Skype finally brings video calling to Android… Sort of
by Toni McQuilken
Jun 30, 2011 4:22 PM –
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The long awaited update to Skype for Android rolled out today, bringing video calling to a user base that has been fairly put-out that it didn’t have it yet. The caveat is that the update is only supported on a grand total of four phones: the HTC Desire S, Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo, Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro and the Google Nexus S.
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On it’s blog post announcing the update, the company has promised more phones will be supported soon, but given the glaring omission of several of the bigger phones out there market-wise right now, you almost have to wonder why they decided to release this now. Why not wait until they had a few more phones tested? It’s not like another week, at this point, would make a difference, since Android users have been waiting for a while for video calling features.
In addition to video calling, the update brings a redesigned UI to the app, with a new main menu where you can navigate through contacts, access your Skype profile, use the dial pad to make calls, see the balance of your Skype Credit and make those video calls. A mood message box was also added at the top of the Skype app menu to share how you are feeling, what you’ve seen or what you’re up to.
If you’re one of the lucky people with a supported phone, give us a shout and let us know how the new features hold up, and how the quality of the video calling compares! We’ve placed convenient tools above and below to download the app:
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