Apple’s public beta of FaceTime for the Mac supports video chatting from Mac to Mac and from Mac to iPhone, but iPhone users must first upgrade to iOS 4.1. FaceTime chatting from iPhone to iPhone, however, is compatible with iOS 4.0 and higher.
FaceTime for the Mac will let users know if the person they’re calling needs to update their iPhone 4 or iPod touch to iOS 4.1 when they try to initiate the connection, and even displays a friendly “Call Back” button that won’t do much good since there isn’t any way to instantly update to the latest iOS version.
FaceTime confusion? Try updating to iOS 4.1
Since FaceTime for the Mac is a public beta, expect to see more issues and bugs show up before the final shipping version of the application is released. Apple has already addressed a potential security flaw that could allow someone to change your Apple ID password if they gain physical access to your computer.
Apple hasn’t said when it plans to transition FaceTime for the Mac out of beta testing.