With everything becoming web-based these days, it was only a matter of time until VOIP made its way back to its roots putting the ‘IP’ back in its term. Gizmo Call, a new product from the folks at SIPphone — the company behind Skype standoff Gizmo Project – is a Flash-based app which lets you make calls to any phone in the world the same way you do on Skype and other VOIP clients, of course, the difference being that you do it over a website.
As you can easily see in the screenshot below, there’s nothing much really to it. Those of us who have used Skype or Gizmo Project before to make a call won’t find it much different, and I can see how much features they’ve tried to pack in to make it seem like a true VOIP experience without a desktop client. Just load it with some Call Out balance (or on the other hand enjoy the free five minutes they are giving users to test the service for now), and make your call. Make sure you have your mic plugged in and setup the usual way.
Something cool I love about Gizmo Call is that you can append your number to gizmocall.com/ (for example http://gizmocall.com/3203949331). With this, you can either call others instantly by simply typing the golden URL in your browser’s address bar or share the URL with your number to friends and perhaps put it on your blog and social network profiles. It’s short, cool, and most certainly an advantage of having a web-based VOIP service.
The problem with VOIP these days in general is that there is a whole lot of setting up that goes on. Download the application, install it, create a username, and so on. Of course, there’s nothing much really for those of us privileged enough with a laptop and a built-in mic with Skype automatically starting and remembering your password, but for those in countries like India where international calling prices are high and having a computer and broadband at home is for the privileged masses, I can see how much of a problem it can be. Come Gizmo Call, and it’s solved. Walk down to your nearest Internet cafe (which, by the way, India is awesome at having everywhere), point your browser to gizmocall.com, and make your call. Gizmo Call is a new way to do things I think, and one that will have its own set of new innovations spring up.
[tags]Gizmo Call, VOIP, Gizmo Project, SIPphone, Skype[/tags]
