GadgetReview

The touchscreen phone game is heating up.  AT&T just announced the availability of their AT&T Home Manager system, and now OpenPeak has made their OpenFrame IP Media Phone official by selecting Intel’s Atom processor as the core engine of their touchscreen device.  The OpenFrame is almost analogous in feature set to the AT&T Home Manager. Both are touchscreen devices with pocket sized handsets and both can display email, calendar, make VoIP calls, stream Youtube, show movie times and more.  AT&T surely has an advantage since they can subsidize their cost with services, but perhaps OpenPeaks has a VoIP up their sleeve?

Expect the OpenFrame IP Media Phone Q1 2009. Price is unknown.

Full release here

Anyone else remember when ‘video calling’ was the wave of the future, in the the 80s? I recall people trying to solve the whole bandwidth, streaming, caching problem and then poof, cell phones eclipsed the video phone concept. Obviously, that didn’t stop Asus from building the AiGuru SV1 Videophone, though.  Built-in WiFi and Ethernet get you connected (looks like Skype) while the 7-inch 800×600 screen displays all the video mischief you and a love one can have.  The built-in battery will allow true cord free conversations, though you’ll be limited to 20 minutes of pointless banter.

Looks oddly similar to the video phone in the movie ‘Total Recall’.  Get your ass back back to MARS!  My name is not Quade!  Malena!

Expect the Asus AiGuru SV1 sometime this November for $300.  Available in Europe and North America.

[Ubergizmo]

By: Daniel O

What do you get when you mix American walnut, brass and a bit of cable? You get Helger’s new VoIP phone called Pappa*Phone. It’s the first ever wooden VoIP phone and works with most services including Skype. It plugs straight into the PC or Mac and has a cable reach of 1.5 meters. Go on and get yourself one, they’re only $300.

[Hulger]

Until recently I had one phone line, my cell phone. A few months ago I discovered the downside of my ‘plan to simplify’ in the form of a $130 phone bill. You see, since I started focusing full time on Gadgetreview I’ve been gabbing away and burning through my roll over minutes. Me, the talker that I am, didn’t even bother to look at how much time I was consuming on my iPhone until I got the bill. In a panic I scrambled and blissfully discovered (through an email so I don’t know how blissful) that Skype offers unlimited calls to the US and Canada for one monthly flat fee of $2.95. The only problem? Talking over my computer is was totally impractical and annoying audio-wise to callers on the other end. Enter the Philips Skype phone.

What is the Philips Skype Phone?
It’s a phone that is embedded with Skype software, similar to the one found on your computer. Once the phone is charged up, you login using your username and password. If you don’t have one, you’ll create it online at Skype’s website. It’s a little cumbersome to enter your login and password via the standard telephone keypad (you’ll have to hit the #2 three time to get ‘c’ and so forth) but once you’ve entered it you’re set for life. In other words, the Philips Skype Phone enables true ‘voice over IP’, much like Vonage, Lingo, and a few other services out there.

How do you plug in or use the Philips Skype Phone?
Setup is super easy. I’ve you’ve ever setup a network (i.e. plugged in a router) then it’s a no brainer. If not, it’s still a pretty painless process. First and foremost, you have to have an Internet connection and a router. I guess you could plug this thing directly into your cable company’s modem, but who pays for high speed Internet just to have phone service. Once you’ve ran an Ethernet cord from the router to the included Skype box, and plugged in the power packet you’re just about good to go. The Philips Skype phone will display a ‘gray x’ and the time on the screen. Just hit the ’sign in’ button (left soft key), follow the on screen instruction, and ‘bam’, you’re making calls over the US and Canada (or whatever plan you opted for). If the screen continues to display an ‘x’, then there’s something wrong with your setup. Read More

T-Mobile is getting into the VoIP game. Offered exclusively to current T-Mobile customers paying $39.99 or higher, the new service costs $10 a month (plus taxes and fees) and includes unlimited domestic and long distance calls over the customer’s preexisting broadband service. According to CNet, numbers can be ported over. The T-Mobile required router will set you back $50 after rebates. Unfortunately, the service will only be offered in Dallas and Seattle initially.

Guess this is T-Mobile’s response for losing the Hotspot deal to AT&T.

What if your cell phone was no bigger then a pack of cigarettes, but sported a screen that measured 5″ diagonally? Coming later this year, Polymer Vision plans to release a cell phone that includes a 5″ rollable display. Dubbed the Readius, the device will boast all the features of a standard Smartphone, such as high speed Internet, email, MP3 player and more. The E-Ink type display can fold up, requires little juice to operate and can usually be viewed in any type of light. The first iteration of the device will include 16 shades of gray with a color version to be rolled out in 2013. The display won’t be touch screen, but I’m sure we can expect a touch version in the coming years. It measures 4.5 x 2.25 x 0.8 inches, weighs 4oz and because of the low power screen it should enable 30 hours of reading time. It includes an SD memory card slot allowing the user to increase capacity to 8GB.

More info here via Brighthand.

Skype arrived on the PSP today and ArsTechnica took it for spin on a slim PSP.  They said the Skype layout was well implemented on the PSP platform and sound quality was top notch.  One catch though:  you must have the headphones plugged in via the Slim-specific remote control otherwise it won’t work.  For $30 you can pick up the Slim-specific remote and headphones.

The Buffalo BKBU-SKJ109/SV is your standard USB keyboard (109 keys) but includes a mini phone (yes, the pic looks ridiculous) for Skype or other VoIP calls - it’s apparently Skype certified. According to Gadgetell is won’t be available until October and cost $65.

If you didn’t know about Grandcentral then you’re missing out. I got wind of them just as I was searching for a ‘forwarding service’ for my front door (I have an out of state cell phone and that doesn’t work with my apt’s front door…blah blah…so I wanted something free and convenient). I have had an account for about 2 months, used it primarily to let my friends in and have no qualms whatsover (even got to use the ring back service until it was cut short by copyright issues). The service - all for free and too many features to mention - is a god send for those with multiple phones and a tendency to travel. The company caught the eye of many print pubs and Google just picked them up for an undisclosed sum (Techcrunch thinks $50 mill). Google is cutting off sign ups, but if you know anyone who is a member (like me) then you can score an invite (they are giving 5 per current user). If you’d like an invite just comment below and then ping me via our ‘contact us’ lin - I’ll give 4 away so first come first serve.

Official announcement here.

Verizon was awarded $58 million in damages after an 8 person jury found Vonage guilty of ‘infringing’ upon 3 patents owned by the telecom – they were absolved of 2/5. The jury concluded that Vonage meant no mal intent which apparently helped soften the blow – apparently Verizon wanted more money. Patent infringement included, but not limited to call-waiting and how you hook up a standard phone line over the Internet. Additionally, Vonage must pay Verizon “5.5% in licensing fees per subscriber each monthâ€?. Vonage’s stock dropped 3.86% as a result of the news hitting an all-time low $4.85/share. It remains to be seen to how this will impact Vonage’s customers, but I’d expect to see more pics like this.

What the Verizon Verdict Means for Vonage [BusinessWeek]