Looks like Google's putting their toes in the water in the VOIP game with an VOIP capable instant messanger. http://www.forbes.com/home/feeds/ap/2005/08/24/ap2190191.html Further expanding beyond its roots in Internet search, Google Inc. plans to launch a long-rumored program Wednesday that provides both text instant messaging and computer-to-computer voice chat. The new program, Google Talk, will compete against similar free services offered for several years by America Online Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Yahoo Inc. All are vying to increase their presence on PCs to boost online ad revenue and name recognition. The launch was due to come two days after Google unveiled another free program that aggregates information on a computer desktop. It also comes less than a week after the company announced plans to raise $4 billion in a secondary stock offering - which some analysts speculated could be used to fund far-flung projects such as Internet telephony.
want an invite for g-mail? PM me your e-mail address (or a dummy e-mail addy) hmm...is google talk a rip off of skype?
Sorta and sorta not. It looks a bit more simplified than skype, but it's still a VOIP program, they can't vary that much. But I still have to run it a bit and see what it looks like from close up. Anyone know a good microphone or headset for VOIP?
Good or palletable? I think I'm using something from Altec right now. I haven't used the google thing yet. What Skype is doing isn't rocket science. But they're also offering voice mail, phone numbers, etc. I think Skypes moving into the phone market from the the IM side more and more. I don't think that's the way google wants to go. Where I could see them butting heads is using this as a tool so advertisters can embed code in their ads that allows users to click on their add and using the IM/Voip product, talk to a sales rep on the spot.
I think they're working on hooking up with Skype and other IM services. Right now, it's basically iChat without the video or conference calling.
Plantronics makes good headsets. Well I can't comment too much on them, but I use the audio.90 on the PC when I occasionally play counter-strike and it has a decent mic. You're right, it is iChat without video and conference calling. It's ridiculous that they limited the mic to only google talk users (atm).
Google Talk is still in a very preliminary stage. Beside the VoIP, it doesn't offer anything more that, say, GAIM. You need a GMail account to run it. Now anyone can get a GMail account, but you or your friend or family need a cell phone with SMS. What really impressed me was Google Desktop Beta 2.0. Support for RSS feeds, integration with your browser and e-mail reader. I really like the sidebar, though I wouldn't suggest it for resolutions under 1280x1024.