No VoIP for iPhoners without Wifi
It sounds like Dave Gale had a bad day with his iPhone 3G and Vodacom today.
I’m on the road today, between a client site [that's us] in Westlake and the home office when I discover that Vodacom have decided I don’t need to talk to anyone. I call my wife 3 times in a row to hear her repeating “HELLO?” in more and more exasperated tones while I bellow fruitlessly into my headset, then rip the headset out of the phone just in case it is on the fritz, not the network. Nada. No joy.
So I think, no problem, I have Skype and Fring on this pocket rocket-phone, I’ll just call via Skype-Out.
Not so much.
The iPhone SDK restricts apps from using the GSM network to make VoIP calls. The user has to have a Wifi connection via which these VoIP calls can be switched.
Dave continues (with links added by me):
They charge us far more than they should for calls, duck and dive when they’re pressured to reduce prices, and then it appears they block us from making use of VoIP over 3G.
The tragedy is that this should not be a problem for South African iPhoners. It is AT&T/Apple policy that has shaped the App Store’s T&Cs to protect the cellular network’s traditional voice business interests. It is Apple’s monopolistic behaviour that has landed the Cupertino-based powerhouse in hot water of the past.
But there seems to be some light in this iTunnel, according to Engadget Mobile:
AT&T’s restrictive network policies might have been behind some of the more notable iPhone app rejections in the past, but at least one major class of applications just got the green light, as Ma Bell just opened up iPhone VoIP calls over 3G. We can only assume this is the result of the FCC’s renewed push for net neutrality and AT&T’s argument that it’s doesn’t need new regulations to remain open, but — what does this mean for you? Well, Skype on the road, for starters, but we’re guessing a flood of interesting new VoIP apps will hit just as soon as devs can get their apps updated and submitted.
In the meantime, here’s the timk.co.za hacky work-around:
- Get yourself an old phone that has a Wifi chip in it (I use an old Nokia E65 with my iPod Touch when on the move)
- Download and Install JoikuSpot Light – a free symbian app which turns your device into a Wifi Access Point to serve up the phone’s 3G connection.
- Connect to the JoikuSpot from the iPhone’s Wifi Manager.
- Make your Skype/Fring calls
Hope that helps! If it doesn’t, you might be better off with one of these.
Thanks for clarifying that Tim. The arrogance of Apple and AT&T reaches out to touch us. I’m sure Vodacom are happy to hide behind that anyway.
Interesting hack you’ve got there, but the PITA of schlepping my old E65 with me (remembering to charge it) and popping another SIM or swapping my iPhone SIM in and out is just prohibitive.
Jailbreak may be in order, but I really don’t want to go that route either.
Dave
15 Oct 09 at 9:26 am
Yeah, interesting idea – funny how these hacks emerge every so often. I think that Apple was obliged to make the phone like that otherwise providers would get rather annoyed. Anyway, I think it is in the contract that you may not use VoIP protocols over the cellular network.
But its all fun anyway. The only reason that providers are worried about VoIP is because they dont know how to charge you for it.
Jonathan Wagener
19 Oct 09 at 5:59 pm
We’ve tested iPhone app on our platform using a 3G iphone and we’ve got it working. The release has not been a real push as of this stage as we are waiting for the iphone numbers to increase in SA before launch.
mobiflo
4 Jan 10 at 6:20 pm
Thanks for the comment. Do you have any realistic numbers on iPhone market-share in SA?
Tim Keller
5 Jan 10 at 9:22 am