Originally Posted on our sister site, WP Life
Ever since Microsoft purchased Skype last year, Windows Phone users have been asking the question; “When will we finally get it [Skype] on our Windows Phones.” How about, right now!
Microsoft has finally released Skype, version 1.0, which is currently available on the Windows Marketplace for immediate download. With Skype for Windows Phone, users can now video chat with over 200 million users from almost anywhere in the world. We say almost because you’ll still need an internet connection and thankfully Microsoft has said that Skype for Windows Phone will work on 4G, 3G, and of course, Wi-Fi.
Skype, Verison 1.0, supports over 18 languages, including; English, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, European Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Swedish, and Traditional Chinese.
Despite all the excitement over Skype for Windows Phone, there are still some drawbacks to the app. Perhaps one of the biggest features Microsoft and Skype ignored is background calling. If the app is not open, users cannot receive calls. To many, this is a deal breaker, as the app is pointless if it’s not running in background, other users will see you as offline and ultimately, will not use the service. Even Tango, another Skype-like video calling app, has been allowing background calling since its release. This isn’t a case of, “it can’t be done,” it’s a case of “they are to lazy.”
In any event, the app is here, it’s live on the Marketplace and so far has been guaranteed to work on the following devices:
• Nokia Lumia 710
• Nokia Lumia 800
• Nokia Lumia 900
• HTC Titan
• HTC Radar
• Samsung Focus S
• Samsung Focus Flash
So if you’ve got one of the phones above, you’re all set to go. We’ll be trying out the new service later today and we’ll have a review up soon.