I can’t believe it’s a month since my last blog post – oops! I’ll definitely have to be a little bit more diligent on writing my blog-posts.
I got a tweet this morning that GoogleTalk Voice is now available in SA. Many people may already be familiar with GoogleTalk, which is just another Instant Messenger, like MSN or skype-chat. But I think this is a real game-changer, and let me explain:
I use Skype for more and more calls these days – so many people are connected to skype, and it’s just much easier on my Macbook to call them via skype, than use the Telkom phone. Besides that, I have integrated video, so the people I am calling can actually see me and if they have a web-cam set up (most people do) then I can see them too. Frightfully space-aged, but increasingly “normal” in the circles I spin around in.
Then there is Skype-Out, which basically allows me to make a phone-call to any landline or mobile number in the world at a reduced rate. For example, I can call my friends in the UK and pay only a few pence per minute, far cheaper than via Telkom, and the quality is pretty great.
And that’s where Google Talk with Voice is coming to play … it’s going to offer us some ridiculously good rates. Here’s my quick comparison:
Telkom to Telkom: 50c/minute
Telkom to Mobile: 140c/minute
Vodacom to Telkom: 199/min
Vodacom to Mobile: 199/min (165/min Vodacom -> Vodacom)
Skype to Telkom: 58c/min
Skype to Mobile: 167c/min
Google to Telkom: 35c/min
Google to Mobile: 119c/min
As you can see, Google’s rates are ridiculous! It’s going to be cheaper for me to phone someone in SA on landline via my own Telkom Phone.
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