Although Skype offers multiple options like calling regular phones and Skype To Go numbers, the basic thing many people still want to do is simply call from Skype to Skype. And here, Tango offers a pretty good alternative, especially since the latest updates to Skype have not been to everyone’s liking.

Installation and Setup

Tango is a video calling solution for Windows (XP and up), Android (2.1+) and iOS (4.0+), which makes use of your existing contact list already saved on the device. In order to use Tango, both sides need to have it installed, but the installation and registration process is quick and easy, and the results are surprisingly good.

The way Tango uses your existing contact list sure saves time, but it’s sorely lacking a way to manually add contacts. If you don’t have contacts saved on your device, there will be no contacts to display in Tango.

When you first install Tango on any device, you’d need to create an account. This includes your mobile phone number and your email address. By these two parameters, others will be able to find you if they already use Tango.

For some reason, the default Windows interface looks like an phone, but don’t be discouraged by this, it’s easily changeable.

The Windows client offers some configurable settings (there are much less of these in the Android and iOS clients), and among these you’ll find the “Skins” option. Click on it to change the skin from “Phone” to just plain old regular Windows.

And now you can actually start using Tango.

On your mobile device there are no skins, and Tango will load all your contacts automatically when you install it. So all you have left to do is invite friends and make calls.

Making & Receiving Calls

While Tango works well on Windows, it’s rather apparent that it’s actually meant to be used on mobile devices. Even if we ignore the default phone skin, the whole Windows interface still leaves something to be desired. To start, the window is small, and there’s no way to make it full-screen. You can play with the size, but it doesn’t really like to be too big, and will sometimes just change sizes on its own to become smaller again.

Having said that, it definitely works well, and you can easily use the Windows client to make calls, receive calls, turn video on and off and so on.

The video quality is not incredible, but definitely usable, and I managed to get better results than those I sometimes get on Skype. Depending on the device you’re using, you can switch between front and back-facing cameras, switch to horizontal view or turn video off altogether.

On a mobile device, things look a lot better. The Tango app integrates well into the interface, and makes using it almost as easy as regular calling. It automatically uses your phone’s contacts, so without configuring anything, you can see names, pictures, and other information you already have in your address book.

Now all you have to do to start using Tango regularly is have other friends that use it too. Tango is not so popular yet, but you can invite friends to install it so you can use Tango to call them.

Inviting Friends

This is probably the biggest glitch in Tango, although it is probably an intentional one. You can only invite people who already appear in your contact list. This is not a huge problem – your friends should be there anyway, but it’s still a weird limitation to have. Moreover, it becomes a real problem when using devices on which you don’t have an address book.

You can invite friends via e-mail or SMS. To do so, either click/tap the “Invite” tab, choose your invitation method and then choose who you wish to invite. You can invite multiple users at once.

Alternatively, if you’re on a mobile device, you can just browse your contacts and tap the “plus” icon next to a contact. This will let you invite this contact using a text message or via e-mail.

The e-mail/SMS you send as an invitation is not customizable, so you might want to inform your friends that you’ve actually sent this. Otherwise, it might look like just another spam/commercial e-mail.

Bottom Line

Tango is by no means perfect. It still has quite a way to go before I can truly call it a full Skype alternative. But with a simple interface, a lightweight app and a friendly attitude, Tango are on the right path. And considering how Skype for Android tends to behave sometimes, it’s actually quite a good option for VoIP calls that I plan to use frequently (just as soon as I have some friends that use it too).

What is your experience with Tango? Do you know of another VoIP solution we should try?  If so, share it in the comments!

With its recent upgrade, Skype for Android white-listed 14 more devices for video calling, including three tablets running Android Honeycomb: the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, the Motorola Xoom, and the Acer Iconia Tablet. Unfortunately, the video calling option is not enabled by default. This article will walk you through the setup as seen on a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 running Android 3.1 (Honeycomb).

Step 1: Install Latest Version Of Skype For Android

If you don’t have Skype installed yet, navigate to the Android Market on your tablet and search for Skype or simply visit this link to install Skype.

If Skype is already installed on your tablet, check whether it was updated automatically or update the app manually. Navigate to the Android Market and click on > My apps in the top right of your screen.

Select Skype from your list of installed applications and then click a button that says > Update, provided you see it. If you have automatic updates enabled, your Skype will already be up to date. To confirm the version, click on > See details.

Step 2: Enable Video Calling

Open Skype from your apps. While in the Skype menu view (Contacts, Recent, Call Phones and Profile), tab the menu button in the bottom left and open > Settings.

In the Settings view, scroll down to the section that says > Video calls. Check the box for > Enable video calling.

A message may pop up notifying you that the device has not yet been certified to work with Skype. Click > Continue to enable video calls.

While enabling video calling, Skype will automatically reload. Once this procedure has completed, you can go ahead and adjust other video calling settings to meet your preferences or make your first video call with your tablet.

Step 3: Make a Video Call

When you now attempt to call one of your contacts, the > Skype video call option will appear on the list of actions.

While on a video call with a friend, you can tab the screen to switch or turn off the camera. Click the camera icon in the bottom right to access the camera selection. Per default, Skype will use the > Front camera. On tablets featuring a backside camera, you can also switch to the > Back camera.

The new version of Skype supports both portrait and landscape mode for video calls. To switch from one mode to another, enable auto rotation on your tablet and simply move your tablet around.

Did you enjoy this article? If you’re looking for more things to do with your tablet, have a look at the following articles:

• How To Load the Desktop Version Of Websites On Your Google Android Honeycomb Tablet
• 10 Fantastic Honeycomb-Optimized Apps
• The 3 Steps To Setting Up Your Android Tablet’s Touchscreen Keyboard
• 6+ Fantastic Apps To Replace Android Honeycomb’s Stock Keyboard
• 6 Handy Android Widgets for Your Homescreen
• 5 Ways To Improve The Battery Life Of Your Tablet

What tips and tricks do you have for Skype calls on Android devices?

With the old answering machines, there really wasn’t much flexibility. You could listen to your messages and then go on to the next one. Interesting, huh? Sure, there are still answering machines around but most people don’t use them anymore.

Next we have the dawn of voice mail. Instead of having a machine hooked directly to the phone or line we have an answering service, remotely hosted, offering a bit more flexibility to our telephone messaging lives. Still, there is something static about it. Plus, you usually have to call in to retrieve those messages adding another annoying step.

Google Voice, and specifically Google voicemail, seems to be changing things again. They’re beginning to change what we should be expecting from our phone services and voice mail is definitely not excluded!  Let’s go through some of the features the  Google Voice voicemail system affords our voice mail needs.

First of all, you can get email notifications when you receive a message.

That means that those of us who practically live in the confines of our email in-box will know exactly when a new message is left!  Apparently “more than 30 percent of voice mail messages remain unheard for three days or longer” which tells me that the current way of being notified may be out dated.  Why not bring the notifications to where we are?  Google Voice comes through here!

Second, you can listen to the message online!

When you get the email notification, you can click through and immediately listen to the message. This means that rewinding and fast-forwarding is a cinch. In fact, you can jump straight to the needed part of the message!

Third, Google voicemail will transcribe the message for you into the email message!

That means that Google will use their powers to automatically figure out what the message is saying and type out the words for you (in case you can’t listen to it audibly at that moment). Please note that this feature is not yet perfected (as you can see by the transcriptions at the bottom of my review post) but perhaps through time it will improve.

Forth, Google voicemail allows sharing the message with others

Ever get a a really funny message from one of your buds and you have to pass it on to all your friends? Emailing it to your group is a snap! Or you can embed it in a post on your blog or social network for the world to hear!  OR there’s the download option. You can download the message to an MP3 for playing back or archiving on a CD with the rest of the hundreds of hilarious messages you receive.

Google Voice has brought many features to the telephony table and these new voice mail features are only a portion of what they have to offer.  With Google Voice you can also accomplish such feats as call-forwarding, conference calling, changing phones in the middle of a call, listening in on your Google voicemail, and even calling out while leaving your Google number on caller IDs (use the call out feature to save money on your cell phone bill WITHOUT a data plan). There’s so much more, you’d just have to check it out yourself.

Which features of Google Voice are you most enthralled with?

Within just a few years of the advent of Voice-Over-Internet-Protocol, Skype emerged as a leader in the industry. The reason Skype became the leader was because, at least in the U.S., you could install Skype on your Internet-connected home PC and make completely free phone calls to any phone number in the U.S.

Today, the structure of the VoIP industry has evolved to meet the demands of increased infrastructure costs to support such a large VoIP user base, as well as to compete with the frightened but savvy telecommunications industry. In addition to becoming public enemy number one in the eyes of the big telecom companies, Skype also finds itself faced with a plethora of VoIP competitors. Today, we’re going to focus on one particular competitor – the emergence of an application called Gizmo. The following head-to-head VoIP review compares the features and costs of Skype Vs. Gizmo so that you can decide if Gizmo might be worth a try.

A Skype Vs. Gizmo Comparison Reveals Features and Flaws of Both

If you’ve used Skype, then understanding Gizmo is easy because it’s practically a perfect clone. In a few areas, the application is a bit too much like Skype, to be quite honest. With that said, there are some benefits to Gizmo that deserve mentioning, so this Skype vs. Gizmo feature will lay out those features side-by-side with Skype. At the end, we’ll review whether or not Gizmo has a chance of outpacing Skype in capturing VoIP customers.

This particular review is focused on the PC-based application, but it should be noted that each service, both Skype and Gizmo, offers a very useful application for your mobile phone that can save a great deal of money in both calling minutes and text messaging.

The first, basic part of any application to consider is the main page. In this respect, Gizmo has figured out how to make the navigation and control of the communication software much more clean and straightforward compared to Skype. In Skype, I’ve often spent a fair amount of time trying to remember how to get to the dialing pad or how to view message history.

In Gizmo, every major feature is clearly outlined in a tabular format at the top, and the most common actions, such as sending a text message to mobile users, adding a contact, or sending a message to other IM users, are clearly identified as large icons at the bottom.

Basic Features – Dialing Landlines and Adding Contacts

For the most part, if you do a Skype vs. Gizmo comparison on the dialing feature alone, they almost come neck and neck. Skype’s dialpad is a bit more aesthetically pleasing with blue stylized buttons with large white numbers on the keypad. Gizmo, on the other hand, features a somewhat boring, standard gray keypad with black letters.

But what it lacks in style, it makes up for with functionality by adding the ability to send various sound effects during your phone call. If you can picture how your friend would react when you click on the “BOO” button after they say something you disagree with, I’m sure you can imagine how funny some of these would be.

When it comes to adding a contact, Gizmo scores a point over Skype. As you can see below, Skype allows you to add other Skype users to your contact list. The one other IM app that Skype is integrated with is MySpaceIM. On the other hand, Gizmo offers users the ability to add contacts from GoogleTalk, Jabber, MSN, AIM and other major IM networks.

The one thing any communications company should understand is that not all users are every going to be using the same applications, and expecting everyone to adopt your application isn’t realistic. Interoperability is a key element to success.

Advanced Features – Sending/Receiving SMS and Voice Conferencing

Once you start getting into the more advanced features, you’re more likely to discover fees or you may need to purchase the “pro” version of the application for it to work. Comparing Skype versus Gizmo on these terms reveals that in both cases the applications offer some very cool and useful features – but if you want it to work you’re going to need to be willing to pay some small fees of one form or another.

One of the most valuable features that I’ve found all of these VoIP applications have been adding over the past few years is the ability to send text messages to mobile users. While this is a feature that’s just sort of “neat” when you’re using it as a desktop application, when you consider that these applications have a mobile version, the value becomes much more clear. You can even disable text messaging on your mobile plan, and just use your Internet connection to send and receive SMS. Both services, Gizmo and Skype, offer this feature.

Another valuable feature is the ability to set up conference calls. In both cases, Skype and Gizmo allow this feature for free among their own users, but if you want to have a landline conference call, expect to pay for it in some way – either through the landline pricing or a fixed fee.

Conferences are easier to set up in Skype, where you simply add users or phone numbers (who you call out to first). In Gizmo you need to go through setting up a conference call number that everyone can connection to. This is an extra step in Gizmo, but it does create the convenience of everyone having a central number to call in to.

Another interesting and valuable option for both Gizmo and Skype is the option to have a voicemail box. In the case of Skype, the voicemail feature isn’t available unless you pay for the upgrade to Skype Pro. For Gizmo, the voicemail feature doesn’t make it clear whether there are any charges or fees applied, however the feature itself does appear enabled in the free version of the software.

Advanced Options and Configuration

Finally, each application has a whole series of screens where you can configure your PC audio and microphone settings, videocam options and all of the other specific features of the software.

This is the one area of the Gizmo software that really raised my eyebrows. If you look closely, you can see how Gizmo developers apparently just reverse-engineered the options menus and screens from Skype. This section of the Gizmo software makes it painfully obvious that, at least in this area, Gizmo is very much a clone of Skype’s application. With that said, the additional features that Gizmo offers beyond the Skype features make up for this – but not by much.

Ultimately, my own summation of this Skype vs. Gizmo comparison is that Gizmo simply does not offer enough additional free features or services to effectively compete with Skype.

Have you ever used any VoIP software other than Skype? Which ones are your favorites? Share your own opinion in the comments area below.

It all sounds too good to be true and you’re probably asking the same questions I asked when I first heard about the service.

How can such a service sustain itself? How can they afford to do this?

According to the About VoIP page, they are funded by the calls made to their non-geographic DID (DIrect Dial) inbound numbers. So it is in their best interest to give away as many free numbers as they can, as calls made to those numbers provide revenue.

What’s the catch?

VoIP User is non-profit, and the revenue generated by inbound calls is used to allow users to make free international calls with their SIP accounts. As more inbound calls are made, more pooled minutes are made available for users to make outbound calls.

In order to prevent abuse (leeching of minutes), they have developed an algorithm to rate accounts on a scale from -10 to +10. Those with higher ratings are given priority to use pooled minutes. Users that do not generate inbound minutes will have lower account ratings, and may not be able to make outbound calls (or the amount of time they are allowed to call may be limited).

If you don’t know anyone in the UK and do not receive any inbound calls on your account, there will be restrictions on the amount of free outbound calling you will be able to do. If you are interested in making outbound calls, you will need to download a SIP client for your computer. One of the more popular free clients is X-Lite.

To set up X-Lite for VoIP User:

• Launch X-Lite and click the menu button (looks like a down arrow).
• Click on SIP Account Settings…



• Click the Add… button.
• Enter a Display Name (it is arbitrary what you enter here) in the account properties window.
• Enter your SIP username in both the User name and Authorization user name fields, as it appears on your SIP user settings page at VoIP User.
• Enter your SIP password. If you don’t remember what your password was when you signed up for VoIP user, you can reset your SIP password.
• Enter voipuser.org for the Domain.
• Enable the checkbox to Register with domain and receive incoming calls.
• Click the proxy radio button and enter sip.voipuser.org for the proxy.



• Click OK.
• Call someone!

To make calls, you will need to use the full international code standard. For instance, to dial the number 01234 567890 in the UK you would dial 0044 1234 567890. To dial 123 456 7890 in the USA, you would dial 001 123 456 7890. Please note that there is a mandatory 72 hour waiting period before you are able to make any outbound calls.

What do you think of VoIP User? What other service(s) do you use to make free international calls? Those who are interested can also check out a bunch of free international calling services that were profiled earlier.

1 UnwiredBuyer – Receive last minute eBay notifications and place bids directly from your mobile. Definitely a must-have for every eBay junkie. (US and Canada). Video Demo.

2. Soonr – Need to access your PC directly from the handset? Enter Soonr, a free mobile client that brings remote PC access to your phone: search files, view documents, check emails, run programs and more. US only. Video Demo.

3. Mosio – How old is Yoda? What was Einstein’s IQ? … and for all other questions simply send SMS to Mosio and get a quick reply shortly after. Screenshot. US only.

4. Plusmo – Super-fast mobile feedreader with lots of cool features. Video Demo. Another similar app is Viigo.

5. Fring – Really cool mobile app that lets you place free calls or chat with anyone from your Skype, ICQ, Google Talk, MSN, Twitter, or SIP contacts. Video Demo. You can also get same stuff with Nimbuzz.

6. Mobical – Over-the-air mobile data backup and restore service. Store and backup your contacts, synchronize data between multiple handsets and more.

7. Jajah – Dirt-cheap international call from your handset. Video Demo.

8. AllFreeCalls – Not just dirt-cheap but totally free international calls to over 50 countries. Available in US, UK, and Ireland.

9. Emoze – This one lets you push emails to your mobile. Works both with web-based emails (Gmail) and desktop clients (Outlook). I have covered a bunch of email to mobile apps here.

10. Directory Services - These services offer everything from the nearest Dominos and Movie theater schedules to the driving directions and maps to any address of your choice. There are plenty of good ones: Free411, Goog411, TellMe, and DialDirections. Although i have to warn you in advance, all of them are for the US only. European? See below.

11. Google SMS – Via SMS directory service with lots of extra features: dictionary lookup, currency converter, translations, flight schedules, stock quotes, etc. . Europeans can try Google SMS.

12. Foonz – Handy service to make group calls and send group SMS messages for free.

13. Nutsie – This ingenious app brings your iTunes music library to your mobile. Video Demo. Also check out MunduRadio to access hundreds of digital internet radio stations from any web-enabled mobile phone. Video Demo.

14. Podlinez – Any podcast any time from your handset. Completely FREE. Sorry folks, again US Only.

15. mShopper – Lookup prices and deals for any product right from phone. Quite handy for price lookups while window shopping Video Demo.. US only.

16. Trumpia – Send message to friends and get it delivered to their email, instant messenger, and mobile phone. Recipients can send replies from email, IM program or as a text message. Video Demo.

17. SoLow – Addictive auction service where the winning bidder is the one who has the lowest unique bid. Today’s auctioned items: 250$ cash, Vail Ski Holiday, and Necklace by Laura Shape. US only.

18. BooksInMyPhone – The best mobile book service out there. Comes with an excellent book reader app that makes mobile reading quite convenient. Also see DialyLit.

19. Jott – Voice-to-text transcriber with a bunch of cool features. Dial toll-free number and “Jott” yourself memo notes, Or “Jott” messages to a group of friends. Jott will transcribe your messages and send it to indicated emails.Video Demo. US only.

20. Qipit – Use phone camera to capture documents and convert them to well-formatted PDFs. Forward ready PDFs to your email or even send fax it anywhere you want. Video Demo.

There are many VoIP providers out there (Skype, VoipBuster, …) each with its own features and pricing models. After going through a bunch of them I came to conclusion that VoipBuster is the cheapest one. It’s by far cheaper then Skype, upto 2.5 times in some cases and has same (if not better) voice quality. To start using it you have to install VoipBuster software and register on voipbsuter.com.

To call someone you’ll need speakers and a microphone, in case you don’t have either of them, you still can use VoipBuster through your landline telephone. For that simply open VoipBuster client and go to ‘direct call’ option. Once there, 1. enter your landline number, 2. enter destination number and 3. press call. VoipBuster will try to connect these two numbers and within 2,3 seconds your landline phone should ring. You will need to pick up the phone and wait for the other side to answer. Please note, when using this option your calling rates will be higher.

VoipBuster Features

• Free PC to PC calls (VoipBuster accounts required).
• When calling from PC to mobile or landline the following rates apply (much cheaper than skype.)
• All landline calls to these countries are free (some balance deposit required). Otherwise, free calls are still possible but limited only to one minute per call.
• Free inbound local number: Users can get a number from voipbuster which looks and functions exactly like a normal local landline number. People from any type of phone can call this number and pay local calling fees. Coolest part about it, is that user can receive calls on that number regardless of his/her location. [Ex. Joe lives in New York and has inbound number. Joe goes to study abroad to Germany. Joe's friends in NYC call Joe's local number and Joe's PC rings somewhere in Germany. Joe picks and they start talking. Joe's friend pays only NYC local calling fees and Joe himself pays nothing.]
• No expiry date on the deposited credit. Prolong it for as long as you want.
• Direct calling: An option to use landline telephone handset.
• Good quality connection.
• Line ‘Hold on’, ‘Call History’ and ‘Chat’ options.

Overall, I think it’s really cool service which can save you considerable amount of money. It’s especially useful for making long distance calls. Try it out, it may be not as feature abundant as Skype, but definitely offers a better deal when it comes to money.