According to Amy-Mae at Pocket-Lint, 3’s original Skypephones, the S1 and S2 which offered ‘a dedicated Skype key and free Skype calls’ are being retired. But the good news for Skypers is that with the promise of ‘as many as six INQ-branded mobiles in 2009’ Amy-Mae reckons that we ‘could be on for an imminent new model in the range, to fill the S1 and S2’s shoes’.
What would you like to see in a new Skypephone? Head over and let Amy-Mae know your thoughts.
Online at What Mobile is the INQ1 review from the February issue of the magazine.
It’s a comprehensive assessment that gets to grips with the device and what it can do. Understanding that the INQ1’s applications are available on other phone models they praise the integration – the feature they see as keeping it out of the crowd of other mobiles jostling for marketing position.
They mention that the INQ1 is built by Amoi, the same company behind 3’s original Skypephone and the S2. And it is this that leads to their verdict, “What the Skypephone did for cheap phone calls, the INQ1 does for social networking. This phone has got to be the cheapest way to enjoy all of the latest services…”
Full 4/5 conclusion here.
The End of Year Most Popular Posts post is a blogging tradition that goes right back to the digital dark ages (“when men were men, women were men and children were FBI agents”, as RBX excellently put it on Yahoo Answers). Not only is this approach a great way to look back over the past 365 days and find out what you’ve been up to, it’s also quite a lazily cunning way of recycling old content. Well, we’re not above that at 3mobilebuzz so here’s our offering…with a bit of a twist that befits our style…
2008 was the year 3 brought us the mobile dongle, the Skypephone S2 and (more recently) the INQ1. With affordable, social media-centric devices even on PAYG and tariffs that made a mockery of the £1 for 1MB nonsense that totally buggered the mobile internet in its early days, 3 continued to focus on making the untethered web accessible to all. This was all, seemingly, welcomed and sparked a lot of conversation – some of which ended up on here.
So, to usher in 2009, 3mobilebuzz look back on the year that was and ask, “What were the most visited links we pointed you towards in 2008?”
3G.co.uk has given the second incarnation of the 3 Skypephone, the S2, a good ol’ comprehensive reviewing!
Split into clearly defined sub-headings you’ll be able to find what you need to know from the review in a flash, ah-aaaa. And if words aren’t your thing then the star ratings give you an instant overview.
To see how the 4/5 of rating the S2 received stacked up, click here. The device has been in the public domain for a bit now, how are you finding it?
Mobile Shop’s Technical Markus was a fan of the original 3 Skypephone and when trawling through email yesterday was confronted with a question he felt more than qualified to answer, “Is the Skypephone S2 actually any good?”
Beginning realistially, Markus bestows where one’s expectations should lie when seeking an answer, “this isn’t a mobile phone you can compare to, say, the Nokia N96. It’s not designed to be the ultimate multimedia powerhouse, or be a portable cinema.” Once this is established he continues, “What the 3 Skypephone S2 is designed to do, though, is give you masses upon masses of communication options, and if you judge on its own terms, then it comes out as a superb mobile phone.”
Referring to the Skype functionality as ‘killer’, the thrust of the praise is tied to the recent Skype Out possibilities and the double-up-ability of a handset as a modem. And his final verdict? Well it comes out with the S2 being described as “utterly brilliant”. For all the reasons why he thinks so click here.
Quintessential English gent and hyper-intelligent gadget geek, Stephen Fry has reviewed the 3 Skypephone S2 as part of his “Dork Talk” column in The Guardian. Honestly, I never would have taken General Melchett to be much of a tech-head but I guess you can never tell.
Fry describes the ease of Skype connectivity and the near instant access to your favourite web services which is provided by the S2. He says it’s a ‘snap’ to hook the device up to your laptop, providing speeds of 3.6MB in a 3G area. All in all, Fry sums up his review of the S2 thusly:
“A crisp QVGA display allied to a happy thumb-feel keypad makes for a desirable and admirable phone that could save you hundreds of pounds in calls.”
Read the full review here.
Sam is on holiday in the States until the 29th September. In his absence, Simon Davies (the Watson to Sam’s Sherlock) will be the one keeping you up to date with the latest chatter about 3 across the internets. Enjoy the mix, people!
No, 3 isn’t making a dramatic entrance into the competitive bottled water industry, this is just an example of some of the free goodies being dished out by 3 and photographed by Mostly This: at Leicester Sq. yesterday. This is part of 3’s Social Notworking promotion we’ve been discussing on these pages all week. Social Notworking highlights the fact that efforts to block access to social venues such as Facebook in the workplace is totally undermined by the Skypephone S2 – which can have you poking like a crazy person through your mobby and there’s nothing the boss can do about it.
3 are at Golden Square today, adding more faces to the I Love Social Notworking Facebook group and (presumably) giving out more bottles of water. If you’re interested in showing your support, or if you’re just thirsty, head on down to Golden Square today.
On a related note, the 3 Skypephone now has a page on that ultimate bastion of communal knowledge and insight Wikipedia! Well done to the folks who put that together in all its detailed glory.
The S2 event in Soho Square yesterday has been covered by BrandRepublic and is designed to get people trying out the Skypephone S2 and promote the access the handset gives to social venues such as Facebook.
The incentive is reacting to the banning in some work places of such sites and is going under the umbrella of I Love Social Notworking.Continuing today in Leciester Square and visiting Goldon Square tomorrow the social notworking experience incorporates a interactive booth, where photo’s of notworkers can get snapped and have their image uploaded to a dedicated Facebook group.
To find out more simply search Facebook for I love Social Notworking and you’ll be able to jump in and join up. Or if you want to experience the S2, booth and notworking vibe, then wind your way to the appropriate square on the appropriate day.
3 are giving one and all the chance to get hands on with S2 if you happen to be in the vicinity of Soho Square today, Leicester Square tomorrow or Golden Square on Friday.
For those with a desire to play with the device or just to have a sit down on some calm-inducing furniture for a chat with some brand ambassadors then these impromptu gatherings are for you. By now the Soho shindig will be winding down, but don’t feel shy about turning up with your pals to Thursday and Friday’s goings on.
Gadgeteer has given the event a post worth of coverage also, should you feel like reading more.
Technology magazine T3 was the subject of the question that won me my most recent game of Trivial Pursuit (Tomorrow’s Technology Today, that was the answer). The premier tech mag has also just reviewed the S2 and given it a verdict of four out of five stars.
Not overtly impressed with the original Skypephone, “Think … everything in Woolworths really, and that’s pretty much the quality of the first 3 Skypephone”. Ouch, that’s harsh. However the new version has courted their praise, so much in fact that the review leads to a conclusion featuring the following, “3 has come out fighting with this Skype baby, and we’re impressed.”
Very nice indeed. There is plenty of detail in the review on different aspects of the device, particular attention has been paid to the S2’s upgraded looks. To get all there is go here and learn why T3 believe that the S2 will “have you nagging your mates to Skype-it-up.”
The Skype blog has rounded up the best bits of conversation on the 3 Skypephone S2 and put them together so as to gauge the blogosphere’s reaction to the handset.
Overall the response is one of praise for the upgrade on the original Skypephone, with lessons learnt and criticisms taken on board the S2 is a more than satisfactory next-gen version.
Most of the links have in one form or fashion been featured on 3mobilebuzz, but it is always nice to see things placed together. Among the links are the words of Neil Bird, Neville Hobson and Episode 22 of the Mobile Industry Review Show. There is a little bit more included also, so should you feel like delving a little deeper, click here.
Neville Hobson has been testing out the 3 Skypephone S2 and until recently had been collating his thoughts on what he made of the upgraded original handset. He has now put all this together in the form of a comprehensive video review on his technology blog, Next.
The review is 28 minutes long and runs through all the main points of interest and all that goes before your eyes when putting the integrated applications to work. A demonstration that suits the medium superbly. If the S2 is a something you’re intrigued by then this video is a must, giving you a users point-of-view guide.
http://www.vimeo.com/1637337
3 Skypephone S2 Video Review from Neville Hobson on Vimeo.
In the post where Neville presents the video he gives a snippet of his conclusion, and it seems an appropriate place finish, “It’s a terrific device, greatly improved on its predecessor”.
Mobile Industry Review were about to write something undoubtedly well constructed about the Skypephone S2 and Facebook integration, but then Ken, a MIR reader, sent them over his thoughts… Thus reader generated content, superb.
Ken’s view on Facebook wasn’t the best, it isn’t that he disliked it, just didn’t feel the need for it, so as he says himself, “it was with some trepidation that I approached FB when given the chance to try out a SkypePhone recently. Would my meagre assortment of friends do the business? Could I actually like this?”
In short the answer is yes. And why? Because Facebook on a phone works, especially in Ken’s case the messaging service it provides and the friends link, something he refers to as ‘killer’. This link gives you the update statuses of your friends, each with an option to message or call. The pull of this is the context it gives to your next meeting, knowing the state of mind of a pal or what they’ve been up to, “the serendipity that FB on my phone is starting to engender is eye-opening [...] If it’s fast and easy, people will do it. 3 have removed the pain and mobilised something I never thought I’d enjoy.”
Ken’s complete reaction was posted by Ewan here and is worth having a look at if you’re either tempted by the S2 or indeed a Facebook-aholic.
One of the features of the new 3 Skypephone S2 is that it can be plugged into your laptop and used as a dongle for getting mobile broadband. Neil decided to give this a whirl, and he’s written about it under the title 3 Skypephone S2 + Laptop = Mobile Broadband.
The process of getting the S2 functioning as a dongle is as straight forward as things can get, something Neil commended; “Set-up was a breeze, well for PC users (more on that later), as all you need to do is plug the supplied USB data cable into the bottom of your phone and the other end into your computer.” It is this simple because the setup software is all contained on the S2 itself.
As alluded to in the above quote, the setup on a Mac was less easy, which is something that Neil discusses in the post. However, he has nothing but good things to say about the newly designed connection interface and it is these words that send him headlong into the conclusion; “For the price – I really cant fault it, why get a Mobile Broadband Dongle, when you can have this AND make calls?”
With the Skypephone S2 ‘in the wild’ and showing promise “with a 3.2 megapixel camera, and a new carousel interface that sounds like it’s taken more than a passing inspiration from the iPhone’s touch UI”, Mobile Industry Review (incorporating SMS Text News) have featured it in their show!
Episode 22 of the Mobile Industry Review Show comes from the Tower of London and throws interesting historical facts a-plenty before entering into Skypephone S2 analysis at around the 2:20 mark. The review is three minutes in length and fairly conclusive with the integrated features of the S2 discussed (such as Facebook, Skype and Bebo amongst others) along with the function of the handset as a plug and play modem. This latter bit of functionality is something James Whatley had a brief moment trying to get to grips with, but pulls through in the end.
Overall, James, main reviewer Dan Lane and Ben Smith are all impressed wih the build quality, the ability to double it up as a dongle, screen quality and the looks. So be sure to view the review here.
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