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Actiontec Internet Phone WizardSkype on your cordless Price: $69.99
by John Brandon 
Over 42 million people sick of paying high long-distance bills have joined Skype to make free Internet phone calls from their PC to other Skype users and dirt-cheap two-cents-per-minute calls to everyone else. Actiontec's Internet Phone Wizard eliminates the need for a headset by allowing you to use any cordless phone to make Skype calls as you roam around your house or home office.
In a matter of seconds, we plugged our Uniden 900-MHz cordless phone into the Internet Phone Wizard (it comes with two phone ports) and connected it to a PC using the included USB cable. We were up and running after installing a driver for the Internet Phone Wizard. When you pick up your cordless phone, you'll hear a buzzing sound. To dial a Skype contact, simply press the matching speed dial number and your call is connected. In our tests, we found placing calls easy enough. The voice quality was as good as our landline Qwest service, with no drop-outs or broken connections, and matched or exceeded cell phone quality. If you call other Skype users only, you'll never pay a dime. If you decide to call people who do not use Skype, the fees start to kick in, but they're very reasonable. SkypeOut places calls to anyone, including cell phone users and people in other countries, at a varying per-minute charge, depending on where you're calling. You might pay two-cents per minute in the U.S. and only a penny more per-minute to call someone in the U.K. You'll need to sign up for SkypeIn separately to receive calls from non-Skype users. For around $12 a month, you'll get a phone number that anyone can use to reach you. Answer the phone as you normally would, as there are no numbers to press to activate Skype. The per-call surcharge is a nominal two-cents per minute. You can run a phone cord between the Internet Phone Wizard and a standard phone outlet and be hooked up to both Skype and your landline. Switch between Skype calls and your landline service to make local calls, dial directory assistance, or receive any calls over the landline without paying the SkypeIn fees. You simply press the pound key twice: once to place Skype on hold and again to access the second line. This worked pretty well, and there's a critical side benefit. Because Skype does not support 911 calls, you can switch over to your landline service if there's an emergency. The Internet Phone Wizard supports call waiting, but it doesn't support Caller ID. That means when you get a Skype call on your cordless, that little LCD window will be blank. The inability to screen calls is a little annoying, but since most Skype users tend to give their numbers only to a select group of people, you won't have to deal with telemarketers. Skype has always been cheap, but thanks to Actiontec's smart little box, the service is now convenient enough to use around the house and away from the PC. The Internet Phone Wizard is easy to set up, easy to use (if you can memorize a few speed dial numbers), and delivers good enough sound quality to ditch your regular long-distance service. Compare Prices | Actiontec Internet Phone Wizard Specifications
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