VOIP

So I check my postal mail today, and what do I find: an advertisement for Best Buy for Business, a catalog order-by-mail scheme that uses the Best Buy logo and appears to bear all the markings of CDW or Insight. Heavy discounts. Glossy pages. No-haggle pricing. Does this mean that, judging by Best Buy’s track record, we can expect to have our customer service questions taken by snotty high school kids who don’t have half a clue about the products in question? I have such a hard time just getting an equivocal answer from the people that work at Best Buy. Are the Geek Squad geeks (who have maybe two thirds of a clue) really going to steer your small business into IP telephony, as the advertisement indicates? Doubtful… Being a Geek Squad ensign is how college kids spend their summers, and how community college kids spend their winters. Anybody order from Best Buy for Business yet? Give me comment and let me know your experience.Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Dell to hock Skype
According to a press release I received today from Skype, Dell will be bundling Skype with its XPS notebooks, the same notebooks which alread include a built-in broadband access radio and also a built-in webcam for video-conferencing (gee, hasn’t Apple been all over that action for a whlie now?). So, fire up your wireless broadband and crank out the Skype calls on yout Dell laptop, if Dell is what you like.SKYPE TEAMS UP WITH DELL TO MAKE INTERNET CALLING EVEN EASIER New Dell XPS Mobile Systems can be configured with Skype; Free Internet Voice and Video Calling with Other Skype Users LUXEMBOURG, May 31, 2006 -Skype and Dell have teamed up to make it easy to stay in touch. Today, Skype, the global Internet communications company, announced an agreement with Dell, the world’s largest maker of personal computers, to ship Skype[TM] software with new Dell[TM] XPS[TM] mobile systems - the XPS M1210 and XPS M2010. The agreement will allow Dell to provide its customers with easy access to Skype’s voice and video Internet calling software. Dell will be able to pre-load Skype on the XPS 2010, a unique mobile entertainment system featuring a 20.1-inch high-definition display with integrated webcam. The XPS 1210 can be configured with Skype as part of an optional audio-video communications package that also includes an integrated rotating webcam, noise-isolation earbuds and mobile broadband capability. “As the leading notebook supplier, Dell is committed to delivering cutting-edge technology that provides voice and video connectivity virtually anywhere,” said Brett Faulk, worldwide marketing director, consumer notebooks. “Teaming with Skype, the trend setter in Internet communications, will provide our customers the very best experience when reaching out and staying in touch with friends and family around the world.” “Dell customers will be able to experience the benefits of Skype, optimized for their computing environment. This gives Dell customers a simple way to use the Internet to talk to their friends and family from home, in the office or on-the-go,” said Don Albert, Director of Business Development, Skype North America. “Dell represents a new distribution channel for Skype. New products from Dell will complement the breadth of hardware designed for the convenience of Skype callers.” With Skype, customers can talk for as long as they like with other Skype customers across the world without worrying about the cost or the distance of the call. Unveiled today, the Dell XPS M1210 and M2010 are available immediately worldwide.Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments