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Free Skype Client Lands On the iPhone
CNet is reporting that a free Skype client will finally be landing on the iPhone this week. Unfortunately some are saying that it seems many of the "critical" pieces of functionality are still missing. While the Skype engineers claim their native client will offer better audio quality (because there is no need to route through another server and transcode audio) they are still missing text messaging, file transfers, and integrated voice mail. Since the iPhone does not allow for multiple programs running concurrently, many are expecting existing multi-function apps like Fring and NimBuzz to continue their reign at the top.
It's an arbitrary restriction and only applies to third-party apps. The aim is to avoid third-party apps draining the battery by doing a lot of things in the background, or preventing other things from working by using all of the RAM (the iPhone doesn't enable swapping, I believe).
In theory, this is a good idea. Unfortunately, the whole philosophy of the iPhone is that Apple knows better than the owner of the device (which is probably true in the case of a lot of the users...) so there is no way of overriding this.
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And this Skype client will never be full-featured because it would take revenue away from the phone company, who profits by selling voice plans. You might be thinking a data-only plan with a Skype client would save you money, but you'd be wrong: Apple doesn't want you to do that. AT&T doesn't either. Or any other wireless provider. Sure, we could invest in a decent wireless data architecture, but why do that when we know we can keep bumping up prices and not improving infrastructure, and then blaming "high consumption users" for the problem. You will pay, like the good consumer you are. Oh yes, you will pay.
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Skype will only use the WiFi network, not the 'unlimited' ATT data plan so you will only be able to use it while tethered to a local hotspot, not out roaming in the wild. ATT and Apple protect their revenue and force you to use your paid minutes instead of the 'unlimited' data plan that you are paying big bucks for...
I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
iPhones can run multiple apps, but the public SDK does not allow developers to write apps that run in the background. Apple can certainly write apps that run in the background, though. The music service, for one. The phone service, etc. Additionally, developers for jailbroken phones can run applications in the background because they're not constrained by the official SDK.
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(the iPhone doesn't enable swapping, I believe).
That is correct. The iPhone's virtual memory model does not include swapping.
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Unless you're a carnie
It depends on what you are looking for. I got a Windows Mobile phone because i wanted office integration. I tried using the web browser for playing, I've used Google maps. I sync e-mail using Intellisync software.
After a little over two years, I'm ready for an iPhone. Why? The Internet browsing experience is better. I rarely use the office apps. I use Word to jot notes down, I can use the appropriate program on the iPhone for this purpose. I tried using Excel, the cell size is so small it is practically useless. With an iPhone I can VNC my desktop and use Excel from their on a largers screen with zoom functionality. That's better than my WM experience.
Copy and paste is coming and it's the only feature I'd really want. Tethering is again coming. MMS I could care less about personally.
I'll just keep using Skype with my Windows Mobile phone, then, which, by the way, lets me use it on the data network. (I've never tried, because we only have EDGE in my area) I'm not bashing either Skype or Apple (I love my iPod Touch, though it's a 1st gen so Skype wouldn't work with it anyway) but I still have my PSP as another Skype-capable device, too.
What if I'm abroad and have access to WiFi? No extortionate international charges through the provider, just power up Skype. This actually sounds like a good idea to me, since I'm studying abroad next year.
If I use the Skype application to dial my AT&T cell phone number, does my iPhone detonate?
The complaints about "shortcomings" are misguided.
I only need Skype in wifi hot spots. Domestically, I use my cell phone minutes for phone calls. If I need to call internationally from my iPhone, I use Skype-To-Go, their relay service.
I only need VOIP when I'm out of the country. I'm not going to use iPhone data roaming because it is too expensive. But there are plenty of free wifi spots around the globe.
Fring has been so unreliable for me, an official Skype client has me very excited. When I'm in Cabo or Canada (or anywhere overseas) for a weekend, and I want to call home, this is where a Skype client is perfect! Find a wifi hot spot and dial away!
What does being a woman have to do with you having access to WiFi?
Just because you sold your soul to the devil that needn't make you a teetotaler. --The Devil and Daniel Webster
You've got to start somewhere. Telcos are not easy companies to change. But if Skype gets a small toehold, people will get used to their free phone calls on their mobiles. Soon, when the market penetration gets high enough, they'll start complaining about being tethered to one spot. Hopefully, that will forces the telcos to (slowly) change.
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The earpieces that come with the iphone (or suitable replacement) and its inline microphone work with the touch.
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It only works on WiFi, and Apple has explicitly stated that VOIP over WiFi is allowed - they wouldn't say that if AT&T were going to fight it. It's better for the telcos anyways - you're paying them your monthly rate regardless of whether you use their bandwidth, so the less you use, the more profit they take in.
How are sites slashdotted when nobody reads TFAs?
iCall has been available on the iPhone for about a half-year now. (apparently in beta)
It integrates seamlessly with the iPhone. Those skype guys are behind. :P
I'll post a link, there's nothing illegal about it:
http://blog.iphone-dev.org/
For lack of a better signature...
I'm not sure it's the background apps that are the problem so much as what 99% of background apps do while in the background. The main reason to run an application in the background is to do networking, and that means the radio has to move from GPRS mode into EDGE or 3G mode, which drains significantly more power. It's not at all surprising that it causes a much higher battery drain if background apps keep waking the cellular hardware while it should be idle.
As soon as you bring up the cellular network to get data, you're spending several seconds negotiating with the tower to switch from GPRS mode to EDGE or 3G and obtain an IP number for the interface. Then, your initial DNS lookup, at least based on my experience with AT&T's EDGE network can potentially add another 10-15 seconds in the worst case. Pull even a trivial amount of data and you've probably added another ten or fifteen seconds. At that point, you've spent the better part of a minute with the radio draining significantly more power than it does in its normal GPRS/waiting-for-calls standby state. Do this once a minute, and you almost might as well be talking on the phone to somebody. Okay, so maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but it does drain a lot more power....
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Having read the iPhone Memory Management guide a number of times, I can assure you that that the iPhone's virtual memory model does not include disk swapping. The Apple documentation says exactly this.
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