Product: Skypephone
Supplier: 3
Web: Three.co.uk
Maker:Amoi
Price: Free on contract. Prepay: £49.99
Tech Specs: Skypephone
Talktime: 4.5 hours
Video talktime: 2.8hours
Standby time: 13.3 days
Type: Dual-Band (900/1800Hz) plus 3G/W-CDMA and GPRS

AS AN excellent means of keeping in contact with all your Skype buddies whilst on the move, the Skypephone from 3 can't currently be beaten. Especially since it is only £49.99 (inc VAT) on prepay.

And for that money you get a 3G capable handset plus a pretty decent camera and the maker – Amoi - hasn't even skimped on facilities such as support for Bluetooth and a 256 MB Micro SD.
It supports Qualcomm's Brew environment, too.

The crucial thing about the handset is that you can call any Skype user, anywhere in the world and it won't cost you a single penny. Once this handset has been rolled out in other countries where 3 has a network – like Italy and Australia – you'll be able to call them free, too.

As long as you don't exceed its Fair Usage limit of 66.6 hours (4,000 minutes), of course.

As the INQ revealed recently, this isn't the first time 3 has actually offered its users free Skype minutes. Upgrade your X-Series handset to the latest Skype client and free Skype calls will kick in.
What the Skypephone offers – and the X-Series doesn't - is not just a dedicated Skype button which takes you straight to the app, but also free access to Skype Chat, too.
So, in effect, you can send unlimited text messages to your Skype buddies without affecting your normal quota of text messages. This time the Fair use is 10,000 chats.

A lot of noise has been made about the fact that the Skypephone doesn't support Skypein and Skypeout. Not allowing you to break out of your Skype call and calling a regular number is understandable.

However, the INQ guesses that Skypein isn't supported not so much because 3 doesn't want to offer it but because the way Iskoot has implemented the Skype client.

The way Iskoot's software works is to place the first leg of the Skype call over 3's voice network. After that it gets converted to VoIP/Skype. Which is why you can have this handset without even paying for a data tariff. Iskoot's method also helps to provide regular voice call clarity over Skype.

The facility which we found most useful was Chat, however. You can create a Chat message in exactly the same way as a regular text message. So you can use predictive texting if you like.
Better still your regular Skype 'Buddies' list is on the handset which would be a pain to create via the handset's keypad.
The Skypephone also features a typical 3 'Launcher' softkey. This puts up a list of some pretty common web sites like Ebay and Facebook. Rather disappointingly, the option to go to Windows Live Messenger hasn't been implemented yet. Although it's in the list.

The Skypephone would be good if it were just an inexpensive 3G phone – it even looks trendy with a pink version for those in touch with their feminine side. With the Skype facility built in, it will definitely fly off the shelves. µ

The Good
Free Skype calls

The Bad
No Skypein or Skypeout

The Ugly
Promised Windows Messenger missing

Bartender's verdict
8/10

See Also
Free Skype extends to X-Series