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Skype launches gift cards, lets parents drop hints to distant kids
Many empty-nester parents would like nothing more than to hear from their kids every now and then. For them, Skype's new gift cards might be the perfect not-so-subtle clue: both digital and physical cards are going on sale today that offer $10 or more in credit, either for the company's time-honored VoIP calling or (if need be) some Skype WiFi at the airport. Only online versions are customizable, although Americans who want something tangible can swing by the Microsoft Store, OfficeMax or Target. Skype's already brought prepaid credit to Mexico and the UK, but the cards should be more than welcome gift options for anyone who would otherwise have to spring for a prepaid phone card -- just be prepared for more heart-to-heart chats than usual if you're on the receiving end.
Free Skype WiFi hits Ireland and the UK through Wicoms, steps up the quality of public hotspots
Let's face it: many free WiFi hotspots are tacked on as bullet point items to get customers into a shop or hotel, without much concern for quality high enough that it keeps visitors coming back. Wicoms is hoping that a strategy to offer free Skype WiFi in Ireland and the UK will reverse that neglect. Instead of leaving stores to go through carrier partnerships or devise their own solutions, the partnership has stores pick up a £49 Wicoms router and commit to either a £10 ($16) monthly rate or prepaid brackets of £49 ($79) for six months and £95 ($153) for a year. The aim isn't just to provide a more consistent level of performance -- the Skype deal also provides a ready-made sign-in process, whether or not visitors have Skype accounts, as well as someone to turn to for help. While temptations exist to go with earlier alternatives, Skype and Wicoms are giving away the router during October to help sweeten the pot, even for those outlets that drop the Skype WiFi solution later on. Let's hope the hotspots work well enough on the public-facing side; we could all use a few more shelters from low data caps and oversaturated access points.
Skype Wi-Fi iOS app lets you access the Internet on a per-minute basis
Skype has just released Skype Wi-Fi, a free iOS app for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch that allows users to access more than one million paid Wi-Fi hotspots around the world, and pay for them via Skype Access. Here's how it works: Let's say you're in Budapest, Hungary and you've got your AT&T iPhone 4 with you. You've got data roaming turned off because you don't want to get a huge bill, but you're at an airport that offers a Wi-Fi hotspot. However, the Wi-Fi hotspot costs money. Maybe you don't want to enter your credit card info in on the spot for security reasons, or maybe the instructions for how to pay are in a language you don't speak, or maybe the hotspot forces you to buy a day's access for $30. You can bypass all of that with Skype Access. Simply launch Skype Wi-Fi and you'll see a list of paid Wi-Fi hotspots around you, along with their per minute price. Select the one you want to use and tap "Go Online." You've then got Wi-Fi Internet; it's that simple. Once connected, close the Skype Wi-Fi app and you'll be able to access the Internet however you want: through Safari, Mail, or various third-party apps. Best of all, you are charged only per minute the length of time connected, it doesn't matter how much data you use. Also, don't worry if you forget to disconnect. You're automatically logged off every 30 minutes unless you choose to stay connected and you can go offline at any time (even after only a minute). Skype Wi-Fi seems like it might be a great way for international travelers to save a ton of money while accessing the Internet abroad. If you just need to log on to check your email for two minutes, it would only cost you about US$0.12 to do so, versus paying the standard $5-12 fee for connecting to a Wi-Fi hotspot for a fixed amount of time at an airport, for example. Skype Wi-Fi is not a universal app (meaning it isn't designed for the iPad) but it does run on the iPad in addition to the iPhone and iPod touch and is available today as a free download. We'll have to test it out going forward and see if it's as terrific a solution as it seems.
