The biggest change with Skype 2.0 is the addition of video calling. With the click of a button, users can connect their Web cam and make calls. Video is easy to set up, and the quality is better than most competitors. At the moment, the capability is limited to calls between Skype users only.
"There's a fast-growing, active base of people who have got used to using Skype to make calls," says Saul Klein, vice president of the company. "It's not going to be for everyone, and it's certainly not going to be in every circumstance, but to give people the ability to see one another as well as to talk to one another is going to be a very powerful thing."
Registrations have rocketed recently by around 15 million. The company now has more than 68 million registered users worldwide, and claims it is accepting around 35,000 new signups every day in China alone.
-- Bobbie Johnson
The Guardian, London
Released in 2002, the first Orange SPV was a true breakthrough. Not only was it the first smartphone to run using Windows and feature versions of Outlook, Windows Media and Word, it was also the first chunky phone with a comfortable Web surfing experience. There have been many incarnations of the SPV, the most important of which was last year's C500. Smaller than previous models, the C500 was easier to use and had a superb screen.
Earlier this year, Orange revamped the range again with the SPV C550, a handset that it billed as a music phone. Yet the C550, which was slightly chunkier than its predecessor, also included a 1.3 megapixel camera.
With the SPV C600, Orange has ditched the music buttons and added Windows Mobile 5.0. It is the first handset in Europe to use this operating system and it is certainly an improvement. Hitting the Start button now brings up an icon-based interface that is a cut above the previous menu options.
The other major upgrade is the C600's joystick control, which is far better than the previous rocker. It's more useful not just for navigating the menu system, but also if you use the phone for gaming.
The 1.3 megapixel camera also works well and takes shots with richer colors than many of its rivals, though those images tend to be a little bright.
In some ways, the SPV C600 is a missed opportunity. Wi-Fi would have been an obvious upgrade, not just for faster web browsing, but also to use with Skype. A Qwerty keypad would have been welcome, too, even if it added bulk.
-- Ashley Norris
The Guardian, London
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