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Skype 5.0 Beta for Mac finally available, includes group video calling

Well, finally! That's right, you no longer have to be jealous of your friends who've all been group video calling using Skype 5.0 for Windows for months -- Skype's new Beta 5.0 for Mac finally brings the ability to video chat with up to ten of your Skype contacts to OS X client. Obviously, that's the premiere feature of the new release, but the software has also been retooled to mesh more with the look and feel of the OS -- there's even a cover flow-like contact window -- and a new pop-out call control bar that can be moved anywhere on the screen or be kept open while in another program. We just downloaded the beta and it's certainly a lot better looking than the previous version, but we also noticed that it integrated our Mac address book right into the contacts pane and when we initiated a call it automatically muted the song we were listening to in iTunes. Naturally, we went searching for that Facebook integration that we just saw rolled out in the Windows version, but it's nowhere to be found at the moment, and Skype tells us it's focusing on video and UI tweaks for the Mac version. We could go on and on about the new software, but it's available for download at the source link below, so run along and throw your own virtual cupcake party!