3G Video Conferencing with Smartphones (Amazing Mobile Experience)

Few days back, Skype announced an update to the iPhone 4 app officially supporting full on Video Conferencing over 3G and WiFi (unfortunately, not for Android for now), in an effort to play catch-up to services like TANGO, FRING and YAHOO Messenger apps which are good for both iPhone and Android using 3G or WiFi for quite some time.

SKYPE's value-add is its vast user-base and the massive Desktop-to-PC enablement; enabling mobile video conferencing over 3G (even if only on the iPhone for now) is a huge advancement in mobile experience evolution.  Take for instance, over the new years weekend, we took a family trip out to the Poconos to do some site seeing and snowboarding.  While there, I was keeping in touch with friends and family via SKYPE video conference everywhere I went.  We used SKYPE video on SKI Lift, in a moving car (someone else in the car is using it) and while sitting down at various places (ice cream shop, IKEA, etc...).  The experience was nothing short of breathless.  The last time I felt this mobile-empowered was when I used my iPhone 4 on Virgin America in-flight WiFi service for a TANGO conference call with another friend using iPhone 4.

The official SKYPE 3G mobile-video enablement is a huge break-through for advancement of internet-computing-mobile technology.  Although the picture quality via 3G is still a little blurry for now, it won't be long before the next generations of smartphone featuring 4G or 5G data allowing us to stream HD video conferences or HD Netflix content over the web.  Welcome to the future my friend!