Mobile VoIP for Symbian

There are quite a lot of articles about Mobile VoIP on the web. And even for Symbian S60 and UIQ we can find a number of I am trying here to collect a few of good and useful VoIP applications (for me, at least) and to make sense from all of it.

I’ll start with what my main use of VoIP are:

1. Call friends on their Skype or Yahoo! Messenger or GoogleTalk, which means this is a “free” calls (OK, not so free, because I have to pay data/Internet charges – but probably neglible)
2. Make cheap international calls (part of office policy is to use the most cost effective communication means, so I reimbursed my SkypeOut Credit purchase to my employer)
3. Maybe, I can use VoIP to receive calls when I’m roaming abroad (watch out for data charges!)

I’m not using VoIP for national long distance, since mobile to mobile call (even long distance) is already incredibly low.

Now the options are:

SIP-based services, things like VoIP Rakyat (and a bunch of other alternatives). This is an excellent alternative for free calls PC-to-PC (VoIP to VoIP). I don’t really have many friends using them, so useless for me.

No need to install a separate client applications in Nokia Symbian S60 V3 phones – they have built in SIP clients (e.g. N80, N95, N82, …). I think SonyEricsson P990i can do SIP call as well.

Configuration is a bit problematic. Need to enter a lot of parameter (user name, ID, proxy server, registrar server, realm, etc.) But, hey, you’re a geek, so you can do it. If you’re in Indonesia, you can download E-series VoIP Settings Wizard (well, the settings are only for Indonesian SIP providers).

Fring, Nimbuzz, Truphone and Gizmo. I think they are all alike.

• Need to install an application in your mobile phone, PC counterpart is sometimes available
• Can make free mobile VoIP calls between Fring/Nimbuzz/Gizmo community
• Multiplatform IM client supporting Google Talk, YM, AIM, ICQ, MSN, whatever (varies a bit among them), but all supports Yahoo and Google Talk.

Image by thomcochrane via Flickr

Fring looks promising. Voice quality is good (Fring to Fring), with very slightly noticeable delay. Skype calls and SkypeOut work, although there’s a glitch here and there with SkypePRO mentioned in their forum. IM-ing is acceptable, though the chat interface still desires a lot to be improved.

Calls to YM contacts do not work at this moment. But GTalk and Skype calls is OK.

All calls are made using packet data (works best in 3G, 2G quality is not too good). So no cellular airtime is being consumed (compared to Skype or i-Skoot client below).

I haven’t been able to download TruPhone yet. But it also looks interesting.

Skype and i-Skoot follow a slightly different approach. They are not 100% mobile VoIP.

Skype has a PSTN-to-IP VoIP gateway installed in several countries. This gateway will translate a normal phone call into a VoIP.

A Skype or SkypeOut call on the mobile client will actually be a normal phone call to the gateway, and the gateway will translate the call to VoIP afterwards. So cellular time (and SkypeOut credit, naturally) will be consumed.

Phone –cellular call–> Gateway –VoIP–> Internet –> Destination

Receiving a call is like receiving a normal phone call and will consume SkypeOut credit (because the gateway will make a call to your cellular number).

Check out the AAS article below for the explanation & screen shots.

That’s why I haven’t been able to do a call in the Skype Mobile application. (Time to uninstall). Apparently no gateway in Indonesia… 🙂

That’s all folks. So it looks like I’m going to stick with Fring fro the moment.

[screen shots to be added after the break]

Links:

• Laptop Magazine: Comparing Fring, Nimbuzz, Talkster, and barablu: link
• Skype for Mobile in Beta (AAS): link
• VoIP Settings Wizard for E-Series Indonesia: link