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Cringely Shows How to Get Free Cell Calls

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the all-depends-where-you-hop-on dept.

SafariShane writes "In this week's pulpit, Bob describes how to properly use new software from a company called IPDrum. Basically, you use the free mobile-to-mobile feature of any major carrier to call a dedicated cell phone attached to your computer. That call is then connected to Skype, allowing you to make free cell calls just about anywhere. Just how long till someone does this on a large scale, by overselling the dedicated lines, and starts selling true unlimited cell plans?"

6 of 222 comments (clear)

  1. And then? by daVinci1980 · · Score: 4, Informative

    There are already companies that offer this. For example, metroPCS which offers unlimited calls. No minute counting.
    For $40 a month, you get unlimited local and long distance calls.

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    1. Re:And then? by Elwood+P+Dowd · · Score: 4, Informative

      No, not free including international. But good enough for most people concerned about phone minutes that live in MetroPCS's extremely limited coverage area.

      MetroPCS is not designed with globetrotters in mind.

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      There are no trails. There are no trees out here.
  2. Voice compression hell by Strom+Carlson · · Score: 5, Informative

    By running from Skype to a mobile phone, you use two fairly crappy codecs: iLBC at 13 kilobits per second on top of GSM at 12 kilobits per second. On their own, each one is marginally tolerable, but I would rather gouge my eardrums out with a dagger than listen to the two codecs combined.

  3. Re:This was done before... by Meniconi,Nando · · Score: 4, Informative

    Yes, is http://xcelis.com/

  4. Re:This was done before... by MDMurphy · · Score: 4, Informative

    Here's the link
    http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=04/12/03/194925 3&tid=215

  5. Re:Link to Microsoft.com? by NetNifty · · Score: 5, Informative

    You're using Firefox I guess? If firefox doesn't recognise a url entered as a url it does an "I'm Feeling Lucky" google search on the "url" entered. The link is broken and is starts with "http" and the first result on searching for http (and thus the I'm Feeling Lucky link) on Google is Microsoft.com.

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    Linux Wireless Hardware in the UK