Skype Accounts

[OneFinger]

While getting ready for Christmas, I got a cell phone call from my favorite nephew who lives in Switzerland. He was getting ready for the annual family Christmas call and asked if I had a Skype account.

 

I've never heard of Skype and found out it's an internet telephone service (including video / web cam abilities). I've set up a Skype account and tried it out with other family members.

 

Really impressed with the quality of the service. Video and sound comes across great (once we tweaked the settings). Another plus is that it is FREE to set up a Skype account and Skype-to-Skype calls are FREE!!!

 

If you have friends or family abroad, this is an excellent service.

[+ Lucky]

So, One Finger, wht's your Skype name so I can call you for free?

[Guest ryan2552]

I use Skype to contact nearly everybody I know in Europe. The majority of my friends and family in the states do not use it or have never heard of it. The service quality has come a long way over the past year.

[Guest zipperzone]

If it's free to set up an account and free to make calls to Europe, how do they make their money??? They have to make some $$$ just to exist!

[Guest zipperzone]

Anton:

 

Thanks for your explanation. All this is much too complicated for my pea-sized brain to grasp :-)

 

For long distance I use a plan called Loonie. Their price is $1.00 for one hour, to any destination within North America. The charge comes on my regular phone bill with no up charge from my local provider. I never gab for more than an hour so I can speak to anyone I want to for one buck. There is a charge by the minute for calls over one hour or you can simply hang up and call again.

 

And Eurpoe is $1.00 for 30 minutes + a minute charge after that. A recent call I made to Germany that lasted over an hour was billed to me at $2.50. It's cheap enough and very simple so it works well for me.

[OneFinger]

Lucky,

 

You can find me under the Full Name: OneFinger or my Skype name: one_finger.

 

But, I'm not always logged into the account except when I'm expecting a call. So warn me before you try calling. :-)

[rickinoc]

Skype also works great when I am overseas in SE Asia and need to communicate with the US. I would recommend enrolling in the Skype Out program so that you can call landlines/cell phones the world over at inexpensive rates

 

RickinOC

:-)

[kjun]

I recently used skype in Southeast Asia and had a different experience than Rick. It did not work well at all. Dropped calls, unable to connect or the other party could not hear me.

 

This was a great disappointment to me. Others tell me they have no

problem.

 

the Cajun

[rickinoc]

>I recently used skype in Southeast Asia and had a different

>experience than Rick. It did not work well at all. Dropped

>calls, unable to connect or the other party could not hear

>me.

>

>This was a great disappointment to me. Others tell me they

>have no

>problem.

>

>the Cajun

 

Are you using Windows XP or Vista? Disable your Virus protection and download the newest version from Skype.com. Restart your computer; make sure your antivirus permits use of Slype and it works like a charm.

 

The Skype forum is also a good source for help with technical problems

 

RickinoC

[OneFinger]

Just an update on my Skype experience today. The Skype-to-Skype video call went off without a hitch. Good quality and no problems at all.

 

Also had another very positive experience. We were trying to call the landlines of other relatives in Europe using an internet-purchased calling card on our landline. Tried for 15-20 minutes and all we got was the "all circuits are busy" message.

 

I hopped onto my Skype account and purchased $10 of Skype credit using my PayPal account. In less than a minute we connected to Europe and spent the next FOUR HOURS talking to several relatives. Total cost for 4 hours to Europe was only $5.34!!

 

Quality of the calls to the landlines was perfect. No echos, delays, static, or other issues. It was like we were all using landlines.

 

Based on what others have said in this tread, Skype may not be the best option. But, my initial experience has been positive. However, I will be exploring other alternatives just in case.

[Guest ryan2552]

I recently saw a commercial for Magic Jack. This is supposed to be higher quality than services like Skype. Has anybody given this almost to good to be true tool a try?

http://www.magicjack.com/site/index.html