As the midnight line rolled across the globe last night, international iTunes users picked up the Skype app with glee and enthusiasm. While users in Germany are fuming at reports that T-Mobile plans to block use of Skype via its WiFi hotspots, everyone else seems quite happy so far. We're already hearing about Bluetooth speakerphones or plug-in mics that should work well with the service.

More updates: users of jailbroken phones may want to check Cydia for an update to the mobile substrate component that stops Skype from crashing. Canadian users are, for the moment, out of luck due to a patent concern.

If you've got Skype fired up on your iPhone, let us know how it's going for you and what the advantages/drawbacks of VoIP on your iPhone or iPod touch are so far. Leave a comment below, or send us a Skype IM at 'TUAW_on_Skype' with your thoughts.

Update: Our pals at Engadget are reporting that Skype for the iPhone has just hit Japan!

We heard it was on the way, but now CNET says it's official: the Skype application for iPhone and iPod touch should be available tomorrow on the App Store. As expected, the voice-over-IP app will require a WiFi connection to place and receive calls; it will also handle conference calling as a participant, not an initiator, and the first version leaves out SMS, call waiting and an integrated voicemail tool. Skype text chat, unlike voice traffic, will work fine over an EDGE or 3G connection.

Imperfect? Yes, and there are other apps -- Fring and Nimbuzz, for example -- that can talk to the Skype voice network... but the big blue S is providing the stamp of approval for VoIP on the iPhone, and you can bet that Skype's app will shoot to the top of the App Store charts as soon as it's released.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in.

VOIP for iPhone is the dream of many a user, and Om Malik suggests that it might be days away. Citing a "...very reliable source," Om says that Skype is ready to launch their iPhone app, perhaps at next week's CTIA Wireless event.

That's whole lot of "suggests" and "might" and "perhaps," is it not? Frankly, I don't see why Apple or AT&T would be keen on Skype for the iPhone or iPod touch. Of course, here are other VOIP options available, like fring and iCall (among others), so what do I know? It's an interesting rumor, but for now, that's all.

Vonage, the international VoIP provider, has just released its Vonage Companion software for OS X. Vonage Companion is available to users who subscribe the the Vonage Pro plan and it basically allows users to use their laptops or desktops to make or receive phone calls. Think of it as Skype but for your Vonage account.

You can use Vonage Companion to record calls, set-up conference calls (or separate conference calls into separate phone calls), selective call block, call transfers and more.

I don't have a Vonage Pro account, so I wasn't able to check out the features firsthand, but flipping through the manual (PDF link) it looks pretty powerful. The biggest benefit to a service like this is the ability to make and receive calls from the road, using your Vonage number and account credentials.

Vonage Companion is free for Vonage Pro customers (existing Vonage users will need to upgrade to a Vonage Pro account) and it works with OS X 10.4.11 Tiger and OS X 10.5 Leopard, though Vonage strongly recommends having the latest security updates and latest OS updates installed. You can download Vonage Companion here (direct .DMG link)

Good news for travelers or anyone who is frequently on the go: Boingo has just released Boingo Mobile [iTunes link] for the iPhone and iPod touch. Boingo Mobile is actually a pretty handy service, especially for the frequent traveler. For $7.95 a month (5.95 EUR, 3.95 GBP), you get unlimited data and VOiP access to all Boingo Mobile hotspot locations throughout the world. This includes practically every major airport, US Starbucks and McDonalds locations and an insane number of hotels.

I use the Boingo Unlimited service when working away from home (it's about the same price as adding HotSpot access to my cell phone and I get access to more networks) and Boingo Mobile is a great compliment to the service.

I played with Boingo Mobile at Starbucks today and what really stood out was the login process. You only have to authenticate once per Wi-Fi provider. So if you are at Starbucks, which is provided by AT&T, you select your hotspot from within the iPhone or iPod touch, login with Boingo Mobile and you're online.

If you go to another Starbucks or another AT&T provided hotspot, you will be automatically connected and authenticated. Although there are many thousands of hotspots, most are powered by a handful of providers -- authenticating once makes the login process that much more seamless.

For iPhone owners who want to use VOiP but don't want to run the risk of inciting AT&T's contract police, consider trying Boingo Mobile's 30-day free trial. Boingo Mobile is a free app and is available from the App Store [link]; Boingo Mobile accounts are $7.95 a month US and are separate from Boingo Unlimited plans.

While most VoIP devices are made for Skype, IPEVO has made a version of its TR-10 conference phone with the Mac in mind: It can be used with both iChat and GarageBand.

For iChat conversations, the device can be used either as a speakerphone or traditional handset with full-duplex audio and echo cancellation. The buttons on the front of the device can be programmed to start iChat or record calls.

For GarageBand, the TR-10 can be used as an audio input device to record podcasts. The device only works with a Mac.

IPEVO sells the TR-10 for $79.90 in its online store.

[Via Engadget.]

We have all been waiting on an iPhone VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) solution, since we heard that Apple would allow VoIP application access while connected to WiFi. Fring has finally made our dream a reality -- and it's a reality that's available today!

Fring is a new, free iPhone application that integrates with Fring's network and allows access to the following IM/presence services:

• Fring
• Skype
• AIM
• Yahoo
• Twitter
• ICQ
• MSN

In addition to simply chatting with buddies from the above services, you can place VoIP calls to other fring users, or using Skype/SkypeOut or another SIP provider (Gizmo, Vonage, etc.). We'll take a more in-depth look/review this weekend -- so be sure to stay tuned to TUAW. In a quick test, I was able to call Skype users from my iPhone and carry on a (slightly echo-y, but perfectly audible) conversation.

You can download this application today by visiting the iTunes App Store. The application weighs in at 3.0 MB. You can also get more information about this service and the application on the Fring website.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in!

Thilo Salmon, CEO of sipgate, Inc., wrote in to say that T-Mobile Germany has asked his company to cease and desist offering the company's flagship VoIP software.

In the letter from its lawyers, T-Mobile claims that sipgate is making the jailbreak process appear more attractive, which could lead customers to breaching their contracts.

According to Salmon, T-Mobile disallows jailbreaking, running VoIP, instant messaging, and VPN applications as part of its subscriber contract. Salmon notes, however, that sipgate only works via WiFi (and not GPRS or EDGE), and therefore does not run on T-Mobile's network. He says, "for the time being our users are safe."

sipgate doubts the legal veracity of the argument, and said it does not plan to comply with the order. Salmon said "we may need to fight this all the way through the courts." He also suggests that it's largely a government policy issue for Germany, and wants to lobby for a net-neutral environment for telecom carriers.

Tempest in a teacup? Apparently, it's a big deal in Germany. What, if any, "chilling effect" this will have on other VoIP software providers remains to be seen.

We covered a number of iPhone VOIP applications, but iCall looks particularly impressive. As you can see in the above video, it allows you to seamlessly transfer a regular inbound cell phone calls to VOIP. This means you can save your minutes any time your iPhone is connected via wifi. As of right now calls are free in the US and Canada, and there is an iCall Pro account that lets you make international calls for a fee. Unfortunately, the iCall application is only available for Windows at the moment but they're promising a Mac version soon. Nonetheless, it's clearly the iPhone application that's most exciting and the company is apparently part of the iPhone Developer Program.

Thanks, Ryan!

San Francisco-based sipgate, Inc. is offering software for your jailbroken iPhone to make and receive VoIP calls using any SIP-compatible VoIP service. The service appears to be similar to those offered by Fring and PhoneGnome.

The service is in early beta stage, with several caveats mentioned on its FAQ page. You won't be alerted to incoming calls unless the software is running, which drains the battery with some quickness. The company also promises revisions for the upcoming App Store. It's unclear if the setup suffers the same kind of delay and echo problems that other VoIP solutions do.

Plus, it may eat your firstborn. Seriously. It says it right there.

If you're interested in testing out the product, sipgate is also throwing in 111 free minutes if you sign up for their own VoIP service.

The software is free, and requires iPhone firmware 1.1.4.

Thanks, Martin!

This morning, TUAW reader Matt dropped a note in our inbox saying that Fring has delivered VoIP on the iPhone. Sure enough, their blog claims integration with Skype and more. So does Fring deliver the WiFi VoIP solution for iPhone we've all been hoping for? This morning, I give it a try -- live! Here's our TUAW Labs liveblog. Put on your white coats and get ready to give the software a spin.

A recent eWeek article states that Apple will not limit VoIP on the iPhone while the phone is connected to a Wi-Fi access point. During a a Q&A session after the SDK announcement on Thursday Steve Jobs said, "We'll limit [VOIP applications] over the cellular network." He went on to say that Apple would not be opposed to VOIP apps that work on a Wi-Fi connection, which is welcome news to AT&T we are sure.

According to the article, SightSpeed is at least one VoIP provider that is lined up to make a VoIP solution for the iPhone. Of course, the big question is: will we see Skype on our iPhones come June (the smart money is on yes)?

iPhone hacker eok writes to let me know that he and Samuel have gotten SIP registration and signalization working. They took a few mobile terminal shots, but the real work is being done via ssh. Samuel is working on connecting the audio in/out to the pjSIP. If you have iPhone or iPod touch coding skills and want to get involved in the project, connect to #touchmods on irc.undernet.org. It looks like most of the work will be done on European time.

Oh, and if anyone is giving away free iPods to worthy developers? eok recommends that Samuel gets one first. He writes that Samuel has been the driving force behind the compilation.

Remember Marian, the guy who's building a preamped mic mike for the iPod touch? Today he writes that touch hacker eok has ported Samuel's SvSIP to the iPod. SvSIP uses the SIP protocol to connect to other participants and to allow you to talk over WiFi. I tried porting SIP myself and didn't get very far.

Marian writes that eok has been able to both send and receive calls and promises screen shots as soon as possible.

12:57:57.091 pjsua_app.c Call 0 state changed to INCOMING
 12:57:57.092 pjsua_app.c Incoming call for account 0!
 From: "Cxxxxxxx Txxxx" xxxxxxxx@xx.xxx.xx.xx>
 To: xxxx@xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx>
 Press a to answer or h to reject call
 
 You have 1 active call

More information as this develops.

It's not the first time we've heard the idea (SoonR Talk), but it does look like a true, calls-over-WiFi VoIP client for the iPhone could be just around the corner. Over at Blognation they've had a demo of one such solution from TruPhone.

Whilst the application still requires heavy use of the Terminal (and is strictly alpha-quality), TruPhone is promising a release that "includes simplifying the activation and adding seamless switching back and forth between VoIP when open WiFi is available and the use of the SIM card when out of WiFi range. It is important to note that it is NOT NECESSARY to break the SIM lock to use TruPhone's iPhone VoIP application."

If you've always wanted to use a SIP-compatible VoIP solution on your iPhone, it appears your wish is about to be granted.