News: Gmail/Google Voice Offers Free Calls Through 2011
If you have a Google Voice account, you can use it to make telephone calls to regular landlines and cell phones via VoIP. You can also use Google Voice from within Gmail. Google, as a nice little holiday gift (and maybe a way to help people get comfortable with the idea of making VoIP calls) is offering free calls from now until at least the end of the year 2011, maybe longer. Yes, next year calls to the US and Canada will apparently be free. Sounds too good to be true, no? Let’s hope they don’t change their minds.
[Source Google Blog via Mashable, Lifehacker, DroidDogs]
Tips: Talkatone Helps You Make VoIP Calls with Google Voice
Lifehacker tips us to an iPhone/iOS app that helps you use Google Voice to it’s full voice-over-IP glory. It works over 3G or WiFi using an iPhone, iPod or iPad.
[Source cybernetnews via Lifehacker … iTunes link]
Tips: Lifehacker’s Tips For Getting The Most Out of Google Voice
I haven’t even scratched the surface on Google Voice and how it can be used as an alternate way of staying in touch with your secret lover, and Lifehacker’s tips just affirm how little I’ve really played with Google Voice. It’s a great rundown on some of the things you can do if you use Google Voice’s features correctly.
Here are some highlights:
- Free SMS that’s not logged on your normal cell account
- Alternate phone number so you don’t have to give out your real phone number (handy in bars too!)
- Tie prepaid/disposable phone numbers together under a single Google Voice number
- Voice to Text transcription and email of your incoming voice mails. That way you can silently screen the calls before replying or deciding if it’s an emergency or not
- Special call filtering/notification settings so not all calls go through to all phone lines connected to your account. This makes it easier to receive secret calls when you want to, but funnel them to voicemail when you don’t including a special “Do Not Disturb” timer setting
Read more at Lifehacker.com
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