View Full Version : calling geeks ...
okay so which of you clever people know's if you can run skype video calls through your laptop through a mobile broadband connection and if so how rubbish is the connection or is it clear?
Jayneflakes
11-08-08, 08:26 PM
Oh you want a computer geek...
There was I about to go and get myself a cardboard broadsword and a twelve sided die...
Damnation.
Three Mobile broadband here, and don't use Skype video calls much, but it's always as good as a general webcam chat.
If you want to check out the quality of the call, the next time you're in one, click on the icon displayed for the person (the large icon), this will bring up loads of meaningless information. Feel free to screenshot this & post on this thread. :) (ALT+PRN SCR will grab only the active window).
SoulKiss
11-08-08, 09:34 PM
If you are talking about running Skype on a Laptop which is connected to a 3G service via a mobile phone or a USB modem then theoretically its a yes.
However the mobile provider may block Skype.
Leave it with me Anna and I will chat to a friend who is a technical analyst in the telecoms/IP area and find out which provider would be best - my feelings are that T-Mobile might be good for this but I will confirm tomorrow :)
Doubtful Anna. Here is what Skype say about the upload bandwidth requirements;
"For Skype-to-Skype voice calls we recommend: 10 kbits to 64 kbits speed.
for Skype-to-Skype video (both normal and high quality) we recommend: 384 kbps."
Your ISP should quote upload and download speeds for your subscription so check them.
no, not realy, ive tried
one it may not work depending on the plan you are on, but due to the nature os HSDPA the data transfer is not constant like ADSL, somtimes you will drop connection for several seconds or packets will be verry slow.
Lots of photogs in our office use 3G cards for pic upload in the field, usualy they endup at starbucks to use the WiFi.
As Ricardo said I would think 3G/HSDPA would have the throughput but you would have issues with latency (delays).
Dan
Yeh okay it was a nice idea.. thanks guys.. I sometimes wish technology would hurry up a bit in developing the things i need ;)
Quick run away, she wants all the geeks in one thread so she can have a cull.
Also who supplies your firewall, as if you have to install one that your mobile provider supplies then it might block the ports needed to connect. If I had my web cam I could check it for you, but at the moment its in Portsmouth.
yeh i'm with vodaphone at the minute and it would mean changing phones to start with to be able to support 3G but that wouldnt be a major issue .. it would be the contract that would go with it that would sting me!!!.. time to look for another plan!
See if you can go with 3 and maybe they will throw in there 3G dongle.
Geek here
If you are trying to use Skype video via a mobile phone or dongle (same thing really as its the fancy modulation technique applied to the UE, i.e. 64QAM and some other software/hardware parameters etc), I would first look to see if you are in a good HSDPA area with your operator.
If you are not then don’t bother really and have a look at again in 6 months time.
Even if you are in a good area the D in HSDPA refers to downlink, i.e. the mast to you phone /dongle. This should get a goodish speed of about 1 to 1.2 meg in reality (max is 3.6 meg in the UK unless you an are a business vodaphone plan and 7.2 is max). However please treat these figures as ideal and not what you will receive. Also the speed at which you send data has a max of 384kpbs but in reality you may get approx 100kbps if you are in a good area. This will be better when HSUPA is launched, but don’t expect that very soon.
Hope that helps...but it is a little geeky so sorry if it’s just added to the confusion.
Geek here
If you are trying to use Skype video via a mobile phone or dongle (same thing really as its the fancy modulation technique applied to the UE, i.e. 64QAM and some other software/hardware parameters etc), I would first look to see if you are in a good HSDPA area with your operator.
If you are not then don’t bother really and have a look at again in 6 months time.
Even if you are in a good area the D in HSDPA refers to downlink, i.e. the mast to you phone /dongle. This should get a goodish speed of about 1 to 1.2 meg in reality (max is 3.6 meg in the UK unless you an are a business vodaphone plan and 7.2 is max). However please treat these figures as ideal and not what you will receive. Also the speed at which you send data has a max of 384kpbs but in reality you may get approx 100kbps if you are in a good area. This will be better when HSUPA is launched, but don’t expect that very soon.
Hope that helps...but it is a little geeky so sorry if it’s just added to the confusion.
Here, I think you earned it....
http://www.tritex-games.co.uk/images/dscn2774.jpg
What makes it worse is the fact that I used to uses them dice for there intended purpose.....geeksville was inevitable me thinks
Hmm I had a set of Dx, Dy, Dz etc... and have ended up being paid to be a geek (of sorts).
The correlation is warped a little though as it was the guys that I played with that I can thank\blame for getting me my first couple of jobs in the wonderful world of IT when I dropped out of Uni.
The idea was for when i was on tour and as such I dont know about the areas until I get there so I guess I really am looking at plan b
Here, I think you earned it....
http://www.tritex-games.co.uk/images/dscn2774.jpg
http://www.mid.muohio.edu/computer/images/geek2.jpg
yeh i'm with vodaphone at the minute and it would mean changing phones to start with to be able to support 3G but that wouldnt be a major issue .. it would be the contract that would go with it that would sting me!!!.. time to look for another plan!
Working for Vodafone customer services, I can confirm that it does work with the mobile broadband service as long as you've got good service.
I would advise you to keep a close eye on your internet usage, though - I had a woman call in 2 months ago complaining that her internet bills were really high when she was "hardly using it"...turns out she was barely surfing, but was Skyping virtually every day for an hour or two a time. She was chewing through 6gb/data in a month easily on a 3gb (then later a 5gb) plan.
SoulKiss
12-08-08, 01:08 PM
Working for Vodafone customer services, I can confirm that it does work with the mobile broadband service as long as you've got good service.
I would advise you to keep a close eye on your internet usage, though - I had a woman call in 2 months ago complaining that her internet bills were really high when she was "hardly using it"...turns out she was barely surfing, but was Skyping virtually every day for an hour or two a time. She was chewing through 6gb/data in a month easily on a 3gb (then later a 5gb) plan.
Thats why you should go for T-Mobile - they have fixed rate but high capacity Data packages :)
If you have a laptop tho, why not just piggy-back on a convinient open Wifi Router - latest figures show that about 1 in 3 Access Points ae not secured.....
Now we await the deluge of Anna "whats the default username and password for a DG834PN router" posts :)
Easy, its "Admin - admin"...
Yeh okay it was a nice idea.. thanks guys.. I sometimes wish technology would hurry up a bit in developing the things i need ;)
Anna, as no doubt you've already been told, try Gizmo. (I won't link here because I'm lazy).
Skype alternative, provided by the folks that started the whole SIPgate revolution. So they should be more efficent, and latency issues mentionned above should be at least reduced.
Popular != good solution. :)
What makes it worse is the fact that I used to uses them dice for there intended purpose.....geeksville was inevitable me thinks
I'll admit to Rolemaster. Shhhhh....
Anna, as no doubt you've already been told, try Gizmo. (I won't link here because I'm lazy).
Skype alternative, provided by the folks that started the whole SIPgate revolution. So they should be more efficent, and latency issues mentionned above should be at least reduced.
Popular != good solution. :)
yeh thanks for that Baph it was passed onto me that you'd mentioned Gizmo I will give it a whirl and see... just dont really want to spend a fortune on telephone calls etc whilst I'm not at home and was just looking into the other options available...
BTW is it true that Starbucks now charge you for use of their WiFi.. I always thought it was free???
yeh thanks for that Baph it was passed onto me that you'd mentioned Gizmo I will give it a whirl and see... just dont really want to spend a fortune on telephone calls etc whilst I'm not at home and was just looking into the other options available...
BTW is it true that Starbucks now charge you for use of their WiFi.. I always thought it was free???
Gizmo do the same sort of charging as Skype do (Gizmo-Gizmo is free etc etc). Or at least, they used to.
Starbucks is a little funny really. Get a card (if you don't have one already), register it, and use it at least once a month, and you'll get free WiFi.
T-Mobile customers apparently get free internet access from Starbucks too. But there's also a rather naughty way to accomplish the same thing - something that I shouldn't divulge on the .Org most likely (or a mod will hit me with a stick :()... I'll ensure that's passed along to you as well, via the same source. ;)
awwwwwww Baph you naughty boy ;) ... information sucessfully received ;)
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