Re: Internet Calls Untethered From Your PC

David Pogue
> The New York Times > April 6, 2006 > WHY does Skype get so much hype? Sure, this software lets you make > free "phone calls," computer to computer, anywhere in the world. But > it wasn't the first such program, it's not the most feature-laden, > and it's still a mystery to most people over 25.

that's all Skype is, HYPE. It's a proprietary closed protocol and it locks you down to one provider where you have zero flexibility to shop for rates.

Enter the VoSky Call Center ($60 at actiontec.com), nicknamed the > Liberator. (All right, I gave it that nickname, but still.) It's a > tiny black box, about the size of a sandwich, that connects to a > Windows PC (with a U.S.B. cable), to your phone line and to your > telephone. An exceptionally clear instruction sheet walks you through > the installation.

This box is ridiculous, it's like everything Skype, it requires a PC with an unstable operating system (Windows) to sit in the middle of everything. I, and several others, have been using devices such as the Sipura SPA-3000 to do this same thing (bridge to a standard phone line), WITHOUT a PC involved for some time now. Why does this new "wonderbox" seem so great to people? Once again Skype=Hype.

The setup with the Sipura SPA-3000 served me well for over six months of international travel, without intervention. I'm confident that if there was a Windows PC involved this would not have been the case (not to mention the cost to power a small SIP device 24/7 is orders of magnitude below an entire PC).