At 24 Nov 2007 23:39:13 -0800 vic.healey wrote:
> > And if there was a VoIP client available for it, you could've actually
> > made phone calls on it! ;-)
>
> Any simpleton can do a quick web seaarch to verify that the above
> statement that one can not do VOIP using the iPhone is false.
Actually, the danger of "any simpleton" Googling information on topics
he's unfamiliar with is that he often gets his ears pinned back by
someone who does...
So, if you'll indulge me...
>
> Voip on the iPhone is possible through TruPhone
Perhaps it will be, someday.
TruPhone is not actually AVAILABLE for iPhone yet- the TruPhone people
made a "proof of concept" public demonstration in September, but haven't
actually released the finished app for iPhone users, nor even a public
beta. So it's unlikely Kurt, the OP, could've used Truphone in Tokyo a
week ago.
"To say the application isn’t yet ready for prime time would be a pretty
major understatement..." (
http://us.blognation.com/2007/09/25/bn-
exclusive-truphone-to-launch-voip-client-on-iphone)
> and Talkety
Well, any simpleton could do a quick Google search and realize Talkety
(for iPhone) ISN'T A VOIP APP, but a callback service that connects your
iPhone to VoIP via a CELLULAR phone call- exactly the situation one uses
VoIP to avoid when overseas, to avoid roaming charges:
"Then just tap one of the contact’s phone numbers (if there is more then
one to choose from) and TALKETY WILL CALL YOU BACK instantly to initiate
your call!"
(
http://www.talkety.com/pages/iphone)
They call you back on your iPhone's AT&T number, of course, which
certainly won't avoid roaming charges!
And while "any simpleton" was Googling THAT, that simpleton might also
check if the iPhone could even roam on Japan's cell networks, to use a
callback service like Talkety in the first place, assuming you still
wanted to, despite it's inability to save you any money when roaming.
(And that simpleton, of course, would then discover, NO, only 2100MHz 3G
phones can roam in Japan, which leaves out the iPhone, and any of it's
callback services.)
> so he
> could go to China and call the USA for free using iPhone WiFi if he
> wanted to.
Yes, if he used his time-machine first, to launch himsElf into a future
world where a VoIP client was actually available for a jail-broken
iPhone, but not today, and certainly not with Talkety or ShapeServices
(another VoIP callback service, this one for Skype, that your simpleton
search apparently missed.)
> TruPhone is a paid service for most cellphone-to-cellphone calls, but
> it allows free dialing and SMS messaging of other Truphone users, as
> well as free calls to landlines in countries such as Canada and the
> US.
And works on a variety of Symbian-based Nokia phones, but not, as of yet,
on the iPhone.
> The company is technically not the first to try VoIP on the
> iPhone; Talkety launched a compatible service shortly after the iPhone
> itself was released, the difference being that Talkety is entirely web-
> based, requiring no hacking.
No, it's not "entirely web-based"- it uses the web to initiate a
callback, which is ENTIRELY CELLULAR-BASED. Callback services have been
around for cellphones for years, long before the iPhone was imagined.
(
www.kall8.com springs to mind, but there are dozens.) Typically,
callbacks can be initiated over the web, via an "uncharged" phone call
(dial the callback provider's number and hangup before being charged for
the call, generating a callback that prompts you for your destination
call,) via WAP, or by an SMS trigger. Callback use is based on the idea
that you'll use a local prepaid SIM at your destination that has free
incoming calls, AT&T roamers get no benefit from callback services since
incoming and outgoing calls generally cost the same.
So, has this "simpleton" explained the current iPhone VoIP situation
clearly enough for your clearly superior intellect to comprehend?
Next Up - The iPhone in China
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