Google Voice & Calling Minutes

[rswheaton]

Is anyone else interested in how Google voice will affect calling minutes? If you currently have your GV number set to call your Sprint cell and your incoming call is from another cell phone will you be charged for the minutes? If you setup your phone so GV is used to call all numbers that you dial will you be charged for calling other cellular number because GV masks the number? I have been through every level of support that Sprint offers and no one can answer me. Sadly tier 3 technical support told me "Google Voice is useless on a cell phone and you would not want to use this anyway". I had nothing more to say after that! Anyone else have answers?

 

[Edaze55]

Is anyone else interested in how Google voice will affect calling minutes?

If you currently have your GV number set to call your Sprint cell and your incoming call is from another cell phone will you be charged for the minutes? If you setup your phone so GV is used to call all numbers that you dial will you be charged for calling other cellular number because GV masks the number?

I have been through every level of support that Sprint offers and no one can answer me. Sadly tier 3 technical support told me "Google Voice is useless on a cell phone and you would not want to use this anyway". I had nothing more to say after that! Anyone else have answers?

If you route all your outgoing and incoming calls through Google Voice, you wont get the benefit of Any Mobile Anytime as GV numbers arent mobile numbers. At least I think this was what you were asking.

That said. GV has an option to use GV just for international calls. Which, for the record, was the option I went with.

To a degree, I might have to agree with the Rep. Google voice is fairly useless on a cell phone, unless you plan on calling internationally OR you just dont want to give out your actual number.

 

[rswheaton]

The beauty of Google Voice is having 1 number that will manage as many devices as you like. If you choose not to all GV to mask your cell you missing most of GV has to offer which is ALLOT! GV Voicemail is much better, the call manager absolutely rocks, and giving everyone you know 1 number is what GV is all about. If you choose to call everyone back using your Sprint number people get confused.


To a degree, I might have to agree with the Rep. Google voice is fairly useless on a cell phone, unless you plan on calling internationally OR you just dont want to give out your actual number.[/QUOTE]

 

[Edaze55]

The beauty of Google Voice is having 1 number that will manage as many devices as you like. If you choose not to all GV to mask your cell you missing most of GV has to offer which is ALLOT! GV Voicemail is much better, the call manager absolutely rocks, and giving everyone you know 1 number is what GV is all about. If you choose to call everyone back using your Sprint number people get confused.

Im fully aware of what GV is, and isnt, as well as what it does, Ive had my GV account for some time now.

I dont really understand why you are trying to give me a lesson in the ins and outs of GV, when all I said was "to a degree, I might have to agree with the rep."

Yeah, the one number thing is great. What else can it offer me, that I havent already mentioned, besides SMS?

 

[rswheaton]

First off I am sorry if I offended you. The list is far to long for me to discuss right now right now but in short... every option that carriers are just now beginning to give you like visual voice mail etc... GV has offered for free for a very long time and again one number one location. We could spend hours alone talking about just the call manager features and sadly if you are not routing your calls through GV you will never see GV's true potential. In short GV was made to be your one stop shop.

 

[miqal]

Hello everyone,

I'm new to Android (coming from in iPhone) and Google Voice. I installed the GV app from the market and it works great. I have it setup to ask each time when I dial a contact. One thing-it does not seem to work for direct dial. If I want to direct dial (a number not in my address book) a phone number, the GV app does not ask if I want to use GV. Is there a setting I am missing?

Thanks, Miqal

UPDATE: I just realized my problem after submitting this post. For others who have this problem, when direct dialing from the keypad you need to use the area code or GV will not ask.

 

[marctronixx]

here is another nod for GV. i have had it for about 02 months now. you can route any caller to any SPECIFIC voicemail YOU create.. you can send a group of callers to one phone, or ALL phones. you can limit which phones get SMS messages.. and what time of day/week to send SMS AND phone calls. you can hear voicemail as its being recorded. there is a widget you can put up on websites with a button for people to call you. your number isnt shown, just a "click here to call" link.. a person clicks it and it will call anay number you want it to OR you can route it directly to voicemail.

if you have people you dont want calling you, you can send their number directly to SPAM (voicemail) and you will not get disturbed...

man i could go on and on about this APP... i have 3 phones on my account which i use for myself (i didnt want to give up my PPC phone for the Android and i have a free line on my acct) and everyone has ONLY my GV. i even changed all my numbers to FORCE people to use the new number...

google will rule the world.... soon....

 

[akkidy]

To a degree, I might have to agree with the Rep. Google voice is fairly useless on a cell phone, unless you plan on calling internationally OR you just dont want to give out your actual number.

Google voice can be useful if you have a myfaves type of plan. You register the Google voice number as your fav for free call, and dial out to other numbers. For Sprint's Anymobile Anytime plan, it's not included because it is a VOIP number and Sprint specifically mentioned only mobile to mobile.

 

[SDscorch]

marc ^^ just about saidit all

i've got GV - using it exclusively (although its hard - 3rd party msg apps don't "natively" go out through your GV# so if you're not careful ppl see that # - you gotta use your GV app or if you use a 3rd party messaging app, use the 406 or 916 area code that GV gives that contact) - i got nothing but good things to say about it



you also get this killer web interface that is very gmail-esque - and you can receive and respond to SMSs through the web interface

i've had to do it - on an important call, getting txt messages, directing other ppl via txt... all the while carrying on a convo w/ someone else on the phone


cool beans

 

[Edaze55]

Google voice can be useful if you have a myfaves type of plan. You register the Google voice number as your fav for free call, and dial out to other numbers. For Sprint's Anymobile Anytime plan, it's not included because it is a VOIP number and Sprint specifically mentioned only mobile to mobile.

I never said it wasnt useful, I said "To a DEGREE, I agree with the rep". Meaning I dont completely agree with him, nor do I totally disagree.

I dont have myfave, pick 3 or any type of calling circle added to my plan. I dont have a landline at home. All my friends have my cell number. I dont feel the need to attach my work number to GV. So, it is of little use to me, except for international calling, which is just the way I have GV set up. Thats not to say that other people dont find more benefit in the service.

You are also wrong about GV being VOIP, its not.
Google Voice isn't VOIP, and other things you learn from readers | ITworld

 

[romeosidvicious]

I never said it wasnt useful, I said "To a DEGREE, I agree with the rep". Meaning I dont completely agree with him, nor do I totally disagree.

I dont have myfave, pick 3 or any type of calling circle added to my plan. I dont have a landline at home. All my friends have my cell number. I dont feel the need to attach my work number to GV. So, it is of little use to me, except for international calling, which is just the way I have GV set up. Thats not to say that other people dont find more benefit in the service.

I have my GV number on my business cards now and do have it toggled for all outgoing calls. It only took about a week for people to get used to it and start using it. Some folks still call my phone direct but that's fine as well.

You are also wrong about GV being VOIP, its not.
Google Voice isn't VOIP, and other things you learn from readers | ITworld

That article is flat out wrong. GV is VOIP. You can make calls from a headset on your computer which goes out over the intertubes and when you use GV from a landline you call in and then GV dials out. You call into a google cluster and the call initially goes out over the intertubes as well. This is how all VOIP services that can call landlines work. Google's cloud on the intertubes processes the calls and then they go out over the phone network. This is the same way having a Cisco VOIP setup in your office works. The calls head into your Cisco VOIP box and end up routed over the usual landlines/cell network to their destination. GV is Voice Over IP without a doubt. The fact you can call out from your computer and call into a computer shows that. It is not end to end VOIP like a Skype to Skype call but it is VOIP.

That article doesn't explain why GV isn't VOIP it just states that it isn't. Any service that starts with an IP connection is VOIP period, end of story, and what the article misses is that using GV through an app on WinMo or the iPhone would be dialing in to Google's cloud and having your call processed there. It is transparent using the apps, for the most part, but it's still processed through the cloud making cell to cell call not be cell -> tower -> physical phone line/tower -> tower -> cell but rather cell -> tower -> google cloud (IP services) -> internet routing -> physical phone line -> tower -> cell and that's what makes GV a VOIP service.