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CallWave Launches First Pre-paid VoIP Mobile PhoneBy TED GLANZER TMCnet Communications and Broadband Columnist People who either can't afford or don't want to commit to a long term cellular phone contract have a new option to obtain mobile service: a pay-as-you-go mobile phone that has Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) features. Indeed, CallWave, Inc., a provider of VoIP enhanced services for consumers and small businesses, today announced the availability of the CallWave Mobile prepaid cell phone, which, according to a press release, is the first pay-as you go phone service with VoIP enabled features. According to the press release, the VoIP features, which include Mobile Call Screening, Mobile Call Transfer and Follow Me Home, are designed to assist customers to "stretch their airtime, control their costs and enjoy higher quality phone service." For example, the Follow Me Home feature enables subscribers to receive their mobile calls on their home phone instead. FMH is automatically activated when the prepaid cell phone is turned off or if the phone is on and loses network coverage. Mobile Call Screening allows users to listen to voice messages in real time; a user has the option of interrupting the message at any time to take the call. Another feature, Mobile Call Transfer, permits users to instantly transfer a live cell phone call to a home or office phone. If a subscriber has run out of minutes, the service will still take a message and deliver it to the subscriber's e-mail or PC software. Along with the VoIP features, the press release states that the first 1,000 customers to purchase the service at CallWavemobile.com will receive a free Nokia phone with 60 minutes. All subscribers are provided AT&T nationwide coverage. Additionally, there are no charges for in-network roaming, in-network long distance, or service termination. The service costs $3.95 per month; "refill" minutes cost extra, starting at $10 for 40 minutes. "CallWave is providing consumers with value and features never before seen in the wireless industry," said David Hofstatter, CallWave's CEO, in a prepared statement. "[T]he real power of VoIP is in value added services like seeing all your cellular calls and voice messages on your desktop PC." CallWave is on a roll here at TMC. Last week CallWave's mobile VoIP service was named as a 2005 Innovation Award winner by the TMC Labs division. ----- Ted Glanzer is assistant editor for TMCnet. For more articles by Ted Glanzer, please visit: http://www.tmcnet.com/tmcnet/columnists/columnist.aspx?id=100033&nm=Ted%20Gl anzer |