Google Voice: Your Guide to Getting Started

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The next menu under the "Settings" section of Google Voice is "Voicemail & Text." This menu holds the options to record your own voicemail greeting; you can record as many as you want and set different ones to play in different circumstances, too. You can also tell Google Voice how to handle your voicemails and text messages from this screen.

The "Calls" section of the "Settings" menu is an important one to visit. There, you'll find the option to enable or disable call screening. If enabled, you'll actually hear a recording from Google Voice anytime you answer your phone. It'll tell you who's calling and give you the option to either answer or send the call to voicemail. (The person on the other end of the line will continue to hear ringing while you decide.) If you send them to voicemail, you can then listen in as they leave a message and opt to pick up the call at any point during the recording.

Up next is the "Groups" tab. This tab holds a lot of power: It lets you divide your contacts into different categories and then specify how their calls are handled. You could, say, tell Google Voice to route your boss's calls to your cell phone during the week but to send him directly to voicemail if he calls you on the weekend. (Google Voice will even give the appearance of the phone ringing a few times on the caller's end, so he'll never know.) You could similarly send an annoying relative's calls straight to voicemail 24/7. The options are endless.

Google Voice on your Cell Phone

If you ask me, the best part of Google Voice has nothing to do with this Web site: Rather, it's all about your cell phone. If you use an Android or BlackBerry device, you can install Google's free Google Voice app and fully integrate the service into your phone's operating system. The apps allow you to place calls from your Google Voice number -- meaning that's the number that'll show up on caller ID when you dial someone -- and also let you access your Google Voice inbox right on your device.

The latter is a serious time and money-saver: Once you start using Google Voice for your voicemail, you'll never have to dial into your carrier's voicemail system or use its visual voicemail feature again; instead, you'll just open up the Google Voice app and find all your messages there. The app gives you text transcriptions as well as the option to play messages out loud, and no airtime is ever required.

Texting becomes a whole new game, too -- one that doesn't cost you a dime. The Google Voice app functions as a full SMS utility. If someone sends a text to your Google Voice number, you'll get a notification on your phone and can read the message and reply within the Google Voice app. You can also send outgoing texts from the app anytime; there's never a fee. The only downside is that multimedia messages -- texts that include images, for example -- are not yet supported. So sorry, no sexting.

What if you're on the iPhone? Apple, as you've probably heard, decided not to let the Google Voice app into its walled garden for reasons never made entirely clear. Google got around the restriction and released a Web-based version of its service; you can access it by visiting m.google.com/voice from your phone's browser. The Web app gives you some of the Google Voice functionality but fails to integrate the service fully into your device, so it's a far less robust experience (and certain functions are completely unavailable).

The Google Voice Web app is as good as it gets for users of WebOS, Windows, and other smartphone platforms for the moment, too.

Some Final Considerations

Now, Google Voice isn't necessarily all roses: There are certainly potential downsides and concerns you'll want to consider before fully committing to the service. I went through some important pros and cons back when Google first introduced the service; that list might be worth revisiting as you evaluate Google Voice and decide whether it's right for you.

For the love of provolone, though, if you sign up and get that "CHEESE" number, let me know.

Contributing Editor JR Raphael writes the new Android Power blog and cracks wise at eSarcasm, his geek-humor getaway. Come say hi on Facebook: facebook.com/The.JR.Raphael