How Useful Is Google Voice? Enough to Make Free VoIP Calls.
When I first heard of Google Voice, I had NO clue what this was all about. Nada. I slowly found out information through the various postings online, then was finally moved to make an account. But then I started thinking. How useful can Google Voice really be for someone like me? Most people I know use a phone. Not an iPhone or an Android phone, but a regular phone. Some with unlimited texting, some without. What benefits are we (or just me) getting here? If I want to make a phone call, why would I ever want to make it through Google Voice if I could just dial away on my cell phone?
But then I found out that you could send free text messages. Hooray! That’s useful. But then I realized, it’s only free if its not forwarded to your mobile device. Ok, so I disabled my phone in the gVoice settings, but now what? I’m getting free texts, but only when I have wifi. So what else can I do with this thing? I don’t have a lot of phones that I want to sync with 1 number. I don’t get too many voicemails. Nor do I have a serious need to screen calls. And I don’t change my number, so this “universal” number isn’t a big deal.
But then I found something that would make this whole deal a little more worthwhile. Free calling from a computer. As a heavy computer user, making free calls from my computer would save a whole lot of time, plus it would allow me to keep my hands free off an actual phone. Can’t use bluetooth all the time, needs some recharging, plus my phones are never around when I need it.
Here’s how:
1) Make a Google Voice account. Then head over to gizmo5.com and sign up for an account there.
2) After signing up for Gizmo, you can download the software if you so choose (I did, but you can make calls via a web browser.) Then go to my.gizmo5.com, go to the settings page, enter your gVoice number, and enable the gVoice setting.
3) Scroll down and copy your gizmo SIP number. You won’t need to ever use this number again, just copy it for now. Go back to voice.google.com and set up a new phone via the settings tab. Use the SIP number from gizmo and set the phone type to gizmo.
4) Follow the standard Google Voice procedures to enable the gizmo phone. I downloaded the software, so it was easy to use the num keypad to enter the confirmation number.
5) Now you can go to gizmocall.com to test your mic, or use the gizmo program itself.
Here’s how to place a call using the Gizmo program.
Start the Gizmo program, and log into it. Then go to the gVoice page. Place a call like normal, but use the Gizmo phone instead of your normal phone. The Gizmo program should then ring, pick up and follow the standard gVoice phone call procedure.
Do NOT place a call in the Gizmo program itself, you will be charged. Make all calls via the gVoice site. Also, any calls made to your gVoice number will ring your Gizmo program, so you can leave it open if you want to receive calls.
And that’s it! For support, contact us or go to Lifehacker.
Voltaire.
Posted on September 9, 2009, in Computer Programs, Computers, Technology, Tips & Tricks and tagged free, gizmo, gizmo5, Google, gvoice, useful, voice, voip. Bookmark the permalink. 5 Comments.
Welcome to the Underground. 
I have a perfect example of me using google voice.
Last week I went to the Penske website, which is a rental truck company. As part of the form, I put in my google voice number just to test it and see what would happen. Well the next day, someone from Penske called the number, but I didn’t pick up.
Later that day I went into my google voice inbox, and read the transcript and I knew it was a lady from Penske.
Now the bad part was that for the next 3 days, people from Penske kept on calling me, once a day asking me to call them back so they can see what would work best for my moving event.
Guess what I did? I setup google voice to “ban” the number, so the next time they call me, they get a “this phone number was disconnected”. Priceless. Penske will never know my real cell phone number, and I aim to keep it that way.
Oh yea, the google voice transcriptions were right on for the next few calls from them. Just brilliant.
Only in the Uk 😦
i meant US……….
that’s true, but its still very useful.
that’s probably the only downside of google Voice.
Just an update, Google bought Gizmo5 so unless you already had an account…you can’t sign up at the moment. Supposedly Google will be bringing Gizmo5 back around as something better, so keep your eyes open.