Skype, built by the users of Kazaa, lets you make VoIP calls via your broadband connections to other computers running Skype.You may call people’s cell phones also, but extra charges may apply to that. What disappoints many Skype users is the fact that they charge their users a fee annually to use their unlimited\pro service.According to Skype’s website, they allow a user who purchases the $29.95 package unlimited nationwide calling, which if calculated is less than $3.00 per month.This deal is great, but seeing that you are allowed to call any computer for free, they could have allowed us to call any phone for free.Since users in the USA or Canada don’t have to worry about paying a charge, even if they are calling a cell or land-lined phone, they still have to pay a minor charge overseas.
International calls are as low as 2.1 cents per minute, which isn’t naturally bad, but this is very limited to wherever you are calling.There are plenty of places where the price drastically goes up.As a matter of fact, the 2.1 cent charge is to around 30 different places. Since the rates differ per destination, you can use a calling card, or you could purchase Skype credit, which is very popular using this software.
One thing I was very happy about was the sound quality. I really enjoy the fact that it doesn’t matter whether or not you have the regular version of Skype or the premium version. The Pro version of Skype is definitely worth the price, especially if you use your computer for business calls and such. If you only use Skype for computer-to-computer chatting then don’t worry about the pro version, but the price is worth it. It had to be obvious that Skype would charge a fee for another version of their software.
Finally, a very nice feature that Skype has to offer is their call forwarding option. What is really nice about this is that you are basically allowed to choose which calls you want to pay for when forwarding them along. If you aren’t at your computer at the moment, you may turn on call forwarding and the calls will be directed to either an ordinary land-line phone or cell-phone. The recommended way to pay for the call forwarding service would probably be using the Skype credit, but you may choose however you want.
Skype is a great program with a plethora of rates. Depending on where you are calling really makes THAT much of a difference. The program isn’t expensive, especially if you decide to call only someone’s computer. If you aren’t interested in using the voice chat on Skype, you can instant message someone using the text based chat. Whichever way you are interested in is totally up to you.
Tags: Skype info, Gadgets, VOIP