Skype have released Skype for Mac with Video Preview. You can download it here.
It is beta software so be aware that when you install it, you may have issues. Having said that, I installed it on my iMac G5 and so far so good!
This is a photo of my first video call on Skype. Don’t forget that you have to click the camera button on the screen for the other party to be able to see you. I was scratching my head for the first couple of seconds of our call wondering why I could see Scott and he couldn’t see me! D’oh!
Also, Skype have disabled the ability to take screenshots (are they worried about porn calls?). Fortunately I had my cameraphone to hand and was able to take the shot above of our call.
The audio and video quality is very good. The video is less choppy than I would have expected. The only issue I had was that my processor was maxxed out but this is a known issue.
The other big change with this version is the Mac Skype interface has been drastically cleaned up and it is way better.
Kudos to the Skype team for this preview.
[Edited to add a link to Scott’s site]
[UPDATE] – I see Ars Technica have caught up with this story now.
I found the experience to be quite good.
I too was surprised at the quality of the video. I will be sure to check my processor and see if it crunches ….that will be on the next call.
As a convert to MAc in the last yr or so …i am impressed how quickly it installed and configured perfectly ….
Skype …. good job
cheers
scott