Many of the iPhone users were waiting for this. Al last it’s announced. Skype said that they will feature a new update of Skype for iPhone for VoIP calling over the 3G network. They company confirmed it yesterday in its blog. The upgrade will take advantage of the new iPad-related SDK that no longer restricts VoIP calls to WiFi.
Skype for iPhone currently supports calls over Wi-Fi, which severely limits how useful the Skype application can be on the go. At the time, a company spokesperson told Macworld that Skype’s delay was due to it “seeking some clarifications” from Apple.
The blog post provides a little more information on what’s holding back the release of an updated app: the company says it’s working on methods to provide the highest voice quality possible by using wideband audio—a technology used in telephony that extends the frequency of sounds transmitted across a connection, thus providing clearer audio signals.
The Skype for iPhone team is also asserting that call quality — especially for Skype-to-Skype calls — has been drastically improved and will have near CD-quality sound. The application will also maintain the call quality indicator, which will be either be green, yellow or red depending on your 3G network coverage.
Here’s what Skype had to say about the pending application:
Many of you have been asking when we’ll release a version of Skype for iPhone which supports 3G calling. Well, the simple answer is soon.
Last Thursday, Apple introduced the iPad, which we’re very excited about here at Skype. David Ponsford, who features in the video above, and his team are reviewing the device and its specs, and you can expect to hear more from us about Skype for iPad in due course.
What does this have to do with calling over 3G? The SDK (Software Development Kit) which Apple provides to developers like Skype has been upgraded for the iPad. The new version, 3.2, removes the restrictions on calling over 3G, which is great news.
You may have seen other apps offering calls over 3G, but we’re holding ours back for a little bit longer. Why? So that we can give you the very best audio quality we can. When our 3G-capable Skype for iPhone app is released, it’ll let you make calls in wideband audio, giving you greater clarity and fidelity – because that’s what you expect from Skype.
To be among the first to know when the 3G-capable app is available, follow @skypemobile on Twitter or subscribe to this blog either by RSS or email using the links to the right.
You can also watch the video below for more information:
Source: Mashable, Skype Blog, PCMag, Wired, MacWorld
