Skype meets Star Trek(Sort of) with this communicator from Polycom. The device lets you talk hands-free. The C100S USB Speakerphone for Skype features two high-quality microphones that will give you excellent range in group conversations and eliminates pesky echoes and feedback.

It connects via USB and does double duty as a speaker if you want to listen to music. You can even pick up or hangup without using a mouse. So free your hands! They have been enslaved long enough.

Skype has been around for a while and started out as a PC application that allowed users to call each other for free over the Internet. Later Skype gained the ability to call landline and mobile numbers for a per minute rate. Yesterday we mentioned that Skype was coming to the iPhone today.

Skype officially announced this morning that the application is now on the App Store for download. The app adds all of the features that users of the desktop application know and love including free Skype-to-Skype calls, the ability to call landlines and mobile numbers for a fee, IM, and a personal Skype number.

Looks like Skype is coming to the iPhone on Tuesday, and to BlackBerry devices in May. There have been plenty of Skype-capable apps for the iPhone, but the quality can’t beat the official Skype App that doesn’t require the extra audio transcoding workaround required by the unofficial apps.

The Skype app only works over WiFi (not over EDGE or 3G) and supports calls to SkypeOut contacts, plus it features many of the other features from the desktop client. iPod touch owners will need earphones with an embedded mic for talking.

It’s no coincidence that there’s a new Trek movie just as Dream Cheeky will be releasing a USB VoIP/Skype phone in the form of geek gold: A replica of the communicators used on the original Star Trek TV series.

The phone is compatible with XP, Vista and OS X Tiger or greater, and you’ll get speakerphone, mute and volume control functions, plus the usual Star Trek sounds. Stuff like, “Transporter room ready to beam up”. It’s due out in April, but we don’t have any pricing info yet. Should be affordable though.

Skype was among the first free software products to allow users to make and receive free phone calls over the Internet from other Skype users. As the product matured, it added the ability to be able to make calls to non-Skype users at low per minute charges compared to cellular or long distance plans.

Skype announced this week that its latest software version 4.0 is now available for download. The new version offers face-to-face video calling that makes it easier to start video calls and allows calls to be viewed full screen.

With the BKBU-SKJ109/SV Buffalo keyboard and built-in Skype phone, you’ll have everything you need to communicate with the outside world right at your fingertips. This would be a great addition to any evil villains HQ, whether your mind is on the business of the day or taking over the world by night.(Though you might look a tad dorky on the phone as it looks a bit like a toy.)

The receiver is Skype certified, so it’s pretty much ready to go. You just need Skype on your machine and the appropriate software. The downside, as mentioned earlier is that the set is pretty small. I know they didn’t want to make the keyboard larger then necessary, but it is a bit funny looking. That’s okay though, once you take over the world, no one will laugh. Until then just tell yourself size doesn’t matter.

Sony is only days away from releasing the availability of Skype on the PSP and the company has released an announcement saying that the January 24th launch will be delayed. In particular, Sony officials said that the microphone products they’ve created for the PSP to go along with the Skype service are what is causing the problem.

Both the Single Pack and the Double Pack microphones did not meet Skype’s specifications, and instead of going on without them Sony is going to hold up the whole works. A new solution and a new launch date for the Skype service and microphones for the PSP are being “sought after” and will be announced at a later time.

The good news is that this delay so far seems limited to Japan. It’s strange that they would come to this conclusion only a day before the launch. Are the microphones for Japan customers different and not up to standard while the microphones for the U.S. are acceptable, or is there some other force in Japan that doesn’t like the idea of free mobile VoIP minutes?

Belkin introduced it’s new Desktop Internet Phone for Skype, which allows you to make free Skype Internet calls without having to turn on your computer. That’s something I would make some desk space for. It’s simple to setup and easy to use and brings the Skype experience to more people and at an affordable price.

It will be available in March 2008 in the US, Canada, Europe, and Asia. The price is $99 U.S.

Sony’s Playstation Portable handheld gaming console has been trailing in sales to the Nintendo DS since the DS’s inception, but Sony is a far cry from giving up quite yet. Last month we saw a pretty cool upgrade with the version 3.80 firmware for the PSP which brought internet radio through the systems WiFi connectivity. Now Sony is saying that they are partnering with Ebay’s Skype to bring VoIP Skype phone service to the handheld system.

The new firmware is slated to be available for download to the PSP by the end of January and will add a Skype icon and functionality to the Network portion of the PSP’s menu. When connected to the internet users will then be able to log into Skype, manage contacts, view who’s online and of course make calls through their PSP to other Skype users or other PSP owners with the Skype feature installed. Owners will even be able to create a new Skype account right on the PSP.

This flexible Keyboard & Skype dial pad with USB hub is super versatile, bendy, multimedia coolness. They claim that it’s a virtually indestructible, washable, roll-up keyboard with a Skype dial pad, built in microphone and speaker as well as having 2 USB ports.

A plus for alot of people is that, being washable, this keyboard will be very hygienic. That means less getting sick. Just wipe up any spilled liquid with a damp cloth and it’s clean. Since it’s bendable, it’s ultra Portable and easy to store. Just shove it in a backpack or briefcase. It has a bunch of great qualities for only $59.99.

Ipevo, a developer of hardware which lets users access Web services like Skype, announced today the U.S. availability of a three-in-one Skype phone. The Ipevo Trio is priced at around $80.

The Ipevo Trio combines a speaker phone, conference phone and personal handset into one unit. It can be used either in an upright stance, lying flat on a table or held in one’s hand. It’s tied into the Skype VoIP service and requires a USB connection to a host computer to be used.

If you are looking to cut down on laptop accessories while away from your home or the office, the Skype mouse will help you reduce their numbers, just a bit. It’s an 800dpi optical mouse, with two buttons and a scroll wheel. Of course it also has some cool Skype features.

The 128×64 pixel LCD display on top can display caller ID and other important info. The mouse slides open to a standard numeric keypad, allowing you to answer a call or dial a number and you don’t have to use the computer that it’s connected to. You can also use the hands free speakerphone option. Basically it allows you to be on the computer and talk at the same time.

Skype posted a news release today about “What happened on August 16“, deciding to downplay the hidden, internal software bug they had identified earlier. In the post the company identified Microsoft as the indirect culprit, blaming the issue on a “massive” number of simultaneous logins from Skype users after receiving a set of routine patches through Windows Update which required a reboot.

All of the automatic logins after the reboot cause a chain reaction which resulted in a “critical impact”, according to Skype. There was however a hidden bug in an algorithm that controlled resource allocation for the service, which reared its head in this instance and essentially caused the outage.

The press release followed up to ensure users that the issue has been resolved and the system has been improved upon to ensure they would …

According to a release late last night Skype has announced that the service is back up and running as normal. “Hello friends, Take a deep breath. Skype is back to normal,” said a press release posted on the Skype site at about 11 am GMT. This marks the end of an outage that lasted over 48 hours and affected millions of users of the VoIP phone service.

Skype, a division of eBay, says that the sign-on problems have been taken care of but the Skype presence and chat may take a little bit longer. The release stated that they will provide more details on the cause of the outage on Monday, but have only said up to this point that it was a “deficiency in an algorithm within Skype networking software”, …

Thursday was a stressful day for frequent users and especially for those who have come to be dependent on the Skype online phone network. Yesterday the service when down for much of the day, and officials are unsure how long the outages will last. According to Skype officials they have found the problem and are working around the clock to correct the issue.

“There is a chance this could go on beyond tomorrow, but it’s our hope that it’s going to be resolved,” said Kurt Sauer, Skype’s chief security officer on Thursday. “What happened today was caused by a unique set of events, the genesis of which is not entirely understood.”

The Skype service allows its users to make free phone calls through their broadband internet connections using a peer to peer network. The …