Hasta La Gadget!

This week Microsoft has announced that they’re bringing on a whole new Skype app for their Windows Phone 8 app. This update allows Skype to be on always, or “always-on”, as it were, not draining the battery as a normal app would. This is allowed quite simply because Microsoft owns the bulk of Skype, thus letting them work as close as possible with the developers running the show – integration as never before.

This update allows Skype to work just as intuitively as your phone. You can video chat here with a tap – just as you’ve been able to chat with your phone or your text messaging in the past. With Skype on always, it’s as if the Windows Phone 8 universe is as tied up with this giant chat beast as it is with SMS.

This is a giant deal for Microsoft who also made a big deal of their Skype integration on Windows 8 – with this boost from Microsoft, Skype is ready to stay a giant name in the video chat business. As it were though, should one or the other fail, Skype may well fall with it. With cross-over deal happening, both Skype and Microsoft are ready to harvest the power of brand trust – one must be excellent if they work with the other.

Stick around and see how both brands expand and how Skype will truly be integrated with the Windows Phone 8 world in the very near future!

Skype gets “always-on” feature for Windows Phone 8 is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Today marks the release of Skype 6.0 for Mac and Windows, and those who have already gone ahead and installed or updated their previous version to Skype 6.0, you would realize that there is a bunch of new features waiting to be discovered, where among them include Microsoft and Facebook account integration. Basically, signing up and signing in has never been easier than before, where you can opt to sign into Skype using your Microsoft or Facebook account without having to actually create a new Skype account. Definitely the ideal new feature to have considering how many passwords we need to remember these days for the plethora of accounts that we own at the moment.

Other than that, you can also send instant messages to friends on your Windows Live Messenger, Hotmail and Outlook.com contacts over Skype, and if you already own a Microsoft account, merging your spate of accounts is a snap, all you need to do is just sign in to Skype using your Microsoft account. Of course, if you want to read up on the entire new features and fixtures crammed into Skype 6.0 for Mac and Windows, hit the source link and you’re good to go.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Skype 2.1.23 update for Belle FP2 could be the last, Skype for Windows 8 announced,

Skype has pushed out a new version for PC and Mac, v.6, which introduces Facebook Chat integration as well as Retina Display support for the OS X client. The updated VoIP and video calling app can now pull in Windows Live Messenger, Outlook.com, and Hotmail contacts, thanks to further Microsoft integration between its products, and in fact you no longer need a separate Skype account at all.

Instead, you can use your existing Facebook or Microsoft credentials to log in, and if you choose the latter then the various chat services Microsoft offers will instantly be supported too. Microsoft had already been talking up its Skype for Windows 8 app, completely redesigned to suit the Metro-style UI.

In the pipeline, meanwhile, is the ability to break out chat conversations into different windows so as to more easily monitor them on the Mac app; that’s already enabled in the PC version. There’ll also be the ability to make audio/video calls directly to Windows Live Messenger users from the Skype app, which Microsoft says is due in the “coming weeks.”

Skype is a free download, though there are premium services which you can pay for. Those include unlimited voice calls to landlines, group video chats for up to ten participants, and instant live-chat support from Skype itself.

Skype v.6 released: Retina support and Facebook/Live Messenger integration is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

It goes without saying, Microsoft, who owns Skype, will be working to roll out a new version of Skype. This should not come across as a surprise considering how Microsoft, too, has a new Windows operating system for the masses known as Windows 8, so it would be a no-brainer to roll out Skype for Windows 8. It is said that Skype for Windows 8 sees Microsoft focus on how folks are using Skype today, while re-imagining Skype for everyday communications worldwide. If we were to summarize it, one can say that Skype for Windows 8 is simple, fast and beautiful.

It makes communication easier when recent chat messages and calls can be seen the moment you launch Skype, in addition to seeing folks who you come into contact with the most. Adding to your favorite contacts is as easy as a simple tap or click away. Calling landlines or smartphones directly has been simplified as well thanks to the new and modern dial pad. Windows 8 knows whether you are using a desktop, laptop, tablet or convertible PC, as it has Skype running in the background without causing too much of a drain on your battery life, which is a good thing especially when you’re using a mobile device. Are you looking forward to Skype for Windows 8?

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Skype 2.1.23 update for Belle FP2 could be the last, Windows 8 Gets a Hulu Plus App,

With Windows 8 going on sale in just four days, Microsoft is doing a sensible thing and releasing a version of Skype optimized for Win 8. As you’d expect, Skype for Windows 8 has the same overarching look and feel as other apps, which is to say you can swipe from left to right to see different categories, such as recent activity, favorites and a complete contacts list. But the integration with Windows 8 goes a little deeper than that. Just as you can pinch your Live Tiles to zoom out and make them easier to navigate, you can use semantic zoom to sift through a long list of contacts. And, because Skype runs in the background, you can set up your Start Screen so that the Skype Live Tile shows notifications for things like missed calls. Additionally, Skype is now baked into the People Hub, so that someone’s Skype handle shows up alongside other forms of contact, like an email address or phone number.

The in-call experience has also been modified to take advantage of certain features in Win 8. For one, you can link your Skype and Microsoft account, so that when you log into your system using your Microsoft ID, you’ll already be logged into Skype. While on a call, you can conduct video chats using the whole screen, at which point chat messages from that person will show up as text bubbles on the side of the screen. At any time, you can swipe to see other recent activity, which could be handy if you’re juggling multiple IM conversations at once.

If you prefer, you can also dock Skype on the side of the screen, as you can with any other program in Win 8. With the Skype chat taking up just a third (or two thirds) of the screen, you can use that remaining real estate for an IM chat within Skype, or maybe a web search. Lastly, if you return to the home screen, there’s a large phone icon up top where you’ll find the dialer, whose number pad allow your fingers plenty of room to hit the right keys. You’ll see your balance listed there, too, in the event you’re not planning on making a free call to another Skype user. That’s our quick summary of what’s new, but if you like you’ll soon be able to experience it for yourself: the app will be available for free in the Windows Store on October 26th.

Continue reading Microsoft announces Skype for Windows 8: full-screen calls, push notifications and People Hub integration

Filed under: Software, Microsoft

Microsoft announces Skype for Windows 8: full-screen calls, push notifications and People Hub integration originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Oct 2012 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Skype  | Email this | Comments