The way it looks is that the usb key has the software on it, and you can plug it into any computer to make a call. I am assuming that there is a jack on the key to plug in a headset.
The way it looks is that the usb key has the software on it, and you can plug it into any computer to make a call. I am assuming that there is a jack on the key to plug in a headset.
Looks fishy to me. As someone on that site mentions, this could just be a Vonage promotional USB key (the kind they might give away at trade shows) with a pair of headsets sitting beside it. The key is strategically positioned to hide whatever slot the headset would plug into, and the headset jack is positioned so we can't see how many contact bands are on it.
Besides which, as most PCs have a sound system in them anyway, why not just buy your own USB key, throw the Vonage Softphone software on it, and carry your own headphones and mini microphone that can plug directly into the PC? Or how about a USB headset?
I find the lack of Mac support a bit telling as well. Vonage already has a Mac Softphone client. USB audio is a well defined standard that Mac OS X supports out of the box (as does Windows). All that this key would have to do is support USB Mass Storage and USB Audio, and they could put both the Windows and OSX software on the key (heck, you can put the OSX software in a compressed disk image stored in a FAT16 or FAT32 filesystem, so even disk formatting differences don't matter -- OSX will mount FAT16/32 without any problems, and can then mount and decompress the HFS+ disk image containing the Vonage X-Pro for Mac client. I have my USB key setup in just this manner so I can use it on both Windows and Mac machines, and still have the ability to store and run Mac OS X software bundles if I need to).
There is too much about this that doesn't make all that much sense. Last I checked, USB audio circuitry wouldn't fit into that size of enclosure with sufficient flash to store the Vonage software as well, but maybe someone has come up with a smaller chipset than what was being used the last time I looked.
Besides which, I think the biggest issue you'll face trying to use Vonage Softphone on a PC which you don't control isn't generally going to be getting the software onto the machine to run it, but being able to get out through whatever firewall is in place. I guess you could use this if you are visiting relatives somewhere and want to use your softphone on their PC without installing anything, but I doubt you're going to be able to just use this in whatever Internet Cafe or library you happen upon. But maybe they've thought of something I haven't (although I doubt it ).
If it is real, it seems like one of those things that a few people will get because of the novelty factor, try once or twice, and then reformat and just use as a regular USB storage key. Then again, perhaps that's the point, and instead of being a product, it's a promotional thing to let people try Vonage before they buy?
This device is real and in beta. I have a friend who has one and it works beautifully. He had it plugged into his PC and the earpiece plugs into the USB key. He made a call to my cellphone and the quality was fantastic.
I moved the key to my PC and his number followed him and I was able to make calls.
The software for dialing is installed from the key when you first plug it in.
Pretty cool.... I really want one as I can then plug my phone into any PC that I come across.
No, he is not a Vonage employee. He works with me at a computer manufacturer.
He was on the phone with customer support and they asked him if he wanted to beta this new concept they had.
I don't know if they are thinking of releasing it, but they should. From my point of view, the quality is excellent and your phone number and Vonage functionality travel around on a memory key. No more carrying a laptop for softphone. The funny thing is that it is also a regular memory key. It has 256MB of memory in order to store anything that you want.
The software for dialing is installed from the key when you first plug it in.
I think that this is the "key" to this device. The soft phone client is simply stored on the key and can be installed onto a PC. 256M is plenty big enough for X-Lite/X-Pro.
From there, it is nothing unusual. The important part of this is that you need "control" of the PC in order to install the client. Of course, that control can be very temporary, but the owner of the PC will likely have the client left behind when you go away with your key.
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