Skype for Windows Phone shows background processing limitations

We tested the beta release of Skype for Windows Phone a couple days ago and found it to be a generally positive experience. We did note that the app lacked integration with your existing contacts, and more vexingly there was no evidence of Skype working in the background – that is, when you would like to be able to receive a Skype call but also do anything else on your phone you are plum out of luck.

Today Skype confirmed to The Verge that this isn’t a bug in the beta release, but a limitation of the Windows Phone platform. While Windows introduced limited support for background processing with its Mango update, it’s not enough to allow Skype to actively receive calls. Skype further indicated that they are currently unable to use a push-notification to launch Skype, the way some other WP7 VoIP apps do. It apparently takes too long to process the push notification, launch the app, and set up the call to be practical.

As a result, the final version of Skype will launch without the ability to receive background calls, and it will stay that way until Windows Phone 8 (Apollo) lands near the end of 2012. This shows there are still some big limitations in Microsoft’s Windows Phone mobile operating system – Android has supported background processing forever, and iOS added it in version 4, so the Skype app on both of the dominant platforms can easily receive incoming calls.

This probably isn’t a “make or break” issue for many users, and we don’t want to cast an unnecessary pall over an otherwise solid and innovative OS, but it does show that Microsoft’s mobile platform remains a work in progress more than a year after launch, as they still scramble to add some basic functionality to WP7.

Does this confirmation impact how likely you are to use Skype on Windows Phone? Or does it not seem like an important limitation to you? Let us know in the comments below!

source: The Verge