Skype for Web (beta): App-free calls coming soon to Safari
With as many issues as I've had with Skype over the years, it really rubs me the wrong way that I have to install the Skype for Mac app on my trusty iMac and MacBook Pro for those occasional face-to-face calls. Thanks to a beta announced today by the folks at Microsoft, er... Skype, those of us who have often wanted to dump Skype into the OS X trash can may soon have our wish. Skype for Web will soon available so that you can just sign into Skype.com and make your group video calls from there.
When everything is given the big thumbs-up by the Skype team, you'll be able to log into Skype for Web after logging into the Skype website. At this time, chances are probably good that logging into Skype from your web browser will just launch the Skype app on your Mac. Speaking of Mac, the only browsers initially supporting Skype for Web on OS X will be Apple's very own Safari and the widely-used Firefox. Eventually, you'll be able to use Chrome for Mac as well.
As you'd expect from a Microsoft product, Skype for Web will initially require the installation of a small plug-in. Let's just hope it's not the dreaded Silverlight plug-in... But hey, "In the future, using Skype on the web will become even easier and convenient."
The known issue list for Skype for Web (beta) also shows one little gotcha -- an "issue with battery consumption when running Skype for Web on a Mac." I'm sure that the team has top men working on that issue... top men.
