What Is Google Voice And How Does It Actually Work?
Almost completely gone are the days of the landline — in the current smartphone era, you’d be hard pressed to find young people who even know what a landline is.
For most, having one mobile phone should be enough, but depending on your communication needs, you may need more than one phone number. If you prefer to have a personal communication line for only family and close contacts to hit you up on, and have a separate one for business or general public use, then you need to consider signing up for a cloud-based telephone service.
Also known as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), this technology essentially lets you take and make phone calls over the internet versus a regular telephone line. This difference is big, because it expands the possibilities of your communication reach. As long as you have reliable internet connectivity, you will be able to make both domestic and international phone calls with ease, and connect with people who also have a stable internet connection. Depending on which service you choose to go with, you may even have access to additional call services that you would otherwise have to pay for if you have an outdated mobile phone plan.
If you are new to the world of VoIP services and are looking for a good one to try out,Google Voiceis one of the more popular options available that offers several useful features.
What is Google Voice?
Simply put,Google Voiceis a service that assigns users a phone number (that’s different from their actual mobile phone number) that they can utilize to make calls, send text messages, and leave voicemails, among many other phone-related needs. Since the service primarily relies on the internet, people can execute all communication tasks regardless of where they are in the world — provided that the connection is strong and stable. If you are a Google user who signs up for Google Voice within the U.S., you may choose your own phone number. Otherwise, you will be assigned a random one by Google.
Google Voice calls made from the U.S. to domestic numbers, as well as Canada, are free. However, users will have to pay a fairly affordable specific rate per minute (that are subject to change at any time) to reach people in other countries (viaGoogle). Like most Google products, Google Voice is available to both Android and iOS users. In fact, the Google Voice mobile app has over 10 million downloads on Google Play, and is highly rated by both Android and Apple users alike — making it a safe bet for new users to try out.
How does Google Voice work?
In order to use Google Voice, you need to create an account using a computer, an Android mobile device, an iPhone, or an iPad and associate it to a Google account. You can only set up one Google Voice number for every Google account. If you are setting up Google Voice using a computer, recommended operating systems include Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Chrome OS; other platforms may work to some degree, as functionality will be restricted. You should also use Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, or Safari to perform the process.
Here’s how to get your ownGoogle Voicenumber:
Once your Google Voice account is set up, you can start using the service’s mobile app or website like you would your mobile phone’s built-in phone or text messaging app. Remember that depending on where the person you’re communicating with is based in, you may need to pay a small fee to call or send them a text.
Google Voice benefits
Apart from being able to make phone calls, leave voicemails, and send text messages to almost anyone regardless of your location (where you have solid internet connectivity), you can make paid phone calls for a fairly cheap price. You have heightened protection against unsolicited calls and messages that may have spam content or malicious intent. You’ll have an easier timescreening phone callsbefore you answer, and blocking those you want to cease contact with.
Google Voice is alsoa great voicemail service, as you’re able to personalize your greeting message, as well as review messages left in your inbox. Voicemail may be conveniently transcribed to text, making it easier to look up. In fact, any record of communication coursed through Google Voice is saved and time-stamped by the service, so you can easily go back and review any call records or message you’ve received.
One of the most important benefits of having a Google Voice number is the convenience of communication consolidation. If you happen to have a landline or a work phone on top of your personal one, you may link them all up so that people only need to contact you through your Google Voice number.
you may link up to six different phone numbers to forward calls to, provided that they haven’t been previously linked to a different Google Voice number (perGoogle). Anyone who calls your Google Voice number will also ring any linked phone number, giving you the option to answer the call through Google Voice on your computer or mobile device or through the linked number.
Google Voice negatives
In some cases, you may not be able to use your Google Voice number for two-factor authentication and other verification purposes required by certain apps and services (h/tReddit). Texting is also pretty limited. While Google Voice lets you attach photos up to 2MB, it doesn’t seem to allow sending videos through SMS. If you need a VoIP service to send out texts in bulk,Google Voicewill not work for you becauseits built-in spam detectionmay flag your messages and block them. Furthermore, group texting is limited to eight participants (including yourself).
Additional things to note about Google Voice
It’s the perfect service for travelers and phone number jugglers alike. Anyone with a Google Voice account can also make and receive calls through a computer, as well as other linked devices. No matter what gadget you use, your Google Voice number is what will identify you on the call recipient’s Caller ID. If you are a business owner, you can use Google Voice through a paidGoogle Workspaceplan for additional features.
