Finding Value in Google Voice

I've had a Google Voice number for a few years now; as soon as I heard about it I signed up and waited patiently for my invitation.  However, as feature-rich as the service is, I never did switch over to using it as my primary number for a couple of reasons.

First of all, when I started using Google Voice I had issues with call quality.  It reminded me of the initial VOIP services (I was an early adopter of that too) in that it was plagued with static and some echo issues.  I use my phone a lot for business and it wasn't of a quality I could rely on.

Even if the call quality had been excellent - and at this point it may well be - I still couldn't use Google Voice as my primary number because of my plan minutes.  I believe every major carrier offers free mobile to mobile to other callers on the same network - Sprint even offers free mobile calls to ANY other mobile number.  However, when you use Google Voice your call is routed through a Google Voice number and this means that every minute of every call you make counts against your plan minutes during daytime hours.  I've always tried to keep my minutes as low as possible to save on my monthly fee so this isn't something I'm willing to overlook.

Here's a description of how Google Voice makes a domestic call for you straight from the Help section of the site:

Each time you place a call, instead of dialing the number you want to reach, Google Voice dials a US-based direct access number. The Google Voice server then forwards your call to the actual destination number. This allows for faster call setup and the ability to place calls without a data connection. These direct access numbers may show in your phone's call log, or on your phone bill.
A unique direct access phone number is assigned to each person that you call. The direct access numbers are stored in the Google Voice application, not in your Contacts. They can be purged from your phone at any time by signing out of the Google Voice app.
Note: Direct access numbers are assigned randomly, and may include numbers that are out of your local calling area, or even out of state. If you don't have a nationwide calling plan, you may be charged long distance rates by your carrier.

Searching the internet a bit you can find some creative attempts to 'game' the system by adding the Google Voice numbers to your friends and family plan and forwarding calls, but it was a bit more than I was willing to go through and I never had a high level of confidence in any of the methods outlined.

However Google Voice and Google Voice Lite do offer at least one great feature that I've cannot now live without: visual voicemail.

Nothing used to drive me nuts more than sitting through one voicemail after another on Verizon, who wouldn't let you delete a message until you'd heard the entire thing (and of course you were using minutes while listening).  In fact, I don't want to listen through my voicemails at all - most of the time I just call the person back if I want to speak with them or ignore them if I don't.  In other words, I think some genius designed visual voicemail specifically for me.

Problem is, Verizon wants to charge $3 a month for this feature.  This is so absurd I'm not even going to go into it - suffice it to say as much as I love visual voicemail I'm not paying extra for it - our wireless bill is already north of $200 a month.

This is where Google Voice rides in on a white steed to save the day.  With my Android phone (the Droid Razr) I can simply configure Google Voice to be my voicemail for my existing number.  I don't have to give anyone my Google Voice number and they have no idea it routed to my Google Voice voicemail.  Unbelievable.  I have no idea how this works but I think it's cool as hell.  It's highly configurable and works great.  I can choose to get a status bar notification, email, and/or text when you miss a call or receive a new voicemail.  Additionally, I have a Google Voice extension in my browser (Chrome) to alert me if I have any new messages or missed calls.  Furthermore I can send text messages if the mood strikes me - and let's not forget the website has all these features and more.

The only glitch I encountered - and I set this up on three different phones - was the final step in the process of setting up Google Voice on the phone.  It just sat there working for minutes, I don't know how long it took to finish the process but it happened all three times.  Nonetheless all phones have Google Voice up and running as voicemail so don't worry if you experience this glitch.

I should also add Google Voice gives tremendously flexibility for voicemail messages, you can sort your contacts into groups and have a different greeting for each group, for instance.  I won't go into all the features but it's got everything I could imagine.

We set up my wife on Google Voice Lite.  As the name implies, this is a limited feature version which doesn't actually provide her with a Google Voice number.  It simply sets up voicemail for her, and she also uses it to make international calls at competitive rates.  Because we use Android phones, she can direct dial internationally and Google Voice will automatically be used to make the call.  For anyone else you have to do a little extra work by calling your own personal access number and then the international number you want to call.  Cost is handled by buying credits on the Google Voice account and these can be automatically reloaded at a level you determine, or you can manually pay as you go.

Google Voice has a great feature set and is the best visual voicemail I've used - and best of all it's free.  If you're interested it's now open to anyone, you can get on board here.