CounterPath X-Lite 3.0 Review
Background
After developing EyeBeam it was only a matter of time until CounterPath (formerly X-Ten) abandoned their original X-Lite codebase. Unfortunately, with the "Upgrading" of X-Lite to Version 3, which is based on a cut-down version of EyeBeam, CounterPath have created problems for users by completely re-vamping the interface and breaking a lot of functionality.
Getting It To Work
After a lot of to-ing and fro-ing working out how to get this to connect to VoIPUser, I finally discovered the magic... you *HAVE* to use counterpath's STUN server. Defining anything else makes this new version of X-Lite give the LAN address as the contact address, no matter whether you define yourself as behind a NAT/Firewall or not. And there is no way to tell X-Lite to use a specific address as the contact address.
In Operation
Having worked that out, I get to using the package itself. All in all, it's very slick, claiming to support Video as well as Audio (though I couldn't test the video part, not having a webcam here) and supporting 2 lines.
Unfortunately, CounterPath added a nice advertising pane into the pull-out Video "Wing" to encourage you to upgrade, but that's about the only nag in the program.
Functionality
While it only supports H263 and H263+ for video, there are a wealth of codecs available for audio (BroadVoice-32, BroadVoice-32 FEC, DVI4, DVI4 Wideband, G711 aLaw, G711 uLaw, L16 PCM Wideband, GSM and iLBC). With the QoS DCSP/TOS and "Service Type" options available too, this is quite a well-rounded package.
Business users will be dissappointed to learn that Transfer and Conference Calling are disabled, but one would presume business users would be able to afford the $60 to upgrade and will make use of the extra 4 lines that the upgraded "EyeBeam" enables.
Conclusion
Voice quality is good, the echo cancellation seems to work well and importing MP3 ringtones allows a fair amount of personalisation.
So setup niggles aside, this is a fine (and free) SIP Softphone.
Added: Sunday, September 17, 2006
Reviewer: Robert Johnston
Score:
Related web link: CounterPath X-Lite V3 Download Page
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Language: eng
