Yesterday during Nokia’s keynote at the ongoing Mobile World Congress 2012 Microsoft released a beta version of Skype for Windows Phone 7. It took the company a while to come up with the version and there is some room for improvement. I downloaded the app and gave it a short try, here’s what I’ve found.

The good:

• Can be used on first-gen Windows Phone 7 devices
• Does not require a front-facing camera
• Pleasant interface (animations for the splash screen and notification are subtle and nice)
• App supports landscape mode for chat
• Panoramic navigation within the video call—this is pretty cool

Now for the bad:

• The app does not run in the background; you’re online as long as the app is open
• No push notifications

The app’s inability to run in the background is a deal break. However, being beta I wouldn’t be surprised to see the two features in the final version. Here are some screenshots of the app:

The audio calling and chat interfaces: