V4S: free voicemail for Skype

Skype: you use it, you love it, but you're too damn tight to pay for any of the extended services. Don't sweat it son, 'cause now even you cheap bastages can have Skype voicemail via Orb Networks' free V4S voicemail service. What's more, V4S (that's, Voicemail for Skype) makes those voicemails accessible from any device with a streaming audio player connected to the Net (without any additional software), can send you new message alerts via email or SMS, and allows you to easily rewind and fast-forward messages since they are played in your media player. The service does, however require that you run their beta software on your XP machine logged into Skype and connected to the Internet "all the time" since this is the device which serves up and hosts those .WMA stored voicemails. We can't imagine that Skype will be too happy about Orb Networks cutting into their revenue stream so you'd better get to downloading your beta while the downloadin's good.

[Thanks, Dave]

[hackman_3vilGuy @ Dec 28th 2005 10:35AM]

hee-hee sukxors.

I bought some SkypeOut credit but now I use VoipCheap as I am in the UK. It gives free calls to UK, USA, Belgium, China, Poland... and even a local-rate VOIP In number which Skype makes you pay for. Downloading now.

[tga @ Dec 28th 2005 10:58AM]

Sounds good but I'd rather have my voicemail files emailed to me. Not very secure but it's good enough for me. Maxemail has voicemail to email service.

[Rich @ Dec 28th 2005 11:26AM]

Hopefully we will get a better VM service from Skype.

[DMB @ Dec 28th 2005 11:38AM]

Nice photo on the info page

[Infoclipper @ Dec 28th 2005 12:04PM]

This won't kill Skype's voicemail, since Skype's doesn't require an always-on machine, can function even if your Internet connection is dead, and can also talk calls if you are already talking to someone else. Yes, free is nice, but sometimes you get what you pay for.

[Mu Doggy @ Dec 28th 2005 1:29PM]

that girl is super creapy

[Nicole Simon @ Dec 28th 2005 2:07PM]

I am not too happy about a service which seems to connect my pc all the time to the net and lets me (and others?) access it through the net.



Skype voicemail has it's downsides, yes, but then again it is not that expensive. Additionally, if you have Skype voicemail, you can leave voicemail to other persons which I find quite attractive.



But main reason is of course, that I don't want to have my machine running all the time, just for a voicemail. (And there are enough software out there who will do the same.)

[ian mccarthy @ Dec 28th 2005 8:13PM]

thanx for the shout-out, thomas!



skype voicemail's definitely great for what it does; we just figured we could add a bit more to the whole (get your Buzzword Bingo cards ready, everyone) Skype ecosystem



now you can send voice messages to your friends who're, ah, NOT YET on Skype



and, definitely, for those gazillions who haven't yet bought skype voicemail itself, now there's an available-everywhere solution, for free!



and actually, we're hoping to provide folks with a wholllllle new reason to buy skypein (and thereby snag the generous bounty skype provides folks who drive sales, yep) - i COULD tell a fine tale about the eBay merchant who now uses her SkypeIn # as her 800 number since, thanks to V4S, she's SURE to get the message wherever she's at...



...but i think i'd rather address those security concerns that popped up - it's full-on HTTPS access only, folks! the file's not encrypted because ACCESS to the file by you alone already is.



i know a lot of people aren't yet comfortable with the whole your-personal-desktop-server idea, but thankfully, the Big Players out there are about to spend a whollllle lot of $ changing that perception

[Nadia Dean @ Dec 28th 2005 8:28PM]

Check this out www.Springdoo.com , just wanted to introduce it and please give me some feedback on your opinion.

Talk your emails from now on, is simply FREE ladies and gentlemen�lol

Record a message, add note, picture and skin..it only creates a hyperlink to paste into your emails!!! DONE

Here is an example with my voice�

http://ennz.springdoo.com//Public/Play/?id=F82EC030FCE06BF5



I liked it because it�s Free and, No software�s downloading needed or attachments to emails. No need for recipient to be a member, and works for any email..



Enjoy, laters

[Curt Van Inwegen @ Dec 29th 2005 10:34AM]

In response to TGA, "...I'd rather have my voicemail files emailed to me..."



One of the cool features of V4S is that notification of your messages comes to you by way of a sms and/or email (your choice) with links in both to stream the message right there (no additional s/w). Also you can create voice messages to email to folks who are not skypers.

[Paul Andrews @ Jan 14th 2006 8:52AM]

Skylook 1.5, due for release Jan 16 2006, provides free call answering for those who don't want to pay for Skype Voice Mail. Answered calls are dropped automatically into your Outlook inbox as unread items with MP3 attachments. For those who do receive Skype voice mail messages, Skylook also drops these in the Outlook inbox and allows conversion to MP3. http://www.skylook.biz





For those who want to send voice messages to any email address, and don't to have to leave their email client to do it, there is WaxMail. This is a free addin to Outlook and Outlook Express. http://www.waxmail.biz