I have a server hosted at a german hosting provider called Server4you. They give me a virtual unix system for €10 a month. I thought about moving from time to time but haven’t found anything else yet. Now they are upgrading the system and the thing is down and I needed to call their support number again… €1.89 per minute! And from what I gather from the accent, this thing is even situation somewhere in bulgaria or something, which would be efficient and boy are they likely making money with it! Congrats … to you, not me. 
This made me look at Skype rates again though and you know what. I can call almost anything world wide for €0.017! That is cheaper than my ISDN installation at home via Net Cologne! FOR CALLS IN GERMANY! ‘Nuff said. Skype rocks, period, end of story. Now with the answering machine, I can pretty much ditch a real phone, just taking a mobile phone with me and have Skype. I’d love to invest in Skype, even though I still don’t know if there isn’t more power in SIP based systems. But it does make me happy with my Vodafone and Nokia investment. Why? Because people will more and more move to Mobile Phone and VoIP … they will … trust me … it is only a question of time. Kick ass!
Oliver Thylmann
Simply because I can :)
About Me
Oliver Thylmann
Father, Husband, Developer Whisperer, Geek, Startup Lover, Angel, Entrepreneur
about.me
Oliver Thylmann
Father, Husband, Developer Whisperer, Geek, Startup Lover, Angel, Entrepreneur
The question is: how long will there be companies like vodaphone? Sooner or later they will have to offer UMTS-Flatrates – and then? Install skype on your mobile-phone and use it for your telephone calls – no need for GMS or “normal” connections any more, and no chance to earn that much money anymore…Suggestion to invest? Please: <a href="http://www.vonage.com/“ rel=”nofollow”>http://www.vonage.com/ 25 dollars/month for ANY CALLS THROUGHOUT USA/Canada!
For some time to come it will still be a bit inefficient to do data calls on mobile phones. It’s just not bandwidth efficient I’d say. And Vonage, yes and no. They are a standard SIP play and I don’t buy into the flatrate bit too much. It’s just too uncontrollable. My brother has the phone in germany though and it kicks. Nice to have a US number in Germany. then again, I think Skype will give me a few numbers around the globe… so.
SIP seems to be a typical large-company/institutional standard, which works fine if you are doing large scale roll-outs for companies and such. This means beyond that group basically no-one is using it. Skype on the other hand something real people actually use. And they can use it for free, so trying it out is easy, unlike – say – Vonage.And it is not just the young hip bloggos either. Old people, parents with kids abroad, etc. Skype is enjoying a popularity and visibility SIP has never had and probably never will. SIP is just a protocol, Skype is the full package: protocol, app, service, community.Skype might end up losing the crown to somebody else though, but so far it really hasn’t got much competition. Most big instant messaging apps have had voice conferencing for ever, but Skype seems to have made that into something people actually use.
The question is: how long will there be companies like vodaphone? Sooner or later they will have to offer UMTS-Flatrates – and then? Install skype on your mobile-phone and use it for your telephone calls – no need for GMS or “normal” connections any more, and no chance to earn that much money anymore…Suggestion to invest? Please: <a href="http://www.vonage.com/“ rel=”nofollow”>http://www.vonage.com/ 25 dollars/month for ANY CALLS THROUGHOUT USA/Canada!
For some time to come it will still be a bit inefficient to do data calls on mobile phones. It's just not bandwidth efficient I'd say. And Vonage, yes and no. They are a standard SIP play and I don't buy into the flatrate bit too much. It's just too uncontrollable. My brother has the phone in germany though and it kicks. Nice to have a US number in Germany. then again, I think Skype will give me a few numbers around the globe… so.
Actually, my landline stops working this weekend. I ditched in favor of my mobile phone and Skype.The main reason I used my landline was for calling my mom in Ireland, and my ADSL line. Now I switched my internet back to TV-cable, and my phonecalls to Ireland to Skype.I hope I will keep on enjoying my ‘switch’.
SIP seems to be a typical large-company/institutional standard, which works fine if you are doing large scale roll-outs for companies and such. This means beyond that group basically no-one is using it. Skype on the other hand something real people actually use. And they can use it for free, so trying it out is easy, unlike – say – Vonage.And it is not just the young hip bloggos either. Old people, parents with kids abroad, etc. Skype is enjoying a popularity and visibility SIP has never had and probably never will. SIP is just a protocol, Skype is the full package: protocol, app, service, community.Skype might end up losing the crown to somebody else though, but so far it really hasn't got much competition. Most big instant messaging apps have had voice conferencing for ever, but Skype seems to have made that into something people actually use.
Actually, my landline stops working this weekend. I ditched in favor of my mobile phone and Skype.The main reason I used my landline was for calling my mom in Ireland, and my ADSL line. Now I switched my internet back to TV-cable, and my phonecalls to Ireland to Skype.I hope I will keep on enjoying my 'switch'.