Fresh off their VoiceEngine for iPhone audio platform, Global IP solutions has announced a new video chat engine which promises to turn every smartphone into a video phone. Using peer-to-per video, as well as video conferencing capability, the GIPS VideoEngine Mobile platform promises high quality video calls, even when cell networks are overloaded of experiencing periodic outages. The new VideoEngine takes advantage of “network effects and hardware limitations” (whatever that means) and thereby is also able to solve packet loss and help protect lip synchronization.

It’s still largely conceptual, though, as carriers will have to sign on to use the data and bandwidth heavy feature, and users will have to have headsets with them when initiating video calling. Course, more and more states are requiring hands free phones while driving anyway, so by the time “VieO” is launched, a vast majority will no doubt already have the accessory hardware required.
But iPhone users won’t be playing Dick Tracey anytime soon as the new VideoEngine only works on the Windows Mobile Hardware that incorporates a Marvell chipset (which the VideoEngine has been optimized for) and using the Intel XScale PX310 Processor. Currently, the only phones that have this setup include the HP IPaq line, Samsung’s SGH-i780 and the GSmart MS808 by Gigabyte.
GIPS is planning to port the VideoEngine to other phone platforms including Symbian and even the iPhone – but that would mean Apple would have to be willing to redesign the iPhone in order to move the camera to the screen side in order to use.

Until then, GIPS forsees VieO as becoming extremely popular by 2013.

My only question is, when do I get my Dick Tracey wristwatch? And where are the flying cars? They promised me flying cars?!

Hat Tip – Crave