Anyone using fring for Windows Mobile?
 

I came across an interesting free service called fring. They recently announced support for Windows Mobile devices and I was wondering if anyone is using this software?

Their Website is www.fring.com. Below are some highlights:

what is fring?
fringâ„¢ is a free mobile VoIP software that lets you talk and live chat (IM) using your handset's Internet connection instead of costly mobile airtime minutes. fring enables free mobile calls over Wi-Fi Internet access or your GPRS, EDGE or 3G Internet data plan.

fring lets you easily communicate with all your fring, Skype®, MSN® Messenger, Google Talk™ , Twitter and regular phone contacts from one, integrated contact list. fring also supports SkypeOut and hundreds of SIP-based services such as GizmoProject, VoipCheap, VoipStunt, Free World, even from non-SIP enabled handsets, enabling cheap local and international VoIP calls to contacts’ PCs, mobile phones and landline numbers. fring is also enhanced with real-time contact availability (presence) so you can see who’s available before dialing.

All you need to use fring is a 3G handset (see list of supported devices) with Internet connectivity that is already available from your mobile service provider (how do I know?) or through your nearest Wi-Fi hotspot. fring does not require any proprietary hardware or airtime, and works with phones purchased through any mobile operator. fring can be simply downloaded into your handset via SMS received from another fringster™ or from our website download page – it’s as easy as downloading a ring tone.

fring roams seamlessly between Wi-Fi and 3G networks while bypassing traditional mobile voice and SMS text messaging services mobile-to-mobile calls, mobile-to-landline calls, and mobile-to-PC calls including integration into Skype, MSN Messenger and Google Talk wherever you are. The patent-pending peer-to-peer mobile VoIP technology delivers full-duplex voice quality with rich internet functionality and maximum network efficiency.[/b]

Fring...nice trick
 

Yes I decided to use it this evening and though it takes a moment to initialise the voice it works pretty well.
I'm a bit uncomfortable about giving my chat login details to a 3rd party but I made up a new one to test and I must say it works heaps better than I'd hoped!:)

On the down side, Fring tends to hang at times especially if it's set to launch at bootup. If that's disabled and launched manually once the phone's booted it operates fine.

There's the obligatory 'satellite delay' but a)it's free, b)are there any alternatives out there? c)it looks damn cool, d)did I say it's free? :D

But the biggy question: How is audio routed?

Via headset/speaker or actually using the earpiece.

I'm betting on the former but the earpiece would be a nice change.

Otherwise, there is Skype Mobile and of course Octro Talk which does Google VOIP.

If Fring is running in the background, when someone calls you the chat engine icon pops on screen and you answer the call as normal, sound comes through the earpiece as normal... it's a cool tool because it looks like you're taking a standard call :wink:

Incidentally I downloaded Skype Mobile 2.2, only to learn that it's not compatible with Hermes :shock: Apparently it's still workable as a text chat but then what's the point? Fring allows me to 'subscribe' to several clients including Skype and I can now make voice calls on their service!

cant get it to go beyond the registration process... seems to be stuck somehow... i am trying it on wifi

hi from fring
 

Hi Pocket PC Guys,

My name is Roy Timor-Rousso and I am with fring team. As you probably know we have released our Windows Mobile version few days ago and would appreciate any feedback, insights and ideas for improvements you would be willing to share (in addition to what you have already posted above).

I hope that with your feedbacks (good and bad) we will be able to impact our engineers to make fring even better :)

Thanks in advance

Roy

I just posted a great deal of text and it tells me I'm 'spamming'... what the...????? :evil:

I found when registering I had to have them send the SMS twice before I got it. However, the biggest problem I see is that it doesn't use my bluetooth headset, which makes it essentially useless for voice calls. The chat seems to work well and it connects up with MSN, Google, Skype, etc. just fine, but without bluetooth support it's not worth keeping loaded up..

jim

Tim, get someone to turn those sounds down if you can! The ringtone is LOUD, even with sound turned down or even OFF!!

Why set Fring to autorun upon installation? People may actually want to use their phones for regular dialling rather than chatting and draining their phone's battery??

thanks from fring :-)
 

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the feedback!

1. Jimnutt: Bluetooth issue is a new bug ; our guys are working on it and we will let you know when it’s fixed (might require an update)
2. redwaith: the next release will have customizable ring tons, so you can play with that; about the volume issue than I have asked our QA guys to look at that.
3. About auto-start; many ppl actually asked us to add this feature so whenever they start the device they appear automatically available on their buddies devices and PCs. Yet, you can turn this feature off from the settings menu.

thanks again & keep’m coming… :-)

Roy

Ok, I'm having some problems. I got the app, installed it, but when I try to run it, I get "This is not a valid ppc app" I'm running it on my WM6 Mogul. Any suggestions. I've even tried uninstaling and re-installing, same issue.

Not unless Qualcomm or HTC releases a ROM enhancement allowing any app to access to the headset's speaker, all non-phone audio will go through external speaker.

i have used this and I really like the concept of being able to chat/talk on multiple clients. My biggest issue is battery life, but other than that i'm looking forward for future updates.

Fring is still in Beta, so until they release an "official" version I don't expect it would be compatible with all devices.[/quote]

So far so good, although I haven't really placed a call yet. However, the interface needs some work. I'l post more impressions after some calls have been made.

Well I'm not too impressed...

The UI is lacking, very rudimentary. The sound comes out of the speaker and not the earpiece, and the microphone does not work as I tried a call to an MSN contac and the fring test call contact and my voice did not come through.

Bump

It's not a bad program, has a lot of potential.

The Skype/fring VOIP works on the 700wx.

(Re: the Speaker vs. headset issue: this will be likely for *all* WM devices, as I've never seen one company "figure it out" e.g. Skype, Octro, fring, etc. Basically, it's hardware dependent, not software.)

I do have some issues though and I posted a huge list in their forums. I suggest any who agrees with these requests add their voice to the discussion and add any other things I forgot.

--> http://www.fring.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2816

i once thought it was a hardware issue too, but SJphone a softphone for the Windows Mobile uses the internal headset.

http://www.sjlabs.com/sjp.html

Re: Anyone using fring for Windows Mobile?
 

I'm still getting the no microphone problem on the touch.

Re: Anyone using fring for Windows Mobile?
 

I'm certain this is a fabulous program, but since it won't go past the account set up screen on my 700WX, I'll guess I'll never know.

:disgust: