Skype has teamed with NetGear to deliver the first wireless mobile phone that uses its VoIP service, as well as a router equipped to optimize Skype, the two companies announced at the International CES show in Las Vegas.

The move positions Skype to expand its customer base and to increase its customers' use of its services, both free and paid, by making it easier to use VoIP and untethering customers from their computers. Skype users will be in a better position to use the VoIP service as their primary communication method.

The NetGear Skype WiFi phone will enable Skype customers to use its VoIP service via WiFi Internet access points, which are increasingly available in commercial settings as well as via home networks and new municipal networks. Skype users can then make free domestic and international calls to other Skype users and reach non-users on a fee-basis without having to plug a headset into a computer. The phone comes preloaded with Skype software and users only have to enter a Skype user name and password to get started.

“We're extremely proud to deliver the world's first mobile phone enabling customers to enjoy all the benefits of Skype,” said Patrick Lo, NETGEAR's chairman and chief executive officer, in a prepared statement.

In addition, Netgear’s RangeMax Wireless Router (WPN824) has been optimized to deliver better voice quality over a WiFi network by eliminating both interference from other nearby wireless networks and dead spots. dynamically avoid interference from neighboring wireless networks and eliminate dead