| Linksys WIP320 Linksys Wireless-G Skype iPhone |
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Model: WIP320
Brand: Linksys
Manufacturer: Linksys
Average Rating: 
(submit your review here)
Total Reviews: 81
Form factor: Cordless IP Telephone
Hardware platform: PC
Data link protocol: IEEE 802.11b // IEEE 802.11g
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| Features: |
Product Type - Skype Phone
Warranty - 1 year limited
Transmit Power -- 12.5 dBm for 802.11g / 16.6 dBm for 802.11b
Radio Range -- Outdoor up to 200m, Indoor up to 75m via embedded antenna |
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| Description: |
| Get wireless handset convenience when you use Skype! Now when you want to talk to your friends you don't need your computer because the Skype application is pre-loaded on the Wireless-G Phone. The Linksys Wireless-G Phone for Skype comes with the Wireless-G Phone and charger and is already pre-loaded with Skype. You are now free to use Skype anywhere you have wireless Internet access. Just select who you want to talk to from your contact list on your color display and get ready to talk.Of course, the Wireless-G Phone supports SkypeOut dialing and rings when you have a Skype or SkypeIn call coming in, displaying the caller's ID on the screen. The Wireless-G Phone also supports call waiting and Skype's optional Voicemail service. When you're on a call, you can hit the Mute button for privacy, or use the handsfree speakerphone function to let everyone join in.The Linksys Wireless-G Phone for Skype allows you to make calls to other Skype users from anywhere you have wireless Internet access. You'll get the convenience of a wireless handset and all its features, plus the high-quality voice reception integrated right into your Skype phone, no computer is required!The WIP320 is also part of the iPhone family of handheld devices which harness the power of the Internet to deliver more than talk, uniting the familiarity of the telephone with compelling Internet services, access to personal content, and integration with the home to create complete communications solutions. iPhone - More that Talk! |
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| User Reviews (81 total): |
Page 1 2 3 4 of Total 4 Pages
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Good for our situation, but..., August 6, 2008
By user (USA)
We purchased this phone in Februrary '08, & over the last six months have been pleased. We live aboard a sailboat in the Caribbean, & Skype is the only good (cheap + reliable) calling option. The phone seems to be as good as the internet connection. Sometimes excellent; other times not so. The battery is fine for our sometimes hour-long calls with plenty of juice left. What I don't get is why the price has gone up so much. We paid $119 with free shipping. It's worth that much. For $259, get a headset & use the computer! Not worth the expense.
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Horrible product. A nightmare to use it!!!, August 5, 2008
By user (Newark, DE, USA)
I would not reccommend buying this product. It is a big pain to use this device. Frequent drop calls, no outgoing caller ID are few problems I faced!!!
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Good but not great!, August 1, 2008
By user (MD, USA)
I bought this product about a month ago. It's useful while working around the house with a wireless broadband connection, however, it's not that useful while away from your base.
It works on "open" wireless networks but not "free" wireless networks. Some wireless connections, such as those at McDonalds, are free. You can use a laptop to tap into the system easily but you can't use the IPhone to log in. Battery life is OK. Talk time is 2+ hours and standby time is about 20 hours before charging.
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Limited functionality... does not connect to networks consistently, June 10, 2008
By user (New York, NY United States)
I will not get into all of the complaints listed in the other reviews -- each of which is more or less relevant depending on your needs and expectations.
I was EXTREMELY disappointed with the sporadic and inconsistent manner in which it was able to connect to wireless networks.... that is, it connects perfectly in certain places and does not connect AT ALL in other places.
You CANNOT depend on this device to connect to any wireless network... whether you have the appropriate security keys or not.
If you don't have a Linksys router where you intend to use this phone, you are taking a chance when you buy it. The good news is that it is extremely easy to return to Amazaon.
It's a shame really... because when it works... it works well.
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Good WiFi phone over all!, April 23, 2008
By user
This is a good phone. The only thing I have noticed is that the signal has to be pretty strong or the phone won't connect. I wish you could IM with the phone since it is Skype.
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SImple setup, smart design, no charging base, April 14, 2008
By user (TX)
It probably only took me 10 minutes before I was making Skype, Skype-in, and Skype out calls. Network recognition and setup couldn't have been simpler. I'm guessing that Skype design has a lot to do with simplicity of this so I won't give all the credit to Linksys (I've checked other manuals and the all have pretty much the same features and menus). The only downside is that this phone doesn't have a charging base.
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Great attempt ... waiting for more, April 9, 2008
By user
There are not many options if you are looking for Skype phone out there. So among them this is a great option.
Pros:
- Great sound quality ... no delay
- Compatible with WEP, WPA-PSK, WPA2-PS, TKIP, AES
- connects like a charm
Cons:
- very poor battery time
- no text messaging
- menu navigation/operation slows down if not rebooted for couple of days
- Takes long time to reboot
I will definitely wait for second or third generation of Wifi Skype phones.
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LinksysWIP320 Skype phone., March 31, 2008
By user (Nassau Bahamas)
Nice simple packaging. Limited printed instructions on how to operate the phone but the accompanyiong CD has all that is needed if you wish to ptint out the 80 odd page user'e manual. I charged the phone for the required 16 hours or so and it was then easy to use but I didcovered that there were no simple instuctions about how to turn Skype off and by not turning it off over night I discovered the battery flat the next day. It took me a while to realise what the problem was when trying to use the phone while the battery was flat. Once plugged into a power socket is was soon up and running.
I have not had any oportunity to use the phone in many free unlocked Wi Fi locations as yet so I cannot really provide comments on the value of the phone outside my own household wi fi signal
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Biggest Hunk of Junk Around, March 18, 2008
By user (Nashville, TN United States)
DO NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT! It needs about three more years of development before it's suitable as a consumer device (and that's as of today).
Good luck connecting it to WEP, and if the network is a network that doesn't broadcast it's SSID, forget it. You'll connect the first time, then after that, you have to reset the phone just to get it to connect to ANYTHING again.
The only network I satisfactorily connected to was my home WPA network. The sound is okay, but I couldn't use the phone anywhere other than home, which pretty much made it useless. The clock is just as bad (or worse) than everyone else says. You still have to reset it every time the phone gets turned off and back on (and, yes, I have the most recent firmware update), and sometimes it will just randomly spring forward or backward an hour (for no apparent reason). I went to bed the other night with my phone displaying the right time, only to wake up with my phone displaying a time four hours off!
I just returned this phone for a full refund. I would recommend you not bother.
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WIP320, March 10, 2008
By user (Minnesota)
Product works well enough to give up my Vonage service. It would be nice to have a clip for attaching this phone to a pocket or belt. I purchased an adaptor (XDA 2.5mm STD Mono Headset Adapter $12.50) from PocketPCTechs to be able to use my standard headsets. Battery life isn't great for just having the phone sit idle but if it is kept charged, it is good for a couple hours talk time.
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WiFi skype phone, February 13, 2008
By user (Chile)
The set up was very easy. Work fine, inclusive in 70 kbps up speed service.
Good.
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nothing special at all, January 27, 2008
By user
worked like it should in networks that you have access to, but even some open networks require manual ip address entry etc that's hard to pull off for every hotspot in the are without major time investment. battery life was entirely too short: ~a day. when it works, it works just like any other cell, minus a few things like waiting for it to have service before anything can load on the screen.
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phone is great but had to be replaced, January 21, 2008
By user (mexico city)
I purchased this phone, but unfortunately it was faulty. The phone shut itself off instead of going into stand-by mode, defeating the whole purpose of the phone - it is supposed to stay connected to the internet and skype so you can receive calls even when your computer is not turned on. I returned the phone, and have purchased two others exactly the same. Both work fine. It's just like having a landline house phone. The connection is good and clear. The only problem I have had is with voicemail. It never seems to pick up... though this may be a problem of the skype software. I have had no luck finding a solution. any suggestions?
And the battery life (when connected) is about a day, if you're lucky, which is something to consider if you want to use this phone while travelling..
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Linksys WIP320 Linksys Wireless-G Skype iPhone, January 20, 2008
By user (Delray Beach, FL)
I had been looking for a Skype phone that did not require a connection to the computer, and the Linksys WIP320 is a perfect fit. This phone can be used without a computer anywhere there is an open wi-fi network or a network for which the user has access privilege. It is an excellent quality product as we have come to expect from Cisco/Linksys, who are by the way, world leaders in IP telephony. This phone charges by a USB port or from the included wall charger. It allows the user to input their Skype account details, which are saved, as are the details of networks to which the phone connects. The sound quality is good, but there is no volume control, which is a surprising oversight. All in all, however, this is an excellent product which is now available at a reasonable price.
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Great Idea - Weak Execution, January 18, 2008
By user (Southampton, NY USA)
UPDATE: 1/24/08 - Read below for details and my first reactions. This update has been added to the top of my review for I have solved one major problem I was having with the WIP320. I was having trouble staying connected to my wireless network at home. That has been solved via a tech support call to Linksys who walked me through a firmware update on my Linksys WRT54G wireless router. Now the Skype phone stays connected to my WiFi all day long. Two other problems still exist: 1) poor battery life - you must recharge this phone every night even if you don't use it. I've had it on for 12 hours and off for 12 hours and at the end of that cycle the battery is dead - that's without any calls. 2) The WiFi finder feature noted on page 38 of the manual doesn't work on the phone - you can't even access it. Tech support said they'd look into this - I need to call them back. I can't change my star rating but if I could I'd up it from 1 star to 3 stars. The WIP320 is a great little phone with a major fault (poor battery life and a missing WiFi Finder feature). If you encounter any problems call Linksys Tech Support.
Initial Reaction 1/20/08:
I just bought two WIP320 iPhones from Linksys this week (I received them on January 16, 2008). What a great idea. I travel to the Bahamas a lot on business and mobile calls on AT&T Wireless cost me $2.29/minute. I got two Skype phones so I may call home and speak to my wife and daughter for free. Having a wireless Skype phone is great - I can find a hot spot without lugging my laptop around and my wife can speak to me without being tethered to the computer.
The WIP320, however, does have it's limitations - limitations which render it useless. I haven't taken my new phone on a business trip yet so a real field test has not been performed but just having them on at the house has identified two catastrophic weaknesses. 1) The battery life is miserable. 1/2 a day at best and this is without making a single call. Just standby. 2) And the phones randomly loose their Skype connectivity. I have a Linksys wireless router and excellent reception on the laptop I'm typing on right now but the phone which are right next to the laptop have a little bit weaker signal strength (3 bars vs. 4 bars on the computer). I don't know if this is what's causing them to loose contact with Skype or not. But after a few hours the Skype connection fails and regaining it is nearly impossible. I usually have to power the phone off and then power them back up again. Most times that works on the first try.
As an example of my logging-in difficulties; when I began this review both phones were offline by their own accord. I attempted to re-log-on. One phone logged-on perfectly and the other is still offline and now on the charger. I tried to log-on while it was charging and that too failed. So in sum, I began this review, had lunch, continued the review and still one phone is offline.
My next course of action is to call Linksys to get their opinion of my problems. I hope I can add to this review if I find a solution and if no solution is possible then the phones will be returned. I'll be disappointed for I haven't had problems with other Linksys products and this is such a great idea it's really too bad it doesn't work.
UPDATE: I just looked down at the phone that was logged-on and it's logged-off. But I was able to place a successful Skype call. All went well. Sound quality was great. But when I was finished with the 23 minute call the battery was flat and now it's on the charger.
UPDATE: I have a Linksys WRT54G router. I decided to disable the Wireless Security Mode - the phones logged in perfectly. So when I re-established the security mode I changed it to WPA2 Personal and used the TKIP+AES WPA Algorithms. Once again the two phones logged in perfectly.
There are also two features on the phone which don't seem to work. 1) The Wi-Fi finder mentioned on page 38 of the manual doesn't work or is inaccessible on the phone. And 2) SES (Secure Easy Setup) - you can access and enable it but what does it do? There is no documentation regarding this feature in the manual or on Linksys' web site. (Note: I asked Linksys Tech Support about this - it's an Easy Set Up button. Basically you tag this button on the WIP320 and at the same time hit the same button on the front of your WRT54G and it will a link the two together.)
I'm about to hit the road and visit a nearby WiFi Hotspot can call home - I'll update you on this test. I'm also going to raise my one star rating to two stars - but the rating system on this web site won't let it happen. The battery life is still miserable so keep that in mind.
UPDATE: After a drive around town the phone redeemed some points. I was able to pick up hotspots everywhere and I placed a few successful calls. It appears that my initial problem was related to the settings on my wireless router. The battery life is still poor. 1.5 hours of driving around and a few short calls depleted approximately 25% of the battery. This is when a 'Low Battery - Recharge Now' warning came on the screen. The battery reading on the battery icon was approximately 75% and I was getting a low battery alert. I had to power the phone off to clear this warning. Another glitch? Linksys needs to address the battery issue.
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Opinion sobre Linksys Wireless Skype Phone, January 1, 2008
By user
Es muy bunea idea, pero la bateria no dura mucho y depende siempre de un router.
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Amazed, December 29, 2007
By user
I used Skype in my computer and often had dropped calls. With this wireless Linksys handset the connect has been perfect. I'm so impressed I'll be dropping long distance service with my cable phone. I'll add another Skype account and another wireless Linksys phone!!!
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Not worth it in ANY WAY!!, December 25, 2007
By user
I never write reviews, but I HAD to make an exception to this item. I just got Skype mainly to use SkypeOut and I decided to get a wifi phone instead of the headsey like I SHOULD have gotten. The battery life is fair, but could be better. It connects to the internet fairly as well, but sometimes there is a connection but I can't use Skype, but that doesn't happen often. The MAIN problem and the reason why I'm giving this item ONE star is the fact that even with a PERFECT connection, the audio quality STILL cuts in and out on SkypeOut calls! There's no reason for that and it makes the concept completely pointless. It cuts in and out with EVERYONE that I've spoken to. Also, sometimes the internet on my computer would find a connection but this Wifi phone does not. I usually give bad items as much of a chance as possible, but I can't tolerate bad audio when I have a PERFECT connection! Will return tomorrow...
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goodbye landline, goodbye sprint, I'm buying a 2nd one for my girlfriend, December 23, 2007
By user (a red state, america)
I just received the WIP320 Dec 22, 2007. It came with *.16 version of firmware which does not appear to have any serious problems and it also came with a USB cable (unlike previous versions).
After giving the battery an initial overnight charge (10+ hours), I was able to talk for 2.5 hours non-stop without even putting a dent in the charge.
Actually using the phone does not appear to wear down the battery too much.
After that, I drove around for about 45 minutes testing out wireless access points. Scanning for wireless networks also does not appear to wear down the battery very much.
However, letting the phone sit idle still does wear the battery down for some reason. After using the phone, I let it sit for 4 hours connected to my wireless router, and the battery drained down to 50%.
The headphone jack is non-standard, and according to a previous post, you need some special stereo to mono adaptor to use it which I plan on buying at radioshack.
Overall, this phone is awesome. At 119$, it will more than pay for itself in 4 months.
I'm buying a 2nd one for my girlfriend and definitely not renewing my home phone account when it expires.
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Excellent Wireless Skype Phone, December 13, 2007
By user (NY, USA)
This phone is one of the best pohnes I have ever use for Skype. Easy menu and very simple even kids can call their dadys. Battery last for long time. Very good in catching wireless signals.It's speaker phone. Very light and handy. It has nice white color with it's blue screen.
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