Review: Ipdrum IP Voicelink Skype mobile gateway

Skype is one of the most popular internet voice services available, so it's hardly surprising that after waiting for a way to link it to your mobile, two solutions should come along at once - the Ipdrum IP Voicelink, and Eurodesign's Mobigater.

The IP Voicelink is a compact unit that has a pop-out Sim carrier at one end, while the other is home to a USB cable and headset socket.

On one side is a stubby GSM aerial. You simply pop a Sim card in, hook it up to your PC, and you can make calls to the associated mobile number and then onwards, via Skype. Or you can have Skype calls forwarded to another mobile.

All this, of course, hinges on having free or low-cost calls between the two mobile numbers.

The setup wasn't entirely straightforward - the onscreen instructions weren't clear and we had to restart, which, the first time, was followed by an error message. We also had to select the audio devices to use in Skype and, irritatingly, it's necessary to register the unit online before it will work.

Once up and running, though, you can call the Sim card in the Voicelink, then enter the short code for one of your Skype contacts, or a full international number if you have Skype Out credit. You can restrict who can do this so that, for example, only your mobile can access the Voicelink. And there's also an SMS manager that allows you to send texts from your PC.

At times, though, the system seemed very sluggish when controlling Skype. Furthermore, a dropped mobile call wasn't always noticed, which could leave recipients answering dead calls.

Our biggest gripe, though, is simply the cost - you're going to have to make an awful lot of calls via Skype to save the £130.