Up and available for download… Supports mac, linux and windows.. multi-protocol chat, hd audio and video conferencing. Give it a try and help us debug! http://www.icall.com/desktop/betabeta/

Yes, believe it or not… the moment that we have been eagerly awaiting has arrived and we are proud to finally say that iCall for the iPhone is fully functional over 3G networks.

We have thoroughly tested the voice quality over 3G and it exceeds even our expecations… so now anywhere where you have a 3G data network you can make free phone calls.

Existing users do not need to upgrade, the 3G block was a server side block on our end and it has now been removed. If you are using versioin 1.2.5 or newer of iCall for the iPhone then just restart iCall while on a 3G network and enjoy calling.

The only caveat here is that AT&T’s 3G network is overloaded big time and call quality will depend upon the 3G signal you are able to get.

After listening intently to our users, we came to the conclusion that we can make iCall for the Desktop even better. You want to be able to chat with your friends on AIM, MSN, and Google Talk from the same client that you can make free phone calls from. You want to use iCall on your mobile devices, Windows, Mac, and Linux computers.

So what’d we do about it? We hired one of the creators of one of the most popular chat protocols of all time – XMPP (the protocol that powers Google Talk). We picked the best video codecs for HD video chat. We added wideband audio codecs so talking to your friends sounds even better than possible on the phone network. We re-did iCall from the ground up making it the best communication application available.

All of this, and we made it for Windows, Mac, and Linux computers. Coupled with our existing iPhone version, we’re pretty excited about the wide array of platforms that iCall will be able to run on.

A breakdown of the new features include:

• Full functionality on Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X platforms
• HD video codecs that allow you to video chat in stunning full resolution
• Wide-band audio codecs for better-than-phone audio chat
• Chat integration with AIM, MSN, Yahoo, and Google Talk.
• Free calling to the US and Canada

We expect to have the new version available for public distribution in very early 2010. Subscribe to our newsletter to stay up to date.

When it comes to technological freedoms, at iCall we believe that it’s your right as a consumer to be able to fully utilize the devices that you’ve paid for. On March 8th, 2009, iCall CEO Arlo Gilbert and CTO Andy Muldowney found themselves standing outside of the Library of Congress preparing to testify before the U.S. Copyright Office.

On one side of the room were the lobbyists group representing the large cell phone carriers including Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T, and by relation, Apple. On the other side, sat two mere mortals from iCall alongside the Electronic Frontier Foundation (the EFF).

According to the provisions of the DMCA, every three years the U.S. Copyright Office holds a forum to give an opinion on the next three-years of guidelines regarding anti-circumvention measures for cell phones. The Register of Copyrights then makes recommendations on what should be put into law.

What does all this have to do with the iPhone? Jailbreaking, or the ability to install third-party software on your phone, as well as SIM unlocking both fall under Section 1201 of the DMCA.

Of all iPhone developers, iCall was the only one present at this rule making hearing. As software developers and believers in consumer rights, we felt that it was our responsibility to our customers to stand up for what we believe. We can only hope that our voice helps the Copyright Office come up with a recommendation that benefits iPhone users everywhere.

To learn more about the rulemaking hearing or to listen to audio transcripts of the hearings, visit the US Copyright Office §1201 Rulemaking Hearing Agenda web site, Arlo Gilbert testified on Friday May 8, 2009.

Listen to the Audio here – Arlo is the second speaker