iPad users have long been calling for a native Skype app for the iPad, and it only intensified following the release of the iPad 2 with its front and rear-facing cameras. Skype made several promises to bring the application to Apple’s app store, but it never materialized. Finally, the long-awaited Skype iPad app has arrived at the app store for download, and it’s available for free.

For whatever reason you’d want to record your Skype calls, and there are undoubtedly many possibilities, IMCapture for Skype is the go-to OS X app to accomplish that. IMCapture for Skype captures high quality video and audio recordings of Skype calls and easily converts them to the user’s choice of of popular formats, including MP3, MP4 and MOV. Not only does IMCapture for Skype work well for simply recording Skype calls, it also contains functionality for publishing those calls.

Skype has updated both its iPad andiPhone/iPod touch apps today, adding new features such as image stabilization (only when using rear camera), emoticons, support for Bluetooth headsets on the iPad 2, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and fourth-generation iPod touch, and a fix for a security vulnerability. Unfortunately, the new Skype for iOS update also brings with it advertisements, which haven’t been present until now.

Last night, in what Skype has since called a “premature” release, some folks were quick enough to get a glimpse of Skype for iPad. It’s reported to have first gone live on the New Zealand App Store, and then shortly it went live on the U.S. App Store, as well. I managed to see the download link and was able to see the app description.

While Skype 5.5 for Windows remains in beta, the Mac version of the software has publicly reached version 5.2 today, with the addition of some great new features. One of the most notable is support for group video calling and screen sharing abilities during such calls, although unfortunately these features require that at least one participant has a subscription to Skype Premium which can cost between $4.49 and $8.99 per month (or $4.99 for a day pass).

If you’re wondering why everyone is reading the news today and going “Awwww, man!” it’s because Microsoft is planning to buy Skype, the voice/video streaming service, for $8.5 billion dollars. MS was apparently attracted when they heard about Skype’s security vulnerabilities and their new, unpopular interface, and felt they’d fit right in.

Anybody who already has or is going to pick up a new iPhone 4 through Verizon will be happy to know that many developers have made updates to their apps to support the phone’s newest carrier. Among them is Skype, which has just recently been updated to function on the Verizon iPhone 4. Another new feature to come with this update includes support for the H.264 codec, which allows Skype users to make calls to more Skype-enabled devices, such as the new TVs from Panasonic and Samsung.

In a quiet update to their free iOS app, Skype has added the ability to make video calls over WiFi and, yes, 3G. Two way calls can be made from iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and iPod touch 4th gen. If you have an iPad or iPod touch 3rd gen, you can still receive video calls. Video calls may be made in portrait or landscape orientations, just like FaceTime. But unlike FaceTime, you can use it over 3G (if your data plan allows).

Time to update your apps again; the Skype update for iOS 4 multitasking is now live. Now you can not only make calls over 3G with an iPhone, you can receive them while using other apps. After launching Skype and logging in, you’ll be able to make calls and leave the app while still talking, just like expected. What you might not have expected is that you can also receive calls in the background as long as you’re still logged in.

As one of the seven tent poles in Steve’s keynote today, Apple announced a new VOIP API. For VOIP applications, users will now be able to receive calls even if the application using the VOIP isn’t in the foreground. This means that applications like Skype will be able to use the double high status bar when on a call much like the actual phone. Furthermore, calls can also come through via a pop-up when you’re not in the application, allowing you to answer or ignore them.