It could bring Skype features in areas with slow Internet

Oct 9, 2015 21:50 GMT  ·  By

Microsoft is reportedly testing in India a new Android app called Dialer, which is believed to be a new version of Skype specifically developed for countries or areas with slow Internet.

Gadgets 360 reports that Dialer is expected to debut in India in the second week of December and bring features such as voice calling that would work on both 3G and 2G. Right now, Microsoft's considering several other options, the source says, including adding video calling capabilities, but the company's still searching for a way to make this work smoothly without a fast Internet connection.

But the app will almost certainly come with video sharing features, but no specifics are available right now on how exactly this feature is expected to work.

Coming on Windows 10 Mobile

The good news is that this app is set to arrive on Windows 10 Mobile too, the company's new smartphone platform also due in December. Right now, it's not yet clear if Dialer will be available on Windows 10 since launch, but it's good to hear that at least the company plans to bring it on its own platform at some point.

Asked whether all this is indeed real, Microsoft has said that some projects are currently are under development, but it has refused to provide any specifics.

“As part of the ongoing improvements to deliver the best experience possible to our users, we are always innovating and occasionally test out new features and functionality on small groups of users in different markets. If you live in India and have an Android phone and would like to get involved, sign up to our Pre-Release program via the Skype Community page. We have no specific news on product announcements planned in India to share today.”

If it launches such a feature in India, Microsoft will have to compete against very popular applications, such as Hike Messenger and WhatsApp, so it will be interesting to see how the company actually manages to tackle local demand for voice calling.