Voice-over-Internet Protocol provider Skype assures its users that for sure, Skype-to-Skype calls, meaning those made directly from one user’s PC to another’s PC, are secured using a 256-bit encryption algorithm. This is even more secure than the 128-bit keys used to encrypt transmission of credit card numbers over the Internet. // However, one issue is raised with this level of calling security offered...

Bad news to those who love to teleconference using popular Voice-over-Internet Protocol service Skype, but don’t have the right hardware. The latest features of the software will only work on certain Intel-based machines. Skype and Intel announced last week that the latest version of Skype’s client software can support up to 10 users on a conference call. However, this will only work on computers with Intel’s...

It’s quite surprising how one of the world’s top cellular phone maker is opening up to Voice-over-Internet Protocol. Nokia has recently announced that it will soon release the 6136 model that supports VoIP over WiFi networks. This move is seen as bringing the Internet closer to the mass market through the ubiquitous mobile phone. Currently, there are only a few Nokia models that support WiFi, and these...

If things go well, we can expect better VoIP inter-connectivity, as popular Voice-over-Internet Protocol software provider Skype may interconnect with other VoIP providers. This was disclosed by representatives of eBay, parent company of Skype, as a possibly scenario in the near future, especially in view of Skype’s talks with Google in the establishment of the community-driven FON WiFi network. While Skype...

Leading VoIP provider Skype, along with search engine leader Google and other venture capital firms have recently partnered with FON in the hope of establishing a wide-area WiFi network in Spain, through the FON initiative. FON, a community-driven group aims to connect private WiFi access points into a city- or even country-wide network, starting in Spain and eventually moving on to other areas such as the USA....

I just got myself a used smartphone. It’s not exactly brand new, but it serves my need to have a phone with a built-in PDA (or a PDA with a built-in phone?). Before I decided on acquiring this particular phone, I was considering newer WiFi-enabled models by the major manufacturers—such as the Nokia 9500 and 9300i, among others. I was also checking out the mid-range HP iPaq model with wireless Internet. I...

It might not be what you would normally expect, but even telephone companies today are likely to be using Voice-over-Internet Protocol to route regular phone calls, instead of their own International Gateway Facilities (IGFs). This seems non-intuitive, especially since telcos themselves build, maintain, and re-sell IGF services, but with today’s communications infrastructure rapidly shifting towards IP-based...

Just when you thought things couldn’t get simpler, Chatter Bug comes up with an innovative “personal long distance” calling device. The Chatter Bug, which looks like a cross between a handheld scanner (of the olden days) and a mouse, serves as a conduit between any regular telephone unit and the phone line. The apparatus basically routes your long-distance calls through their own server via the Internet....

There is talk that search giant Google, Inc. is getting into the commercial Voice-over-Internet Protocol business. Judging from a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing by Florida-based VoIP, Inc., the software and services provider has inked a deal with Google to provide a large-scale VoIP offering, similar to that of various carriers such as Vonage and Packet8. // While the search leader currently...

Maybe you’re a businessman concerned about trade secrets being leaked. Or maybe you’re secretly corresponding with a hot fling (shame on you if you’re married). Perhaps you’re just another of the millions of paranoid people who don’t want Big Brother listening in. Are you aware that with today’s technology, telephone conversations—yes, even with supposedly secure digital cellular networks—can...