On Tuesday, Skype’s iPad app was released for free on the iTunes app store but not before a slight hitch. On Monday, the app was available in the app store for a short time before Skype mentioned on Twitter that ‘it should not have been available’ and yanked it. However, 12 hours later, Skype was ready to go live again and tweeted accordingly.
Judging by the early consumer reviews on iTunes, the app is likely to be welcomed with open arms. Detailing the app, csmonitor posted, “The free app clocks in at about 16 Mbs and can be used either on a 3G or Wi-Fi connection to call both landlines and cellphones, or to chat with other iPad and desktop users.”
Commenting on the quality of the app, Sean Ludwig of Venture Beat said that he liked the overall performance of the app but noted that program occasionally freezes when a user tries to switch between the contacts list and other options; he also faced some time lag on new contact requests. But the feature which caught his attention was the resolution. Waxing eloquent on the resolution Ludwig writes that the video quality is very good, even better than FaceTime.
“Skype allows upto 720p (1280×720) resolution at up to 30 FPS across its various platforms. FaceTime for the iPad and iPhone allows only 320×240 resolution at 10 FPS, while FaceTime for the Mac allows 720p. Along with a colleague, I tested FaceTime after using Skype for iPad and noticed a dramatic reduction in video quality,” he elaborated.
According to a Skype blog post, the app uses either the front or rear-facing cameras available on the iPad 2, allowing the caller to choose which camera is broadcasting during a call. The app also allows calls between platforms – an iPad user can call someone using the iPhone app or the standard desktop Skype software for Mac or Windows, as well as text messages and instant messages.
View the video below to see how the Skype app works on the ipad:
{iframe width=”560″ height=”349″ align=”top”}http://www.youtube.com/embed/FLOrf0tGMCc{/iframe}
In a news release, Skype’s vice president and general manager for product and marketing, Neil Stevens said, “Skype for iPad gives users the best of both worlds for video calling – the large screen and display of a personal computer with the portability of a mobile phone.”
Skype was launched in 2003 and has slowly been enticing users ever since. In May, it was purchased by Microsoft for a price of $ 8.5 billion.
It may be noted here that FaceTime is a video calling software application and related protocol developed by Apple. FaceTime is supported on any iOS device with a forward-facing camera and on any Mac computer equipped with a webcam.