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A Review of Skype 4.0

The Skype 4.0 is a beta product and an improved version that comes with equally modified features to serve its users better. Skype believes that this improved version would make communication via its medium a lot more fun and a platform to be desired at all time.

One of the improvements made is the IM style layout consisting of multiple small windows which has been replaced with a single, full-screen video chat window which facilitates navigation. The tabbed "buddy list" window prominent since the very beginning of the product, has been replaced by a simple left-hand toolbar with the contact list as the primary feature, and buttons for "Call Phones," "Directory," and "Shop."

Although, "Call Phones" retains the keypad layout of previous versions, it  has a banner across the top listing Skype rates (currently starting at €.017), and now features an SMS button where the "end call" button logically should be. "Directory" is similar to the Skypefind search engine in prior versions. It is a search engine geared toward finding local businesses within the "what" and "where" criteria, or individuals in the "Find People" category. Like Skypefind, the criteria for searches may currently be a little bit loose and data a bit irregular.

Under Directory are buttons for "Chat Rooms" and "Skype Prime." The latter does not yet work, but the Chat Rooms tab links to the service known as Skypecast beta in previous versions of Skype. Undoubtedly one of the oddest-sounding things that can be done with Skype, these audio chat rooms provide an international platform for cross-linguistic conversations -- complete with full digital artifacting and obnoxiously loud delay and feedback. The result sounds either like a Pink Floyd album or like listening to a dozen separate underwater conversations simultaneously.

The redesign looks to take the emphasis off of simple IM and VoIP calling, and refocus on video conferencing. Audio and video sync are adequate, given the participants are using suitable hardware, but actual audio quality still borders on the sub-par. It is interesting that a system developed essentially around voice calling should have such issues, with less trouble in delivering video.

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