For a long time, Skype has traditionally been a proprietary desktop app so users on Chromebooks couldnt use the service, instead reverting to Google’s own Hangouts service or another web based system. But the new Skype for Web service is web only and has slowly been adding features and now users can call mobile and landline phones using it, without a plugin all using HTML5. The site now has a a “Call Phones” section and like the other versions of Skype, it does require credit.

This kind of system wouldn’t have been as good a few years back as browsers like Safari and Chrome didn’t support notifications, hence why a dedicated app was still required. Skype’s web app does support these notifications so you’ll never miss what’s going on.

Skype say:

“As long as you’re signed into Skype for Web, you’ll receive notifications, even if you’re in another browser tab or another app,” notes the team.

Skype for Web

Skype for Web was originally released back in November 2014 and has been slowly developed to eventually replace the dedicated app that you have to currently download. Skype for Web was launched in Beta originally and supports Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox and Safari.

At the time Microsoft said:

“It’s perfect if you prefer using the web rather than an app: perhaps you’re sitting at a computer that doesn’t already have Skype downloaded.”

“Or maybe you’re on the go and using an internet café or hotel computer whilst on vacation where you can’t download Skype at all. Using Skype for Web makes it more convenient to get to your conversations.”