Skype Release 1.0 Now Available

Jeff Hester

July 27, 2004

Skype is the peer-to-peer voice chat program developed by the same guys who originally created KaZaA. Skype is free to download and use, and the audio quality is better than any telephone. And now after being beta-tested by millions of users, they’ve released Skype 1.0.

Skype 1.0 for Windows includes file transfer capable of swapping files up to 2 GB in size. In conjunction with the release, they’ve produced updated beta versions for Linux and Skype for Pocket PC.

PC-to-Phone Calls

But where Skype really gets interesting is with the introduction of SkypeOut. This feature lets Skype users prepay for the ability to make worldwide calls to any phone number at low, local rates. You can get special rates to just the countries you want to call, or you can purchase time at for their global calling plan at 0.017 €/minute (covers most of Europe, Australia, New Zealand, US, Canada and a few other countries). Even with exchange rates thats cheaper than I can get through my phone company.

So in a nutshell, Skype is free. There are no ads or adware. You can call from PC-to-PC anywhere in the world for free, with incredible sound quality. And you can call nearly anywhere in the world from PC-to-phone for much less than your phone company probably charges.

Skype is worth checking out, especially if you make a lot of long-distance calls.

Related Links

• Official Skype website


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