free video phone program

[boof]

is there anythng to replace a landline/mobile, pls? don't have ip phone.

[rockedge]

ham radio, CB radio can be used.

at one time in Germany one could use the cell phone as a walki-talki in a certain sized radius. The cell phone was in principle a long range 2 way radio and the system allowed it! It was only temporary and since no money in it......it was discontinued

[mikewalsh]

@boof :-

If you want an actual desktop video phone 'app', as opposed to one of the many video-calling apps that run in the browser, there's 3 choices. Zoom - which I used to package, but no longer do because it ballooned to ridiculous proportions - like nearly 700 MB!; Skype - which we won't use now because it's gone 'snap-only' (and I want nothing to do with snaps).......or there is, I believe, Linphone.

Zoom and Skype are the well-known ones that many people use, but the desktop apps, as stated above, are now impractical. There are the in-browser webapp versions of these, which work every bit as well (for both, you MUST create an a/c, because without signing-in they won't function). As for Linphone, I don't know anything about this one, but @OscarTalks is our resident Linphone expert, and has, I believe, been using it for years.

The trouble with Linphone - like many other native Linux video-calling apps that are NOT well-known household names - is persuading other people to install them in the first place in order that you can call them. Most people won't do this; if they have, say, Skype installed, the usual response is "Well, why can't you Skype me?" Joe Average doesn't understand that many of these apps are proprietary & NOT cross-compatible. He probably doesn't care, either.....but he won't bother installing new software just for one individual to contact him.

There are several in-browser options to choose from. These are some of the better-known ones, though I know for a fact there are many others out there:-

• Google 'Meet' :- https://meet.google.com

• Jitsi 'Meet' :- https://meet.jit.si/

• Skype 4 Web :- https://web.skype.com

• M$ 'Teams' :- https://teams.live.com

• WIRE 4 Web :- https://app.wire.com

• Zoom 4 Web :- https://app.zoom.us/wc/home

There's also Telegram (primarily a messaging-app, though it does do video-chatting as well from what I understand). Be warned, however; although you can use it in the browser, you're expected to log-in via QRCode from a mobile phone. This is the ONLY log-in that Telegram will now accept......because more & more apps are built for mobile-operation only. PCs are being seen as SO 'yesterday' by most people. Way of the world, I'm afraid.

The choice is up to you. It's entirely your decision...

(*shrug...*)

Mike.