| | |  | All | Home » » IPEVO FR-33.1 USB Handset for Skype- Black | | | | | | | Description: | | 
| | | Features: | |
• For Mac OS X 10.4 or up and Window XP, Vista. Skype Certified.
• Buttons and controls replace the slower and less intuitive point-and-click operation of using Skype on your computer. FR-33.1 includes buttons for activating Skype, bringing up your contact list and making SkypeOut calls, plus a number pad makes dialing SkypeOut numbers so much more convenient.
• Browse through contacts from your Skype window with using the 'joggle' key (jog and toggle key), a flip-switch that combines the functions of a toggle and scroll button in both directions in one simple control. You can also use the number key pad like an index to bring up contacts that begin with the same letter.
• Three customizable function keys are included in FR-33.1 to suit the way you use Skype for Internet phone calls. There are a range of functions that you can set for each key including redial, ring tone style and hold.
• Slim and compact frame that is extremely easy to carry with you (and your laptop) wherever you go. The perfect travel companion for any business and holiday trips
| | | Product Details: | | | Product Length:
| 5.94 inches | | Product Width:
| 0.98 inches | | Product Height:
| 1.49 inches | | Product Weight:
| 0.14 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 2 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
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Good Phone, CheapAug 06, 2009
I bought this phone to use with Skype for calling home to the US from overseas on my MacBook Pro. I was intitially drawn to Ipevo for their Mac support, but the clean lines and form factor of the FR-33.1 sealed the deal. (the cheap price didn't hurt, either.)
The Control Center software loads easily and runs seamlessly with Skype (v2.8 for Mac, anyway). The phone itself sounds crystal-clear, both to me and to my callers, on all but the worst broadband connections (both WiFi and hardwired); I've spent more on worse sounding communications gear. Yes, the USB cable is long enough to reach into the next county, but it's not that big a deal to manage it. The phone is small enough to pack quite easily in my "office satchel," yet fits my head and face exactly how a telephone should; with the mic close to your mouth for optimum voice transmission, rather than next to your cheek. The earphone sounds very good, and can be cranked up to the point of painfulness for listening in noisy environments. If you need a good, inexpensive Skype phone, don't have to have a wireless option or an LCD screen[1], and can do a bit of cable management, look no further than the FR-33.1. You can do a lot worse than this phone.
[1] If you do need some sort of display, try the FR-33.2 from Ipevo. Same phone as the 33.1 with an LCD display.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
IPEVO FR-33.1 Black USB Handset is a match for our HP Pavilion windows laptop (and also have a white one for my Macbook)Apr 09, 2009
I got this black version of the IPEVO FR-33.1 USB Handset for our HP Pavilion Dv6653cl Laptop which runs Windows Vista. (I already have the white version of the IPEVO FR-33.1 USB Handset for my Macbook which is white in color.) What you get is the IPEVO FR-33.1 USB Handset, a little stand/hook thingie, and a CD. The little stand thingie that came with the handset is like a cradle to put the handset in standing up or you could hang it off the side of a tower PC or a PC monitor (there's a 3M sticker that you can use to stick that stand/hook thingie on the side of a PC). When it is sitting in its stand, you can see it blinking its green LED status light which is located in the speaker slot on the handset. This handset itself is small. If you are familiar with talking on smaller-size cell phones then you should be able to get used to this handset also. And it all works as expected. Installation of the software was easy to do. When installed, the IPEVO Control Center software is installed and you have a new icon in the windows system tray that looks like a cross. I tried several calls. Listening was clear at my end. On the other end, I'm told that it sounded "good" as any regular call. Based on my experience with my other white version of this handset, I was expecting this handset to also be just as good. A lot of this, of course, is dependent on the broadband connection. We have Cox internet (economy level) with 768kbps down and 256kbps up and that's more than adequate for voice calls. If your Skype calls are good to begin with, then you should expect this handset to work fine with your Skype calls.
On the IPEVO Control Center software panel, you can adjust the audio settings, customize the custom buttons, and select which ring on the phone that you want to use. When you have the IPEVO handset plugged in, Skype should automatically use the handset for talking/listening. When the handset is not plugged in, then Skype should use the laptop's built-in internal speaker/microphone. However under windows, you may have to also go into the Skype options settings and make sure that the audio settings are set for the FR-33.1 speaker/microphone. You may also want to go into the windows Control Panel and into Sound Properties and check that the audio is set for the computer's speaker/microphone -- or otherwise then ALL of the sounds from the windows computer may be heard via the handset and not on the computer's speakers.
The IPEVO software also installed a FreeREC program which doesn't show up in the windows start menu. You can find FreeREC in the C:\Program Files\IPEVO directory (red circle icon with the letter R). FreeREC is for recording your phone calls. FreeREC works on my Macbook under Mac OS X, but FreeREC didn't seem to work on the HP laptop under windows. Tip: if you are able to record using FreeREC, be sure to alert the other person on the line that you want to record the call.
Note that the FR-33.1 is also nicknamed as the FREE.1 (also FREE-1). I found a MyMac Magazine interview article with IPEVO's Caroline Andreolle who indicated that the FR-33.2 (the version of this handset with a little display screen) is nicknamed as the Free.2 - where FR-33 (as in FR33) happens to look like the word FREE. Therefore, the FR-33.1 is nicknamed as Free.1 which makes the naming of these products confusing since I also found the IPEVO "Free.1" here on Amazon and wondered if that was an earlier version of the FR-33.1 handset. (In other words, the Free.1 is the FR-33.1 and vice versa.) Anyways, over in the IPEVO Free.1 reviews, other users complained about the length of the USB cable that goes from the handset to be plugged into the computer. Needless to say, I also found the USB cable cord to be really long for the FR-33.1 handset. I was rolling it up a bit, but now I just let it all hang out when I use the handset. The long cable is one-size-fits-all since it may also be used with a desktop PC where you have to string the cable to the back of a tower PC to plug it in.
I'm satisfied with this IPEVO FR-33.1 USB Handset and its black color matches our HP Pavilion laptop. I already have the white version of the IPEVO FR-33.1 USB Handset for my Macbook which is white in color. Do a search here on Amazon for "IPEVO FR-33.1 White" if you want to see my other previous review for this handset as it pertains to use with my macbook. I also have the IPEVO ST-4RT.1 handset (black in color), which is not USB but is for plugging into the speaker/microphone jacks on other computers. Do a search here on Amazon for "IPEVO ST-4RT.1 Pack of 2" to find the product that I bought and my review for that other handset (I bought the ST-4RT.1 double pack). FYI, I don't work for IPEVO or have any business relationship with them. I'm just a customer who was buying from them on Amazon. Thanks for reading.
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