Skype is responding to the classroom use by launching a dedicated network for teachers called Skype in the Classroom.  The new service will make it possible for teachers to create profiles that describe themselves, their teaching interests and the classes they teach. Also, teachers can connect to one another by searching for other teachers based on age range, language and subject.

In addition to finding other teachers looking to reach out via Skype, educators can find specific Projects via the projects tab that allows users to post and search for projects that require collaboration via Skype. Also, a map shows teachers laid on a map in case you want to find a teacher in a specific country.

By embracing specific verticals with custom solutions, Skype is showing how the service can be used beyond person to person video and voice calling. Of course Skype is an example of how the Internet can be used to bring the world closer together, but by embracing communities such as teachers, Skype is extending the classroom beyond the brick walls of a school.

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Skype Embraces Teachers and the Classroom

Skype has released an update to the Skype package that has solved my problem.

Available now, Skype has been released for the latest Symbian phones, all of which are running the latest Symbian^3.  So, owners of the N8, C7 and E5 can download and use the revolutionary VoIP client.

The latest version of Skype also includes SILK, which is Skype’s very good sounding high quality audio codec.  The company says that SILK will work well even on low-bandwidth situations.

Aside from making audio calls, with this version of Skype you can

• IM over 3G and Wi-Fi connections
• Make calls over 3G (Take that, Verizon!)
• Share pictures, videos and any other file via file transfer.

To get the latest Skype for Symbian, head to skype.com/m on your mobile browser and you can download it directly.

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Skype Updated for Symbian Devices

The article talks about ways to help save money, but the author completely misses the point on multiple levels.  This author’s error is one I see time and again when mainstream press types try to define, describe and prescribe a solution to a technical problem they have no clue about.  This is why I’m glad online media (such as this blog) exist, because it gives more technically minded authors (like me) an outlet to set the record straight.

However, my advice to the author of the CIO article and other mainstream press: if you want to find a subject matter expert, do your research.  Simply Google around to find folks who live and breath this stuff every day.  In my case, my phone number is on the Contact Me page which is at the top of every page on my website.

Back to the topic of talking on your mobile phone while abroad.  You need a few things to make your calling cheap and relatively easy.

• First, you need an unlocked GSM phone.  GSM is the network used throughout the world.  If you have a mobile device in the United States from T-Mobile or AT&T, you already have a GSM phone.  Otherwise, you can find a simple Nokia device for less than $100 either on Amazon (recommended) or on Craigslist.  Also – ask around within your friend and family, they might have an old phone sitting around they’re not using

Then, you have three options:

1. Call your carrier here in the US and add a foreign calling option.  It will likely cost around $5 or $10 a month and will let you call while abroad for around 99 cents a minute.  This is the most expensive option in most cases but is the easiest.
2. Buy a SIM before you leave.  The best option here is a company I’ve discussed before called Truphone.  This innovative company has a new product called Truphone Local Anywhere which is simply a SIM you buy before you leave.  If you’re going to Europe – this is a great option because you can attain the cheap EU roaming rates and save massive amounts of money over working with AT&T and/or T-Mobile if you are from the United States.  Truphone is a very nice option that is simple to conduct before you leave and use along the way.
3. Get a SIM when you arrive.  I went to Barcelona and London in recent months and I simply did some research ahead of time to find out who the best carrier was in each location.  Otherwise, you can buy a Vodafone SIM in Europe that will give you cheaper calling no matter where you go within Europe.

As you can see, roaming in foreign countries can be easy and cheap at the same time.  Before you get stuck with a $1,000+ phone bill, do some research before you go (this is also directed at mainstream press types)

If you need a pointer or two, please feel free to drop me a line.

[Photo credit: Flickr User Batikart]

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Reporters Not Fully Doing Their Homework [Bloggers Do It Better]

With Nimbuzz, I can have access to my Nimbuzz contacts as well as Google Talk and Skype, all in one great looking mobile app.  Now, in a desperate attempt to become even more of a walled garden, Skype has asked Nimbuzz to stand down and stop service to Skype’s network as of 31 October.

Nimbuzz will oblige the request and cut off Skype service as of 31 October, but this is a sad day, in my opinion.  While Skype access will be cut off, I will still be able to use Facebook, Yahoo, AIM, google Talk, Twitter, MySpace and ICQ on the Nimbuzz client.

As a person who really dislikes the official Skype client on Android, Nimbuzz has been a refuge that allowed me to communicate on Skype via my mobile phone.  It’s too bad Skype is now becoming more exclusive, they’re crashing a party that made the service unlike the *other* major mobile carriers.  That aspect is now gone.

It used to be that Skype represented an alternative to the totalitarian rule that traditional telecom companies/carriers.  Now, with moves like this, the Internet telephony company is just proving to be just another phone company.

Update: here’s the official blog post from Nimbuzz.

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News: Skype Asks Nimbuzz To Stop Allowing Access

The service has now gone public and has added some great features as well.  If you have your own PBX, you can now route calls and see CRM displays via PBX extensions and via regular phone numbers. This means that an employee who may be remote or on a mobile can be accessible just as if they were in the office.

Also, with smart call-routing, a customer who calls in can have their call automatically routed to the company representative they spoke to last.  Or, you can set rules to route calls based on skill sets, languages spoken or any other rule based action you wish.

The most impressive piece of functionality I saw while being shown Ringio is the dashboard that pops up when a call comes in.  This screen shows the person’s name, contact information, info on last call and so on – offering the person who handles the call a rich background to build upon.  The ‘heads-up display’ makes each call more beneficial for the client and the business.

Ringio is now available for anyone to sign up with.  From talking to top brass at the company, they take their customers’ feedback very seriously.  Ringio is a great product with a fantastic management team running the show.

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Ringio Exits Beta and Adds New Features

First of all, lets run down Ringio’s main features:

• “Virtual PBX”: Ringio’s service provides the ability to offer any business a big-business like voice prompt combined with the ability to transfer and route calls (think “dial 1 for sales, 2 for support”).
• Toll Free and local numbers: add a custom number to your business that gives you a presence wherever you want.  Need a 415 number to be “present” in the San Francisco Bay area?  Just add one.
• Smart Caller Screens: Know who is calling and the context of why they are important to your business.
• Calling features such as find me/follow me: have Ringio call your landline, then your mobile, then your home phone…or another sequence based on your set up.

Amazing CRM Tie-In

Many small business do not have a customer relations management system, also called CRM.  CRM is a platform that allows you go track your contacts, who they work for, past contact events.  Also, many small/medium sized businesses are utilizing Google Apps to host contact information of clients and colleagues.

Ringio does an amazing thing – it integrates your Google contacts (whether in your Gmail account or Google Apps account) and integrates them nicely in your phone system.  Therefore, there’s no reason to enter in all your contacts and VIPs into Ringio – they read it directly from Google.

Also, in my talks with Sam Aparicio, Ringio CEO, the company will soon integrate with other CRM systems including Highrise from 37Signals, which is a very good move!

Smart Desktop and Mobile Applications

A huge asset to Ringio’s service is the attractive and useful AIR application that allows you to manage your virtual phone system.  In the application, you can manage your contacts, call history and call routing.

To accompany the desktop application, Ringio has developed a rich mobile application for Android that mimics much of the same functionality of the desktop application.

Conclusion

If you are a small or medium sized business who needs to have a smart solution to integrate CRM into your phone system, Ringio needs to be on your list to check out.  By working so tightly with Google and other CRM providers (coming soon), Ringio is an asset to any company.

Also, with the smart call routing and virtual attendant facilities, combined with the desktop and mobile applications, the service has a lot to offer.

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Ringio: Your Phone System Just Got CRM Smarts

Today, the PR 1.2 Firmware was released to UK N900 users.  We U.S. users are not getting the update until tomorrow via Over The Air updates.  However, if you’re brave enough to download the files and flash your device manually, you can do this today.

One new feature of PR 1.2 is the ability to make video Skype calls using the front-facing camera that the N900 sports.  I made such a call to my friend Jim Courtney in Toronto, Ontario.  After a few tries and a reset, the call went through.  I sent Jim video and received his.

The quality was a overall quite acceptable..  The video froze for a few seconds every now and then, but was definitely acceptable considering the call was being made via a 3G network.

To my knowledge, this is the first video call done over Skype on a mobile phone over 3G in the US.

This goes to show how much innovation comes out of Skype and Nokia..a huge feat as far as I’m concerned!

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Skype Video Calling on The N900 via T-Mobile 3G

Rebtel is a Sweden-based company that is dedicated to providing very low-cost calls to more than 50 countries world wide.  In essence, Rebtel offers super cheap calls to third-world countries, aimed squarely at ex-pats who need to call back home.

Rebtel has been around for a few years, and used to be more of a landline/mobile offering whereby a ringback service would connect you to friends and family abroad cheaply through the magic of VoIP.

Rebtel is widely used around the world.  CEO Andreas Bernstrom begin_of_the_skype_highlighting     end_of_the_skype_highlighting told me in an interview that the company serves around 55 million minutes of phone calls per month and has 4 million users in 50 countries worldwide.

And with the Android app launched this week, you can now have free (or extremely cheap) calls internationally, without needing a Wi-Fi connection.

How does the integration work?

After you download and install the Rebtel application to your Android handset (I saw a demo on a Google Nexus One), you simply flip a switch on the app to “Intercept international calls”.

Then, you can shelve the app altogether.  Now, dial a number from your native phone dialing menu and if it’s an international one, the app will do it’s work: smartly initiating the call to the phone number of your recipient.  If the caller has Rebtel installed on their phone, the call is 100% free.  However, if the call is to a regular number, you’ll pay Rebtel’s cheap international calling rates.

To trial the Rebtel application, go to the Android Market and search for Rebtel.

Here’s the demo from DemoSpring:

Rebtel Latches On To Mobile

In recent months, Rebtel also launched an iPhone application, complimenting the Android app that was released recently.  In addition, the company will soon roll out a BlackBerry version to meet needs from this user base.

I asked Bernstrom why the sudden move into the mobile application landscape.  He said that many Rebtel customers have requested mobile applications for a long time, and now the company is in a place where they can meet this need.

In the past, international calling services such as Rebtel have required a callback service, use of a website, or some combination of these two activities.  The services were thereby cumbersome and difficult to use.  Bernstrom said, that utilizing the capabilities of smartphones, much of this call set up work can be handled in the background, making the Rebtel calling experience much more fluid and easy.

To gauge their customers” use smartphones, the company recently conducted a survey.  They found out that just of the folks from the African country of Nigeria, some 25% of these respondents carried a Blackberry as their primary handset.  Overall, a surprisingly high percentage of Rebtel customers utilize smartphones of all types.

In fact, as said by Bernstrom, the Rebtel iPhone application generates around 2000 calls per day.  So why not meet other smartphone customers’ needs by embracing other mobile platforms?

Looking At The Competition

I asked Bernstrom who he saw as Rebtel’s main competitors.  I was expecting the answer to be other mobile VoIP companies such as Nimbuzz or Truphone.  However, Bernstrom said that Rebtel’s main competitor is the calling card industry, which they are trying to build an alternative to.

Also, Skype is a Rebtel competitor, but this is where Rebtel can compete on their price.  In most cases, Rebtel’s calling rates are around 50-70% cheaper than those offered by Skype.  For instance, calling landlines and mobile phones in India on Rebtel costs a mere 3.9 cents per minute, where Skype’s rate is 10.6 cents per minute.

What’s Next

Rebtel is continuing to innovate based on the needs of their customer base.  The company is rolling out local numbers for developing nations so that a person in India can call “collect” to their Rebtel using colleague utilizing cheap local rates.  Also, the company is developing WebSMS to make inexpensive text messaging possible.

Additionally, Rebtel is working on a desktop application to utilize normal computers to make Rebtel calls.

Things Are Looking Up

Rebtel already has an amazing usage base that continues to grow.  The telephony startup is small enough that they can take customer feedback and quickly develop solutions for their customers who live in developed nations and call back home to friends and family.

By going beyond regular call-back based voice calls, Rebtel is continuing to innovate and make international communication as cheap and easy to use as possible.

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Rebtel Launches Android App, Shifts Focus To Mobile

To provide more insight, I made a video available of the process and capabilities of the new Skype client. This app is awesome!

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[Video] Walkthrough of Skype Mobile on Verizon Wireless

Yesterday, I was talking to pal Andy Abramson via Skype video chat.  Andy said it was too bad I was on my MacBook Pro.

I asked him why and he said it’s because he had a prototype of a new webcam from the folks at Freetalk.

I switched the video call over to my Windows laptop running Skype 4.2 and I saw the difference immediately.  Andy was sending me full 30 frames per second of 720p HD quality video.  I could see very fine details that I’ve never noticed in hundreds of Skype video chats I’ve seen before.

I’m excited to get my hands on a camera such as this.  There is a new standard coming in web video and Freetalk and Skype are at the forefront of it.

For those interested, the FreeTalk Everyman HD Webcam will be available in April for “less than $200″.

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Coming Soon: High Quality Skype Video Calls With Everyman HD