Philips VP-5500 VoIP Videophone

The Philips VP-5500 is a new VoIP Videophone that combines the convenience of WiFi with the cost-saving benefits of VoIP technology. The thing that sets the Philips VP-5500 apart from the other myriad VoIP phones out there is that this one comes with a nifty built-in VGA camera!

The camera can rotate up to 240° so that you can actually view yourself on screen and chat at the same time. You can also attach the VP-5500 to a TV and play a slideshow of your photos and any videos you have recorded. It can zoom in to focus on an item or person, before saving the image on the phone’s internal memory. The VP-5500 can also make live video calls played back on the hi-res color LCD screen.

Apart from the convenience of the integrated camera, the VP-5500 videophone offers a built-in hands-free speaker for use at your desk. If you want a private call then simply change mode and use the handset as normal. Philips have built the VP-5500 on a customized Linux OS which means it is easy to update firmware and functionality via WiFi.

The bad news: the Philips VP-5500 VoIP Videophone is currently only available in the Netherlands.