I came across this review by David DeJean of TechWeb on Netgear's Skype Phone Model SPH101 and found it to provide some helpful insight.

"Even though the Skype Voice-over-IP (VoIP) service lets you talk to other people just like you would on the telephone, it still requires a computer to make it work. However, a new generation of Skype handsets is changing all that. The Netgear Skype WiFi Phone gets you off your computer entirely: If you've got a WiFi network and this handset, you've got all the equipment you need."