When I saw this press release, I immediately thought: hey, Skype might be catching up to SightSpeed in terms of video quality.

Good for Skype, I say. Considering this is a joint press release with Logitech, I do have my doubts as to how easy it will be for people to take advantage of this. Let's dig into this after the jump.

Right now, you've got to be using the latest Skype beta on Windows. Not only that, you have to use one of the "approved" webcams from Logitech, dual-core processors in your PC, and at least 384k of bandwidth in both directions.

I look at SightSpeed's system requirements and wonder why it is Skype needs so much resources to do what SightSpeed can do with so little. I've also seen SightSpeed deal very well with adverse network connections quite well-during a video call, even.

In short, you can color me not impressed, at least on first glance. If someone wants to send me one of those "approved" cameras, I'm more than willing to put it through it's paces. If you've tried SightSpeed and this new version of Skype, leave some feedback!

Sharper,
Smoother, Better: Skype and Logitech Join Forces, Fulfill Promise of High
Quality Video-Calling Experience

 

High
Quality Video Provides VGA Resolution and 30 Frames Per Second for People with
Certified Logitech Webcam and Dual-Core PC

 

LUXEMBOURG and FREMONT,
Calif. - Oct. 30, 2007
- Skype and Logitech (SWX:
LOGN) (NASDAQ: LOGI), the world's leading manufacturer of webcams, today
announced a collaboration to deliver a new standard of video calls over the
Internet: High Quality Video. With High Quality Video on Skype™, people
worldwide can enjoy free video calls that are sharper and smoother than ever
before. The experience is so good, it might be better than being there.

 

"This is a major leap in the clarity
and smoothness of free video calls over the Internet," said Gareth
O'Loughlin, Skype's general manager, mobile and hardware devices.
"High Quality Video is a tremendous opportunity to delight our more than
246 million users and take their Skype experience to a whole new level. One in
four Skype calls already involve video, so we know our users love to show and
not just tell. High Quality Video will take Skype conversations to a whole new
level of realism. In the past, only big businesses could afford this kind of
video quality. It's now time to take it to everyone else."

 

"High Quality Video takes all the
promises of video calling - staying connected with family and friends,
traveling the world without a suitcase and increasing collaboration among
colleagues spread across a global network - and dramatically enhances the
quality of the experience," said Gina Clark, general manager and vice
president of Logitech's Internet Communications business unit.
"Once people start enjoying High Quality Video at VGA resolution and 30
frames per second - a level of quality that is sharper and smoother than
we've ever seen on Skype before - we're confident that it
will quickly become an indispensable way to stay connected."

 

About
High Quality Video

Whether it's a father reading a book
to his kids back home while he travels for work, grandchildren giving their
grandparents a close-up view of their first lost tooth, or colleagues
connecting across continents to discuss a business proposal, High Quality video
offers image-perfect detail and clarity that help people connect better with
their friends and families, co-workers and clients - without having to
buy and install expensive video-conferencing equipment.

 

High Quality Video (Skype 3.6 for Windows
and Logitech QuickCam® software, version 11.5) brings VGA-quality video
calls (640-by-480-pixels) at up to 30 frames per second (fps) to people using a
broadband connection (384 kbps connection or higher), a High Quality
Video-certified Logitech webcam and a PC with a dual-core processor. (Both
parties require minimum system requirements to experience High Quality Video.)
As a result, people can enjoy significantly sharper, smoother video calls
- even in full-screen mode.

 

A collaborative effort between Logitech
and Skype, the High Quality Video experience is created through Skype software,
Logitech webcams, and a fully redesigned set of drivers in the QuickCam
software, all optimized to work together in a way never achieved before on
Skype. Logitech's new webcam drivers are specially tuned to recognize
callers who have the new Skype software.

 

Logitech
Webcams Certified for High Quality Video

High Quality Video on Skype is only
available with the following premium Logitech webcams: the Logitech®
QuickCam® Pro 9000, the Logitech® QuickCam® Pro for Notebooks and
the Logitech® QuickCam® Orbit AF (Logitech® QuickCam® Sphere AF
in Europe).

 

All three High Quality Video-certified
webcams offer a Carl Zeiss lens and a premium autofocus system for fast, fluid
focusing that helps eliminate the inconvenience of manual focusing. Logitech's
autofocus system refocuses images in less than three seconds and helps ensure
that images remain crisp even in extreme close-ups (up to 10 cm from the camera
lens).

 

For the office and the home, the Logitech
QuickCam Pro 9000 comes with a flexible universal base, which allows it to rest
comfortably on nearly any monitor. For the on-the-go professional, the Logitech
QuickCam Pro for Notebooks is sold with a protective travel case and an
adjustable, spring-tension clip that accommodates even large laptops with
panels up to 20 mm thick. The QuickCam Orbit AF webcam can cover 190 horizontal
degrees and 100 vertical degrees of a room and offers a unique pan-and-tilt
tracking technology.

 

Pricing
and Availability

Skype 3.6 for Windows is expected to be
available as a free download at skype.com in November and will support 28
languages. The Logitech QuickCam Software version 11.5 is available now for
free download at www.logitech.com/downloads.

 

The Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000 and
Logitech QuickCam Pro for Notebooks webcams are now available for a suggested
retail price of $99.99 in the U.S.
and EUR 99.99 in Europe. The Logitech QuickCam
Orbit AF (QuickCam Sphere AF) is available now in the U.S. and Europe
for $129.99 and EUR 129.99, respectively. These webcams are also available for
purchase at www.skype.com/shop.

 

About
Skype

Skype sets the standard in providing new
and easy ways to stay in touch over the internet. Millions of people every day
make free Skype-to-Skype voice and video calls and send instant messages using
our software. Some pay a little per minute for long-distance and international
calls to phones and mobiles and for SMS, voicemail and call forwarding, or they
buy subscriptions that give unlimited calls nationwide.

 

We certify and sell hundreds of hardware
products from more than 50 partners and work with third-party developers to
create software to extend Skype's functionality. Skype has been downloaded more
than half a billion times and over 246 million people from almost every corner
of the globe have registered.

 

Skype is an eBay company (NASDAQ: EBAY),
and you can learn more and get Skype at www.skype.com.

 

Make your world a smaller place: talk,
share and do more with Skype.

 

About
Logitech

Logitech is a world leader in personal
peripherals, driving innovation in PC navigation, Internet communications,
digital music, home-entertainment control, gaming and wireless devices. Founded
in 1981, Logitech International is a Swiss public company traded on the SWX
Swiss Exchange (LOGN) and on the Nasdaq Global Select Market (LOGI).

 

# # #

Right now, you've got to be using the latest Skype beta on Windows. Not only that, you have to use one of the "approved" webcams from Logitech, dual-core processors in your PC, and at least 384k of bandwidth in both directions.

I look at SightSpeed's system requirements and wonder why it is Skype needs so much resources to do what SightSpeed can do with so little. I've also seen SightSpeed deal very well with adverse network connections quite well-during a video call, even.

 

Access to a broadband Internet connection
is required for Skype and all Skype Certified devices and accessories. Skype is not a replacement for your traditional
telephone service and cannot be used for emergency calling.

 

Skype,
SkypeIn, SkypeOut, Skype Me, Skype Certified, Skypecasts, associated logos and
the "S" symbol are trademarks of Skype Limited.

 

Logitech, the Logitech logo, and other
Logitech marks are registered in the United States and other countries.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. For more
information about Logitech and its products, visit the company's Web site
at www.logitech.com.