Skype vs. Gizmo

Skype has almost become the household name in voice over IP applications.  It is one of the oldest, and most popular VoIP options available, while I wouldn't say that there is a lot of competition in that space, some of the instant messenger applications do a pretty good job of computer-to-computer voice chatting too.  One of the new kids on the block is a program called Gizmo.

We'll take a look at how it stacks up the the tried and true Skype.

Gizmo has a couple of cool features.   Gizmo is built on some open standards, so it shares a foundation with some  other common programs which allows it to consolidate some of your options.  You can add friends from Windows live, Yahoo chat, ICQ, iChat, AOL instant Messenger, Myspace Messenger, and a few others.  That was by far my favorite feature.  From what I can tell if your friend is still using MSN or iChat, you can only do a text chat, but for some that is enough, and you can easily invite them to Gizmo and you can see when they are online using their preferred IM channel.  I seem to have a few friends on every network, and it is nice to not have expect them to  (or my myself) log in to all of them.

Another feature that Gizmo really emphasizes on their site is the mobile version.  During setup it asks you if you want to try sending setup information to a phone.  I put in my phone number and got exactly nothing, but when I went to the website on my phone's browser it was surprisingly simple.  All I had to do was enter my username and password and I was in.  It let me find friends, and even updated the changes there to my main account on my computer.  It was all web based, and I really appreciate not being required to install another app on my phone.

Gizmo's website also has quite a bit of info about OpenSky, which lets you make calls to Skype customers, but that seems like a pretty weak argument,  since you can really just as easily install and use Skype to Skype for free, and only limited OpenSky use is free, the rest you have to pay for.  Worth mentioning though, you can use OpenSky with a cellphone.  There is a fee, and it's not as easy as placing a regular call, but being able to call a skype user from basically any cell phone is definitely a cool trick.  OpenSky probably is useful in other cases as well, but I'm going to focus on the basic features.

Installation

Installation was pretty straight forward.  (I hate those "let us automatically install some toolbar that you don't want" offers - but Skype had one too).  I mentioned earlier that the mobile phone message didn't work for me, but I guess it is possible that I used the wrong phone number.

Once you get it all installed, Gizmo automatically launches the Friend finder, and auto starts an instant message conversation with the software?  Both windows actually do the same thing - help you find Gizmo contacts from other contact lists you haveóbut it feels a little like a barrage, and I was slightly confused as to what exactly I was supposed to do.  I tried the IM method first, and that introduced one of Gizmo's control methods.   The IM window has a list, and you just type a number that corresponds to the activity you want:

Although I was a little hesitant at first, it was intuitive and effective, and now I wish that they did all of their menus that way, and would get rid of the home screen.

Skype installation:

Skype installed easily too.  Once you get everything loaded and installed, it takes you to an impossible to misunderstand welcome screen (which you eventually have to disable) which clearly helps you figure out whatever you need to do to get set up.

I really like the new Skype layout.  I like how everything is combined into a single window, with a few tabs where necessary.  Older versions of Skype left you doing a lot of window management, especially if you were keeping up chats and calls.  Now everything is central and easy to keep track of.  That definitely gets a pass.

As far as call quality (which is what is really important) I'm afraid it wasn't really much of a contest.   For testing I just went basic - I used my desktop speakers and an inexpensive webcam with a built in microphone.  There are a lot of specific VoIP phones or headsets.  If you are doing a lot of VoIP calls, I'd recommend getting a good one, but I wanted to test how the low end works.

Gizmo audio was ok, but it kind of sounded like you were talking to a computer.  It actually wasn't really that bad until we switched to Skype.   Skype calls were clear and responsive.  Gizmo calls were a little choppy and had some static feedback.   It seems like Skype either has more resources, or a better algorithm for bandwidth optimization (or likely both) but the call quality was noticeably superior.

Call pricing was about the same, free for computer to computer, and 2 cents per minute for domestic calls is the price du jour, but Gizmo starts you off with a little credit.  Not a huge deal, but still pretty cool.  There are also the additional fees for openSky, but since Skype doesn't really offer a similar alternative, it is more of a premium feature than an extra cost.

We also tried the video chat and again Skype had the clear upper hand, smoother video, better detection and optimization of the webcam settings, and an all-around easier experience.  Gizmo wasn't bad per se, but it was not nearly as polished as Skype.  I aslo tested the file sharing options and skype was slightly faster, but for as often as I think anyone uses those features, I think either would work well.

Overall skype gave the better performance, but I think that it has a real threat in Gizmo.  With a little extra time and a few software revisions, Gizmo could easily close the gap, and in some cases even now Gizmo might be the better option.  Of course, there is nothing keeping  you from installing and using both.