First look at Google Voice. Videos and screenshots

Last week, Google launched Google Voice, a new service that creates a single phone number and inbox to manage all your phones, translates voice mail and much more into text. Service is still in beta testing, but we can peep.

If you remember, Google Voice is a former GrandCentral, which Google acquired last year. Google Voice boasts many of the things GrandCentral was doing, but the service also has its own interesting features. If you are already a GrandCentral member, you can join Google Voice (if you haven’t already). Let's take a look.

Inbox saves voicemail and text messages.

As shown in the picture above, all SMS and voice messages are saved in the Google Voice inbox. You can selectively set a filter to display only voice messages, SMS, dialed numbers, received or missed calls.

Convert voice messages to text

My test calls to Google Voice were immediately transcribed (the conversation lasted about two minutes), and the results were pretty good. It can be assumed that the decryption function will improve with time, but the results of my test call are already very worthy. At first, however, some obscurity is sometimes to be expected. Google indicates the degree of confidence in the accuracy of decoding grayscale: the darker the text, the more Google is confident in decoding.
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The coolest thing in voicemail transcription is search, you can find a voice message as easily as finding an old email address in GMail. And if you turn on the notification by mail when you receive a voice message, then you can find your message in Gmail, because transcription will be attached.

Call and send SMS using Google Voice

C using the keys of speed dialing and sending SMS, you can call and send messages to any of your contacts. At first it may seem that making calls through Google Voice is quite problematic, but if you look into it, thanks to the self-completion of contact names, making calls will be very fast and convenient. As well as sports predictions .

Google Contacts Integration

If you filled out contacts in Gmail, then your efforts will pay off. Because Everywhere in Google Voice, AutoFill works.

Group Forwarding Settings

One of the main features of Google Voice is the ability to redirect phone calls and SMS based on the rules you created. For example, you can direct all calls of your boss or co-workers only to your work phone, or receive calls from other significant people to any of the phones to be always available.

And now the "creepy" video

Google Voice (like GrandCentral before it) has options that are a bit creepy, or at least for those of us who know etiquette. For example, there is a listening function:


But there are other very interesting things, like blocking callers:


You will also have the thrill of the call recording feature:


... and call switching:


Switching a call can be extremely useful in the future when Google (inevitably) adds something like VoIP or integrates with Google Video Chat.

Final thoughts

We were very impressed and delighted with everything that Google Voice can provide to manage your phones, as well as the ability to send voice mail and SMS directly to your email. Welcome to the discussion!

Post: Danil Kuropov .