Google Voice: Free Phone Calls With Your Own Personal Operator

Ever given someone your number and later regretted the barrage of text messages or phone calls from that individual? Have you ever wasted time looking through call logs and old texts trying to find a phone number that you called or an address that somebody sent you? What about getting that important phone call during a meeting and having to wait anxiously before listening to the voice mail that the caller left?

For anyone that has had similar experiences to these, what if there was a service out there that could help alleviate or eliminate some of these problems? What if there was a service out there that let you block individual numbers, search through all of your stored text messages, and read transcribed voice mails at those inconvenient times when you cant listen to your messages? Well, in comes formerly-known-as-GrandCentral, Google Voice. As if what I mentioned was not enough, Google Voice also does multiple phone ringing, call screening, text messaging, personalized voice mail messages based on who’s calling, call recording, and in-call phone switching.

Let me give you a brief overview of how this virtual operator works. You sign up for the service, get a log in, and a phone number. Once signed in, you add all of the phones you desire to your account. Your cell phone, home phone, work phone, even your Gizmo number (more on that later). When a caller calls your Google Voice number, you can set it up so that all of your phones ring. You take the call on the phone that you choose. Picked the call up on your cell, but have since gotten back to your desk at work? Press * during the call to transfer it to your work phone. The call is from an embittered ex that is threatening to harm Hansel, your pet miniature schnauzer? Press 4 and the call starts being recorded. If they call back from a different phone, screen the call by listening in before you actually answer it. If they try again from a blocked or unknown number Google Voice can make them say their name and announce it to you before you decide to pick up. Setup a personalized voice mail message that only this person will hear that tells them how Hansel just went to the bathroom in their favorite pair of shoes. If they persist, have Google Voice block the number, and the next time they call they will be greeted with a recording that states “do do do . . . were sorry, but the number you are trying to reach has been disconnected”.

These are some of the basic features of Google Voice. For a more comprehensive list and video click here. Until Google has opened the service to the public it is available by invite only. To get on the waiting list (a few friends have reported it taking just a couple weeks) click here. Now that you have a basic idea of how the service works, let me share a couple Google Voice secrets with you.

Get a Google Voice Number Without the Wait

There are a couple ways to get on the Google Voice train without having to wait for your special invitation. Find someone that already has the service, and they may be able to send you one of their limited invites. Right now I am sitting on three that I’m dying to hand out for others to enjoy. Also, invites can be purchased for relatively cheap on ebay. Purchase one through an auction and you could be linking it to your Google account within minutes.

Use Google Voice With Your Existing Number

This isn’t really a secret, but late in October Google announced that you could use a less robust version of their voice service with an existing cell phone number. Although visual voice mail, voice mail transcription, and custom voice mail greetings are some of the only features that you get, some people just cant imagine letting go of the number they currently have. Google hears you, and until they have created a way to port over your existing number, this is their solution.

Unlimited Minutes Using a “Faves” Plan

With it’s new “Even More” plans, T-mobile may be trying to phase out their myFaves calling plans, but Google Voice breathes new life into this feature. There are two ways to make calls with your Google Voice number: 1) Through the web you choose the contact you want to call or enter the number, you receive an incoming call from your Google Voice number, pick it up, and then it connects the two of you. Your cellphone carrier sees it as an incoming call from your Google Voice number. 2) You call your Google Voice number from your phone and enter the number that you want to call (Android, Palm WebOS, and others have applications that automate this process). Your cellphone carrier sees this as an outgoing call to your Google Voice number. Add that number to Verizon’s Friends & Family, T-Mobile’s Fave 5, or AT&T’s A-List and either of those calls would have been free. If you are with Sprint, call customer service, request to be transferred to retentions, and ask them to add the Pick 3 option to your plan. Give them your Google Voice number and two others (they have to have the three numbers at that time) and you are set.

Free VOIP Home Phone

Gizmo5 may have just been acquired by Google, but for quite a while now it has been offering a VOIP service with free incoming calls. Remember from the previous paragraph that through the web, you can initiate a phone call to a contact or by entering a number. In turn Google calls you and then connects the call to the receiving party. To Gizmo5 it appears to be an incoming call. Setup your Gizmo5 number as one of your forwarding phones in Google Voice and incoming calls get automatically sent your way. Using this service allows you to receive and place free phone calls through the Internet. Using a headset with Gizmo’s software will be enough for some, but pair this setup with a device like an unlocked Linksys’ PAP2 and you can have the phone service work with all of the phones already in your house.

Use the Google Voice features to add functionality to your existing phone service, and use some of the Google Voice “tricks” to save some money over Ma Bell or your cell phone carrier. You may have to wait a few weeks to get yourself an invite, but coming from someone that has been using the service for several weeks now, Google Voice, the personal virtual phone assistant, is well worth it.