The 3G network has been cranked up by T-Mobile to be able to handle the video chat feature of Google Talk. This is for those with Android 2.3.4 or higher and have a Samsung Nexus S model.
T-Mobile has been a good carrier and the company of choice for Google when they put out smartphones. This is once in a blue moon, and the smartphones do not actually come from Google, but nevertheless, bear the Google name. T-Mobile has done some tweaking on their HSPA+ network to allow it to support the video feature of Google Talk. The feature will be for the Nexus S model smartphone.
This new service is going to be a direct “face off” with the “Face Time” app ( application ) from Apple. The iPhone 4 has a front facing camera designed to give the same service as the Google Talk app. The Google Talk app has always worked over a 4G connection, but never on a 3G one. A 4G network is usually defined by its throughput speed. Downloads and uploads are supposed to be faster on 4G than on a 3G network. Other video chat alternatives have already existed, such as Fring. Fring works on all smartphones and can be used on the Apple iPad as well. Skype is another frontrunner with 663 million users that is powering up to offer video chat on iPads.
The Google Talk app is a result of a modification to the Google Gmail program. It allowed users to initiate a chat with others way back in the year 2005. The mobile video chat service now extends to those who have a new enough Android version. This usually means those who have a Nexus S smartphone with its Gingerbread ( 2.3 ) Android version. Other smartphones that use Android could conceivably use the 3G network from T-Mobile if they have a XMPP client. The XMPP is the “Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol” and has been known in the past as “Jabber”. It is used for many things, and the video chat feature is just one.
Thanks to T-Mobile turning on the 3G network, chatting is a breeze for the Nexus S owners on this carrier. It has been a month of waiting, and the problem was not exactly clear as to why it did not function. Nevertheless, the wait is over and the “face to face” chatting can start.
