Cross-platform support
For those who don’t use Windows, Skype is also available for Mac OS X, various vendors’ PocketPC models and several Linux distributions including Fedora, SuSE and Debian. Generally speaking, these versions are significantly behind the Windows implementation. At the time of writing Skype 2.5 for Windows was in beta, even though Skype 2.0 hadn’t reached other the platforms.
Accessories
The popularity of Skype has led to a wide range of compatible accessories.
Even if your computer is already fitted with a microphone and speakers, you’ll probably get better results with a headset as this keeps the microphone a fixed distance from your mouth and avoids echo caused by the mike picking up the other party’s voice from the speakers.
Practically any headset that’s compatible with your computer will work with Skype, whether it connects to the sound in and out sockets or via USB. A headset styled like a mobile phone wired handsfree kit is inexpensive and unobtrusive.
You may be able to use your mobile phone’s Bluetooth headset with Skype if your computer is fitted with a Bluetooth interface and its software supports the headset profile.
Handsets are popular for use with Skype and other telephony software as the overall experience is much more like using a normal phone, although the computer has to be switched on and connected to the Internet with Skype running before you can make or receive a call. These devices plug into a USB port and combine audio input and output with a keypad for dialling.
Examples include the Comsol USB VoIP Phone, Spank’s range of USB-connected handsets and desk phones and the VoipVoice CyberphoneK. If you like using a traditional handset but you don’t care about having a dedicated keypad, the USB Skype Phone Handset sold by MicroGram might be right for you.
If you’d prefer the convenience of a cordless handset the Linksys CIT200 uses the popular DECT technology to link the handset with a USB-connected base station. There is also Netgear’s SPH101 WiFi Skype Phone that provides a Skype connection independently of a computer via any WiFi network that doesn’t require Web-based login or authentication (which rules out most hotspots).
If you want speakerphone functionality but the mike and speakers built into your PC aren’t up to the job, consider NetComm’s V35 portable USB speakerphone (really a desktop speaker and microphone), or the Communicator, a broadly similar device from conference phone specialist Polycom.
IW Distribution handles a range of Skype-compatible products, including the YapperMouse—a mouse that doubles as a phone handset—and the IPdrum Mobile Skype Cable that lets you use selected Nokia and Sony Ericsson mobile phones as Skype handsets.
Various software enhancements have appeared since Skype released an API. Examples include PrettyMay (automatic answering, call recording, etc), a salesforce.com add-on allowing users to place Skype calls within the application, and Jon’s Phone Tool (a Mac OS X utility that automates dialling via Skype and other telephony applications and devices).
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