[Thinkpad] VoIP on T41?

I'm enjoying VoIP as a consumer product (Primus TalkBroadband, no
computer required) and want to expand my horizons by using VoIP
when I travel. What do I need? And does anyone have experience
with/recommendations for doing this?

I see through Access IBM that the T41 has a stereo headphone jack
and a mono microphone jack, so my idea of using my mobile phone's
headset is out. I see a lot of computer headset/microphone combos
at places like Future Shop, from dirt-cheap to really expensive.
Presumably for convenience these typicall have a single cable with
two connectors on the end?

>From what I can see, the VoIP services like FreeWorldDialup and
Skype are essentially free if you call computer-computer, but in
Skype's case (at least) you can call into the regular phone
universe (PSTN, public switched telephone network) at a fee of
about 2c/min. Other services offer an incoming number you can have
for a monthly fee (including Vonage, which offers it as a C$13/mo
add-on to their consumer VoIP service).

I'm going on a trip next week and the ideal would be to be able to
call out to the PSTN cheaply and so far I'm thinking Skype-Out (I
think that's the name). I think I could do this in a hotel room
where I've already paid for a day's high-speed, or at a wireless
hotspot, or on the train (a couple of trains a day between Montreal
and Toronto offer wireless in the 1st-class car).

Is this in fact how these things work?

And can anyone recommend a decent but not outrageous headset?
Something sold at Future Shop in Canada would be easiest but if you
have a favourite that isn't, I'm happy to track it down.

Thanks!

andrew [awebber@wwwebbers.com]
ph 613-797-8123
fx 831-300-4097
------
For PGP public key, send email with "send public key" as subject

_______________________________________________
Thinkpad mailing list
Thinkpad@stderr.org
http://stderr.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/thinkpad
Received on Mon Dec 6 14:44:09 2004