Posted by The Blogging Desk on Tue, Oct 12, 2010
Yahoo via iTunes:
Connect with your IM friends using video and voice with the newest Yahoo! Messenger app for your iPhone. Make free voice and video calls to your Messenger friends, low cost calls to land line or mobile phones, video calls—plus get new features like multitasking, instant notifications and free SMS.
Let's be honest, who knew Yahoo was still a thing in 2010?
Aside from presumed posthumous app releases, Yahoo has really stepped it up here. Skype hasn't even added in video calling over Wi-Fi, let alone 3G. Of course, on top of needing friends, you'd also need those friends to have the Yahoo Messenger app. Friends are a tough thing to come by. I'm writing this from the inside of a cheezy poofs bag. Friends forever, bag!
I have only use the FaceTime app a few times, once with my wife from the first floor while she was in my office. I think we'll be using it more once my son bursts onto the scene. I'm the sentimental type, ok?
Outside of personal use, I can see video calling really taking off in the enterprise scene. Video meetings can be a bit more personable when you can't be on-site, and if you have a WiFi connection there, even better. As a top-notch IT Support company serving the Philadelphia area, we'd be ready to support some that kind of slick forward thinking. One would think Cisco would come out with an iOS video-calling app. Though, I would think that would work a bit better when the next iPad adds a front facing camera. That's just assumed, right?
I need more cheezy-poofs.
Posted by Matt Kolowski on Mon, Aug 09, 2010
With iOS 4.1, Apple will give you the ability to enable FaceTime calls using only e-mail addresses. Presumably, this would be for iPod touch and iPad devices. So, what’s to stop Apple from also enabling audio-only FaceTime calls started by clicking someones e-mail..?
Free Wi-Fi calls to anyone with an iOS device? Sign me up.
iChat allows you to log-in using your MobileMe e-mail account, and I think other addresses as well. What if OS 10.7’s big new feature is iChat w/ FaceTime? Mac to iPhone 4 voice calling? At that point, it would most likely be Mac to iOS calling. Who knows when 10.7 will ship, but by that time I would think iPod touches will have a front facing camera and possibly even iPads.
Let’s go a bit further, if we can enable iChat capabilities via email, what’s to stop Apple from having iChat conversations held in the Message.app? Free Mac to iOS conversations right inside of the app. Hell, free iOS to iOS conversations right in the app.
ATT would be losing a lot of money in texting packages, that’s for sure. I’m not sure that’s the only thing they should be afraid of.
