Livedoor, a Japanese ISP, says they’re going to offer a Voice over IP over WiFi service using pulverInnovations’ WiSIP 802.11b phone that can make calls to any phone (why haven’t we seen this in the US yet? Vonage, we’re looking in your general direction). The handset itself isn’t cheap (it costs about $500 there), but the calls are relatively inexpensive. Carlo Longino of The Feature wonders what the point is, and he’s half-right; because you have to remain in range of a WiFi hotspot this isn’t a very good substitute for a cellphone. But it could prove to be a decent replacement for making calls over a landline (something which isn’t exactly dirt cheap in Japan) with the side benefit of being able to make and receive calls anywhere you can find WiFi access. $500 does seem a bit steep though…
