IPdrum - Mobile Cable Connection
A Norwegian company IPdrum has been doing the rounds with a press release that enables you to connect a mobile phone to Skype and use the mobile as a gateway. I didn't get it until I read David Gardner's description where he states you will need two GSM phones and SIM cards to make it work. Here's my IPDrum conclusion:
By connecting a second cellphone to your laptop that is in the same network or part of a free family to family type calling plan you can use it as an open gateway to free and unlimited minutes talking to other Skypers and/or making calls to other landlines at SkypeOut rates. Thus this is just an arbitrage play and not a cheap one. You need the cable $70 approx plus a second GSM / SIM card equipped cellphone on a package that won't cost you minutes on inbound calls. Oh and you need that broadband connection and have to hope that the extra cellphone will even work at your home (mine like many Americans doesn't). It may free you of more pennies than it is worth. Even as a gateway to cheap calls in a small office this doesn't appear very attractive to me.
Am I missing something?
Comments
The main features of the IPdrum Mobile Skype Cable:
· Forwarding of incoming Skype calls to PSTN- or mobile phone
· Outgoing calls to Skype subscribers
· Outgoing calls to stationary and mobile telephones using the SkypeOut subscription service
· Synchronizing of contacts from mobile
· Synchronizing of contacts in Skype
· Connecting/Synchronizing contacts with Skype users
Some PSTN subscriptions are Flatrate outside busyness hours, others are within.
Some mobil operators offer a fixed zone possibillity, where you get calls to around ½ price.
Some offer cheap calls between mobiles in the same subscription - family members.
If it is possible to set options remotely it would mean something to people with a roaming lifestyle/work.
While we wait for the real mobile internet.
jyden
P.S. I already have 2 mobiles, the Motorola proberly being too old.
Posted by: jyden | June 27, 2005 04:53 PM
Jyden,
Thanks for being so positive about it. You confirm that this is really just a pricing play. It's not really convenient. However, assuming it is really simple to dial out via the IPdrum gateway then I could take the lowest cost cellphone plan and route many calls via Skype or some other provider. So yes it possible. It won't get a large audience as a solution.
Posted by: Stuart Henshall | June 27, 2005 06:43 PM
I think that you are missing something. In Europe you can have a "Pay as you go" (no subscription fee) phone number and you pay nothing to receive the calls. Of course, you pay to call that number from your other cell phone or land line but the cost savings are significant if you make a lot of international calls. However, I do agree that the US model of bundled minutes and paying for incoming calls, makes it a somewhat less attractive offering.
Posted by: James W | June 28, 2005 11:30 AM
If Skype did call forwarding internally (i.e. part of the application/API) then it would not be hard to build an application that did what this thing does. In fact, you could probably do it now with SMS and Conferencing - send a message with the 2 end points, process the message and set up a conference with the PC and the 2 end points.
I think there is some benefit to it, in Europe anyway, as a means to allow you to make (and receive) Skype calls from a Mobile. The key is how simple the interface is when dialling the other mobile and initiating the onward call. If that part works well I might even buy it.
What concerns me is that there have apparently been patents lodged for this technology. Forgive my bluntness, but I can't see anything remotely deserving of a patent in this. Copyright, fair enough.
Oh, by the way, my SMS/Conference idea is now pat. pending! (kidding!)
Posted by: Paul Jardine | June 28, 2005 09:54 PM