Gizmodo
It may not be Sunday! Sunday! Sunday! but the big showdown between Netgear and Belkin is going down today, via their respective WiFi Skype phones. Who will walk out of the arena bloodied, but victorious? And who will lie there, clutching their gonads like a man who got kicked...in the gonads? Count along as the champion of each category is noted in bold and italicized.
Note: This may be a bit unfair, as the version of software on Belkin's unit is pre-release and Netgear's is release. We'll do another match-up once Belkin releases a final version of the firmware.
Size: Netgear's is smaller, easier to hold.
Comfort: Belkin's finish may look better, but Netgear's is easier to hold in your hand and up to your ear.
Heat: Both got pretty hot, but Belkin stayed a bit cooler than Netgear's.
Call Quality (includes reception): The overall quality was about the same, but Netgear had noticeably less lag than Belkin. The Belkin unit is still a pre-release version, whereas Netgear's version is release, therefore more stable.
Skype-to-Skype: Tie. Both were decent.
Skype-out: Netgear's was definitely more stable and didn't have the lag that was in Belkin's unit.
UI: Netgear's was faster, more responsive, and the keys have a better tactile feedback than Belkin's. But the Belkin phone had a brighter screen, and didn't have the annoying problem of having to manually type in the "+" key whenever you wanted to add a Skype-out contact.
Talk-Time: Belkin wins at three hours compared to Netgear's two.
Speakerphone: Netgear wins. Belkin doesn't have one.
Cost: Belkin's was only $179 on Amazon before it was taken down. Netgear's is $249.
Conclusion: Netgear wins 7-4, thanks to its better call quality, smaller size, and more responsive UI. However, the race may be a bit closer next time after Belkin updates its firmware. We're going to say award Netgear the crown now, but check back in October for a re-match.
Comments
I wish the taiwanese bmc wlan phone would come to the U.S. it can use the internet...anyone know a site to buy one?
Any update on availability, or pre-ordering? Oh, and those underlines are confusing. They look like links.
Everything's still the same on availability and pre-ordering. Amazon hasn't changed its status even though Netgear claims their phone is being shipped already.
Hey! It's not fall yet. Don't be cutting my summer even shorter than it already it.
I don't know....they both look like glorified TV remotes to me. And besides, if the electricity goes out, doesn't the service go out too? What happens if you use this phone as your primary line and we have another blackout like the one in the summer of '03. Can you still call 911?
Does calling 911 during a blackout really ever solve anything? In my experience the 911 lines, if they function, are horribly flooded at the time and you have pretty much no shot of getting through.
My cell phone has been my primary (and only) line for the last 5 years, and it has NEVER been a problem.
Land-line phones go down, too...
Can you call 911 from Skype? NO!
Can you call 911 from a Skype WiFi phone? NO!
And golly geCan you call 911 from Skype? NO!
Can you call 911 from a Skype WiFi phone? NO!
And golly gee gosh isn't that exactly what the User Agreement say, that you must agree to when you first turn on the phone. Just about every page on the Skype site has the disclaimer, "Skype is not a telephony replacement service and cannot be used for emergency dialling."
Skype is location-less. You could be making that same call from San Francisco, Toronto, Tokyo, Durban, or Sydney. How exactly would Skype know which emergency service to connect you to? The one where your home address is located? But what if you're not there?
One of the great problems with VOIP acceptance has been the 911 issue. The big companies have opted for a regional operator who then forwards your VOIP emergency call to the correct local area. But they still don't have a resolution to the "where is the call coming from" question that caller ID gives emergency services. But then again cell phone emergency calls have the same issue. That's why GPS chips are starting to become common in mobiles.
I suppose the logical solution for people would be to add the real phone number for each of the emergency services to your Skype contact list, with a special character that makes them float to the top of the list. Of course if you take your phone to a different city you'd have to edit the contacts.
The power outage question is easy to solve. Plug your router, and cable/DSL modem into a UPS. Of course that assumes that the outage isn't severe enough to take down the phone or cable system's internet sides as well. I know the phone system has battery backup - but does it's DSL side?
Simply put, Help Desk Tech's exact question is the reason many people do not recommend VOIP as your primary phone service. They also suggest that you keep one hard wired phone connected to your line at all times.
With all that said, I'm probably going to give one of these a go. With Skype-In being about 1/6 the price of basic phone service for a year, and my calling pattern would make the Skype-Out charge a couple of dollars a month (when they start charging again in North America), the capital cost of the phone would pay for itself in less than a year. And the added benefit of not have to keep a computer on 24/7 for the USB connected Skype adapters, this seems to make sense.
I just wish some company would make a hybrid between this, and the USB adapters. A wired connection to my router, with enough smarts to run the Skype software, and a regular phone jack to hook up a normal phone. Are you listening D-Link, Netgear, and Belkin?
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