Fring Brings Mobile VoIP to Apple's iPhone

Israeli company Fring is bringing its Voice over Internet Protocol application to Apple's iPhone. Dubbed fring, the application lets users talk, chat and interact with other so-called fringsters -- and their online communities -- using the iPhone's Wi-Fi connection.

A light, sneak-preview R&D version of the mobile VoIP application, developed in conjunction with the Holon Institute of Technology academic research labs in Israel, is available as a download from fring.com.

The prerelease version aims to measure demand from iPhone users and learn about the user experience. Fring said it is looking for feedback that will influence the full release version, due for launch later this year.

"Voice over IP has been available on cell phones for some time. Nokia through its Gizmo project makes it available," said Avi Greengart, a wireless analyst at Current Analysis. "So this is certainly not new. Obviously, you stick the word iPhone in front of something and suddenly it's news."

An Early Taste

The prerelease version gives iPhone users to an early taste of fring, such as adding contacts and buddies from other online communities.

Users will also have the ability to make free and low-cost mobile calls over Wi-Fi and do IM-style live chat with their online contacts, regardless of whether they are on their mobiles, PCs or other Internet devices.

During login, fring automatically creates a single, integrated contact list, combining contacts from all the user's selected Internet communities. Specifically, fring users are able to communicate with each other and with contacts from Skype, MSN, Google Talk, ICQ, Twitter, Yahoo and AIM.

An always-on, always-connected application, fring promises special features such as real-time, PC-style "presence" indicators that continually display whether contacts are online, away, offline, in a call, on their mobiles or in front of their PCs.

There are some requirements, though. Users need an "opened" iPhone with the...