Skype has just announced that they will start supporting 720P HD video conferencing at 1280×720 resolution in the newest Skype 4.2 beta software, which is a significant upgrade from the current 640×480 resolution.  This will of course require compatible cameras and within the next two months, consumers will soon be able to purchase Skype certified 720P webcams like the FaceVision TouchCam N1 for $70 (no microphone) or $100 (with microphone), or the FreeTalk HD Pro for $120 or HD Pro Plus for $140 from In Store Solutions.  Previously, dedicated 720P video conferencing solutions cost $3000 and higher.

FaceVision TouchCam N1

There are other 720P webcams already on the market from companies like Microsoft or Creative Labs, but those 720P cameras don’t appear to be supported.  It’s not clear if it’s only a technical limitation or a contractual limitation that these existing cameras aren’t supported since Skype makes its moneys by charging certified hardware vendors for each device sold if they want to be fully compatible with Skype.

The computer hardware needed to run 720P is not steep as any computer with a 1.8 GHz processor will run this latest Skype, but Skype didn’t specify what kind of processor or how many cores are needed.  That suggests that these HD cameras designed to work with Skype may actually be offloading some of the processor intensive video encoding work because you normally need a high end 2.4 GHz processor or better to encode 720P in software in real time.  These 720P webcams might also enable users to upload to a live streaming site like Justin.tv or uStream.com.

The one moderate requirement is the 1 Mbps of minimum bandwidth required in both upstream and downstream directions for 720P operation.  1 Mbps downstream is very easy to achieve on just about any broadband service plan, but 1 Mbps of upstream requires a medium to higher end service plan.  This should certainly increase demand for higher performance broadband connections.

Embedded Skype

Skype also revealed that Panasonic and LG will begin embedding Skype 720P functionality into the latest HDTV sets being announced this week at CES.  Panasonic and LG will offer their own line of camera/microphone accessories to go along with the HDTVs to enable Skype video conferencing in the living room.