Review: New Skype Phones Facilitate Free Calling

Skype is quickly creating a new ecosystem for how people will be able to make and receive international phone calls. Its appeal is clear: Nearly 300 million subscribers can call each another anywhere in the world for free. They also can call non-Skype users for a small percentage of what other phone services charge, even at their newly commoditized rates.

Until recently, Skype was only accessible to those with a microphone and speakers, or a headset connected to a notebook or desktop computer. But now Skype is taking it up a notch, targeting small businesses as of last month when it launched the Skype For Business initiative.

As part of that push, several vendors have released handsets that connect to any PC via a USB port. D-Link's DPH-50U, for one, links any corded or cordless phone via an RJ-11 port to the Skype network. Other hardware providers that have released or are readying new products for Skype are Cisco's Linksys, ClearOne, Plantronics, TrendNet and US Robotics.

For its part, Skype insists it is only going after small businesses with less than 10 users--for now, at least.

So far, I've had the opportunity to test the Linksys CIT200, which, for $129, consists of a handset and USB base station. The latter sends signals from the Skype interface to the phone, effectively letting a caller see who is online and dial anyone on the Skype network. Or a caller can use the Skype In and Skype Out functions, which permit calls to be sent and received for a fee.

Installation of the Linksys CIT200 was relatively simple. I already had a Skype account, so all I had to do was install the CD that provides the drivers for the base station and the connectivity of the Skype data to the phone set. The phone comes with two AAA NiMH batteries, which take 14 hours to charge.

Once complete, I was making calls to Skype users. At this point, I only know a handful of people who use it. But I did connect with a colleague and, I have to say, it was not a bad experience. I walked around my office, and the connection seemed solid--no better or worse than any cell phone.

NEXT: Jeff test-drives US Robotics' USB Internet Phone.

Next, I tried US Robotics' USB Internet Phone. Unlike the Linksys model, it has a permanent wire that connects to the USB port, from which it draws its power (no wireless base station came with the phone). Unfortunately, the wire made the phone clumsy for me to handle. The phone also lacked the color display of the Linksys phone, and the interface was less intuitive.

Though I haven't tested it yet, I have TrendNet's new ClearSky Bluetooth VoIP Phone kit. I did, however, recently test the company's new Bluetooth USB adapter, which was relatively easy to set up (easier than an older Belkin Bluetooth adapter I once tested). I also have external speakerphones from US Robotics and ClearCube, which I will report on at a later date, as well.

In all, these offerings are the first of what promises to be a new crop of Skype-enabled phones. Products that can bridge PBXs to Skype should be especially appealing to VARs. For example, a new product called Vosky Exchange from Skype partner ActionTec lets you set up a PBX that supports IP to dial out to up to four Skype lines.

"For branch offices, this is pretty remarkable," says Gunjan Bhow, ActionTec's director of marketing.

Naturally, Skype's push into small business has raised more than a few eyebrows. Many argue that Skype is a consumer service at best.

"In a business setting, the product still has a residential flavor to it," says Steve Hilton, small and medium business analyst at the Yankee Group, a Boston telecommunications and IT research firm. "If I'm on the phone with a client, it doesn't make a good impression."

However, if customers start running Skype on dedicated networks, many of those issues could become moot. Of course, going that route potentially changes the price equation as well. For now, let's just say I'm not ready to disconnect my regular phone line.