with the overall experience. I can certainly understand why millions of people worldwide use Skype.

The download from Skype.com took just a couple of minutes and was as easy as installing any instant messaging program. In fact, it was easier, as Skype can load even if you have a firewall or a virtual private network (VPN). That's not the case with some other IM services. (For those security reasons, some companies are wary of allowing Skype in the corporate environment. See BW, 11/28/05, "Getting Skittish About Skype").

The Skype window and many of the service's features were similar to those of other cutting-edge IM services. You can instant message buddies from Skype. You can also talk with them via voice, using your PC's microphone -- all for free (see BW Online, 11/28/05, "VoIP Providers: Heeding the Call?").

TALK SHOW.

For a small per-minute fee, you can call regular phones and cell phones through Skype. The sound quality is not as good as your landline, but it's adequate. For about $36 a year (a three-month subscription is also available), you can purchase a SkypeIn number, which allows anyone to call you from a regular phone.

SkypeIn offers U.S. and overseas phone numbers. In the U.S. you can pick not only your area code but also the whole phone number -- Skype gives you a list of choices when you sign up. Most other voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) providers simply assign you a number in the requested area code. (See BW, 11/7/05, "The Call of the Web Phone" and BW Online, 11/7/05, "Hitting Snags With Vonage").

The benefit of getting a number abroad is, if you have relatives in Britain, for instance, you could get a British number so they could call you without paying international calling fees. In some cases, international fees still will apply, but those are exceptions.

DELAYED CALLING.

I have a few bones to pick with SkypeIn, though I should mention that the service is still in its beta tests. Several times when I dialed the SkypeIn number from my regular landline, it took a while for the Skype phone to ring.

As the caller, I heard between three and six rings on the line before the Skype phone started ringing. Annoyingly, the Skype phone also kept ringing long after I'd hung up my landline phone.

On the bright side, the call connection was clear. And if someone calls your SkypeIn number when you are not logged into Skype, the call goes directly to voice mail, which comes free with your SkypeIn service, so you won't lose any calls.

IN THE MAIL.

Setting up voice mail wasn't intuitive, but it was pretty easy to follow instructions provided on Skype's Web site. I was able to record a personal greeting and set up call forwarding. (When the computer is turned off, this feature allows for calls to go to up to three phone numbers).

The voice mail service itself wasn't stellar. The recording saying, "You have a new voice mail" kept talking at the same time as the voice mail message. And my Skype window popped up a notification telling me that I had a new voice mail about 10 minutes after the message had arrived. That's a long wait.

I was looking forward to integrating Skype with my Microsoft Outlook contacts list, and that experience wasn't quite up to par, either. Some features worked: I clicked on "import contacts" to let Skype search through Outlook for contacts who have also signed up for Skype.

This would be a great feature if more people used Skype. Of 831 contacts Skype sifted through (which took more than two hours), it discovered only three people to integrate into my Skype contact list.