Unsurprisingly, more than 90% of respondents who plan to get in touch with mom said they will use voice, with over a third expecting to talk for an hour or more. Here are the highlights:

• 60.7% of moms said they are expecting a call from their son or daughter this Mother’s Day.- 92.6% of U.S. adults who plan to get in touch with mom on Mother’s Day intend to use voice/phone and a surprising 37.7% of those respondents said they plan to speak for an hour or more.
• 66.7% of moms are expecting to receive a gift this year, and almost half (45.3%) want their gift to be something just for them. 38.4% want a gift for the whole family, while something to be shared with their husband or significant other came in a distant third at 11.6%, while something for their children came in last with a paltry 4.7%.
• 90.8% of mothers listed speaking on the phone with their son or daughter as “very important.”
• 54.3% of mothers claim that they always get a call from their son or daughter.

And here’s the infographic with these and some other findings.

[Top image from Mia Francesca]

Included in the app are all of the standard Skype features such as free face to face video and voice calls, IM, as well as low cost voice calls and SMS to landlines and mobiles over Wi-Fi or 3G/4G.

Again, we’re glad to see BlackBerry getting its s*it together. They’ve been working round the clock to make BlackBerry 10 devices a success and thus far we like what we’ve seen. Though we’re still waiting for few apps to switch, including the “real” Evernote client (the built-in Remember app isn’t good enough), HootSuite and some other social networking apps. And it’s not just us – other users will also be glad to know that apps they’ve been using on their previous phone are also available on BlackBerry smartphones.

Anyhow, if you own the Q10, you’ll want to grab Skype. Hit the link below and take it from there…

Skype (FREE) [BlackBerry World link]

Using VoIP within Facebook’s messenger app is simple, with a “Free Call” button displayed next to a friend’s contact page. Using VoIP through Chat Heads is a bit more challenging however, requiring users to do a little clicking. While a Chat Head is floating, click the three dots next to the contact’s name and select “Open in Messenger” to navigate to the contact’s profile page. Simply click the “Free Call” button and Facebook will do the rest, automatically connecting your device to Wi-Fi and initiating the call.

VoIP calls are nothing new to most iPhone users, as Facebook has added the functionality to their official iOS app after a test run in Canada this last January.

So keep checking your devices for updates folks, you’ll soon be able to video chat for free like there’s no tomorrow.

[Via: CNET]

In addition, Skype 2.4 brings landscape video calls, ability to switch between rear and front camera, and there’s also People Hub integration, allowing you to jump right into Skype calls from your contacts list, rather than opening the app first.

Finally, thanks to the new account switching option, multiple folks can use Skype with their own accounts. Here’s the full change log…

Fixed issues:

• Notifications – Incoming IM and call notifications, and staying Available, were not reliable when the app was closed
• People Hub integration – Skype contacts not listed in the People Hub
• Notifications from Messenger contacts – Incoming IM notifications were not shown if message was sent from a Messenger contact sign into Skype for Windows 8
• Availability – Some Messenger contacts were not showing online

[Via: Engadget]

Lync is Microsoft’s answer to business communications, providing a singular interface within which to communicate. Lync provides instant messaging services, which are similar to most chat rooms used by enterprise users already, allowing real-time text-based chat and file sharing. What sets Lync apart, however, is its upcoming integration with Skype and mobile apps, which will enable VoIP and video over IP to various devices. According to Microsoft, a Windows Phone 8 and iOS version of the Lync app will be available in early March, with an Android version coming sometime in April.

While we are still waiting for details on Microsoft’s plans to bring Skype to the Xbox, we have heard before that Microsoft will be converting its messenger users to Skype starting April 8th. Outlook 2013 has recently acquired Skype integration, and Outlook.com will be getting the same integration soon. With the newest iteration of the Xbox on the horizon, it will be interesting to see how Microsoft uses Skype in its future hardware.

Although Microsoft had owned Skype since May of 2011, it looks 2013 is becoming the year that Microsoft fully integrates Skype into all of its existing services. Are you an enterprise user who uses Lync? Do you think the Skype integration with Lync will make your life a little easier? We’d love to know your thoughts.

[Via: The Verge]