A First Look At The New Skype WiFi Phone From Belkin

In this article I am going to take a look at the newest phenomenon in wireless phones – the Skype WiFi Phone from Belkin. This product is not a WiFi cell phone, but rather is a phone that is designed to exclusively work with available WiFi to connect up to Skype and call through that service. It is a revolutionary idea because literally the only cost associated with making calls is phone. There are no monthly bills, no fees, nothing to pay for except the Skype service.

Features And Functions Of The Skype WiFi Phone From Belkin

The first thing you notice when you look at the Belkin Skype WiFi phone is that it looks virtually indistinguishable from a normal cell phone. In fact the phone has many of the exact same features that you would find in a normal cell phone it seeks to replace. It can be hooked into a USB port to recharge or simply plugged into the wall. This means that you can take it and use it on the road.

Setting up the phone is also a simple process. Turn it on and it asks you what language and whether or not you agree to the disclaimer. All this tells you is that the phone is not a substitute for a normal cell phone and can not be relied upon to make emergency calls. This should be pretty much understood. After it is on the WiFi phone will try to automatically connect to the first available network. If it requires a WEP, WPA, WPA2-PSK key simply enter it here. If you do not know what the key is you may need to ask to get it, but once you have that you are logged on and ready to go. One thing to remember with these phones is that they will not work on secure networks that require a browser to log on.

Once you are able to connect up to the network you simply need to log into Skype. On the right you should see your contact list or you can choose to straight away dial a number. All of the other controls on the phone are very similar to common cell phones. There is a green dial and a red hang-up key, two face menu keys, four way stick and the standard telephone keypad. There should be nothing out of the ordinary here.

The important thing is how is the quality on the calls. There was a bit more delay then you would normally see in a cell phone, but not much. This became compounded when connecting to another Skype connection, but all in all the Skype WiFi phone from Belkin is a great product.