In another thread today on Wi-Fi calling, one of the topics was the use of
Google Voice in the USA to enable free obnoxious-free phone calling to and
from "real" phone numbers (aka POTS & cellular) via free Google Voice VOIP.

I've tested all the known free "second line" apps in the past, where each of
them had 1 or both of the following "obnoxities" that Google Voice doesn't:
a. Either they popped up an ad (sometimes in the middle of the call!)
b. Or they died too soon from non use (like in a week or two)

While Google Voice does have a use-it-or-lose-it time period, it's much
longer than the week or two that the second-line programs seem to give.

And, of course, Google Voice, AFAIK, still doesn't have ads.

But is there anything else out there that competes with Google Voice?
A. Free to and from the USA to and from POTS/cellular lines
B. No ads, and a long enough use-it-or-lose-it period to be viable

Is there a viable alternative to Google Voice in the USA?

On 2/1/2022 10:51 PM, Andy Burnelli wrote:
> In another thread today on Wi-Fi calling, one of the topics was the use of
> Google Voice in the USA to enable free obnoxious-free phone calling to and
> from "real" phone numbers (aka POTS & cellular) via free Google Voice VOIP.
>
> I've tested all the known free "second line" apps in the past, where each of
> them had 1 or both of the following "obnoxities" that Google Voice doesn't:
> a. Either they popped up an ad (sometimes in the middle of the call!)
> b. Or they died too soon from non use (like in a week or two)
>
> While Google Voice does have a use-it-or-lose-it time period, it's much
> longer than the week or two that the second-line programs seem to give.
>
> And, of course, Google Voice, AFAIK, still doesn't have ads.
>
> But is there anything else out there that competes with Google Voice?
> A. Free to and from the USA to and from POTS/cellular lines
> B. No ads, and a long enough use-it-or-lose-it period to be viable
>
> Is there a viable alternative to Google Voice in the USA?

Yes. It's called Facetime.

On 2022-02-25 19:41:39 +0000, YK said:
> On 2/1/2022 10:51 PM, Andy Burnelli wrote:
>> In another thread today on Wi-Fi calling, one of the topics was the use
>> of Google Voice in the USA to enable free obnoxious-free phone calling
>> to and from "real" phone numbers (aka POTS & cellular) via free Google
>> Voice VOIP.
>>
>> I've tested all the known free "second line" apps in the past, where
>> each of them had 1 or both of the following "obnoxities" that Google
>> Voice doesn't:
>> a. Either they popped up an ad (sometimes in the middle of the call!)
>> b. Or they died too soon from non use (like in a week or two)
>>
>> While Google Voice does have a use-it-or-lose-it time period, it's much
>> longer than the week or two that the second-line programs seem to give.
>>
>> And, of course, Google Voice, AFAIK, still doesn't have ads.
>>
>> But is there anything else out there that competes with Google Voice?
>> A. Free to and from the USA to and from POTS/cellular lines
>> B. No ads, and a long enough use-it-or-lose-it period to be viable
>>
>> Is there a viable alternative to Google Voice in the USA?
>
> Yes. It's called Facetime.

Facetime doesn't work with standard phones, ie. home phone lines using
copper-wire (aka POTS) or connected to you broadband modem.

On 2/25/2022 11:41 AM, YK wrote:
> On 2/1/2022 10:51 PM, Andy Burnelli wrote:

<snip>

>> Is there a viable alternative to Google Voice in the USA?
>
> Yes. It's called Facetime.

Wrong.

There's no free equivalent to Google Voice. There are many similar apps
that are not free.

Callcentric <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.callcentric>
Ooma <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ooma.mobile2>
MagicJack <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.magicjack>
LocalPhone
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.localphone.localphoneapp>
Skype <https://secure.skype.com/en/skype-number/>
Vonage
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vonage.MobileExtension>

Most of these services are pretty costly per month.

In article <svbhq1$tei$1@dont-email.me>, sms
<scharf.steven@geemail.com> wrote:

> >> Is there a viable alternative to Google Voice in the USA?
> >
> > Yes. It's called Facetime.
>
> Wrong.

nope
>
> There's no free equivalent to Google Voice.

free was not a prerequisite and facetime is free anyway.

On 25 Feb 2022 at 9:33:40 PM, nospam <nospam@nospam.invalid> wrote:

>>>> Is there a viable alternative to Google Voice in the USA?
>>>
>>> Yes. It's called Facetime.
>>
>> Wrong.
>
> nope
>>
>> There's no free equivalent to Google Voice.
>
> free was not a prerequisite and facetime is free anyway.

Every voip app does what Google Voice does, don't they?
What does Google Voice do that the rest of them don't do?
--
Cheers, Rob

RJH <patchmoney@gmx.com> wrote
> nospam <nospam@nospam.invalid> wrote

>>>>> Is there a viable alternative to Google Voice in the USA?
>>>>
>>>> Yes. It's called Facetime.
>>>
>>> Wrong.
>>
>> nope
>>>
>>> There's no free equivalent to Google Voice.
>>
>> free was not a prerequisite and facetime is free anyway.
>
> Every voip app does what Google Voice does, don't they?
> What does Google Voice do that the rest of them don't do?

Its free within the USA.

On 2/25/2022 2:07 PM, RJH wrote:

<snip>

> Every voip app does what Google Voice does, don't they?
> What does Google Voice do that the rest of them don't do?

Google Voice doesn't charge you for an incoming number, nor does it
charge for outgoing calls or SMS (to the U.S. or Canada). That's what
makes it unique.

When you get rid of "free" there are a bunch of VOIP apps that can call
an actual phone number anywhere in the U.S. (or the world), and that
provide an incoming phone number that people can call from a regular
phone, and the call can be picked up in an Android, iOS, or Windows App
or forwarded to a real phone number.

Apps that require that both parties use a specific app on their phone
(WhatsApp, Facetime, WeChat, Skype (without renting a phone number or
using Skype Out), etc.), and that don't provide an actual incoming phone
number, are not comparable to Google Voice or other VOIP apps.

I provided a list of some services similar to Google Voice in an earlier
post. The two that I would consider are:

Callcentric <https://www.callcentric.com/>
Incoming Number: $1 per month (limited choice of area codes), $5.95 per
month (any area code)
Incoming calls: no charge
Outgoing calls: $0.0198/minute (to U.S.) or various buckets of minutes

LocalPhone <https://www.localphone.com/>
Incoming Number: $0.99 per month in U.S., many other countries available
at different prices.
Incoming calls: no charge
Outgoing calls: $0.005/minute (to U.S.) or various buckets of minutes

One problem with Google Voice is that you can't send international
texts. Callcentric also doesn't support international texting, but
Localphone does, with some caveats.

I like the fact that when you're traveling internationally that with
Localphone you can rent a local phone number in whatever (mostly)
country you're visiting. But remember, in Europe, and in India, most
people are using WhatsApp for calls and messages, and in China most
people are using WeChat.

In article <svbjvg$1igi$1@gioia.aioe.org>, RJH <patchmoney@gmx.com>
wrote:

> What does Google Voice do that the rest of them don't do?

track your usage, add to your social graph, then sell ads against it.

nospam wrote:

>> What does Google Voice do that the rest of them don't do?
>
> track your usage, add to your social graph, then sell ads against it.

That tracking is what Apple does, although it's Apple's own ads that target
you.

*Apple accused of using app-tracking crackdown to sell ads*
<https://www.cultofmac.com/740913/apple-accused-of-using-app-tracking-crackdown-to-sell-ads/>

On 2/25/2022 2:07 PM, RJH wrote:

<snip>

> Every voip app does what Google Voice does, don't they?
> What does Google Voice do that the rest of them don't do?

Google Voice doesn't charge you for an incoming number, nor does it
charge for outgoing calls or SMS (to the U.S. or Canada). That's what
makes it unique.

When you get rid of "free" there are a bunch of VOIP apps that can call
an actual phone number anywhere in the U.S. (or the world), and that
provide an incoming phone number that people can call from a regular
phone, and the call can be picked up in an Android, iOS, or Windows App
or forwarded to a real phone number.

Apps that require that both parties use a specific app on their phone
(WhatsApp, Facetime, WeChat, Skype (without renting a phone number or
using Skype Out), Viber, etc.), and that don't provide an actual
incoming phone number, are not comparable to Google Voice or other VOIP
apps.

I provided a list of some services similar to Google Voice in an earlier
post. The two that I would consider are:

Callcentric <https://www.callcentric.com/>
Incoming Number: $1 per month (limited choice of area codes), $5.95 per
month (any area code)
Incoming calls: no charge
Outgoing calls: $0.0198/minute (to U.S.) or various buckets of minutes

LocalPhone <https://www.localphone.com/>
Incoming Number: $0.99 per month in U.S., many other countries available
at different prices.
Incoming calls: no charge
Outgoing calls: $0.005/minute (to U.S.) or various buckets of minutes

One problem with Google Voice is that you can't send international
texts. Callcentric also doesn't support international texting, but
Localphone does, with some caveats.

I like the fact that when you're traveling internationally that with
Localphone you can rent a local phone number in whatever (mostly)
country you're visiting. But remember, in Europe, and in India, most
people are using WhatsApp for calls and messages, and in China most
people are using WeChat, so the need for something like Google Voice or
other VOIP app is minimal.

What's really useful with Google Voice is that you can port your main
cellular number to Google Voice then forward calls to whatever U.S.
number you want, or pick up calls using the Google Voice App via data
(Wi-Fi or mobile). So when you're traveling internationally you can
still receive your calls even if using a prepaid SIM (including
data-only prepaid SIMs which are becoming more popular). You can also
receive your SMS over the Google Voice App and via e-mail.

Another issue with Google Voice is that you can't forward calls to
international numbers (even if you're willing to pay that cost). What
you _can_ do is to forward a Google Voice number to a rented Localphone
incoming number then forward the Localphone incoming number to a foreign
number, and pay the per minute rate, which is pretty low (less than 1¢
per minute to landlines in most western European countries, but much
higher to mobile numbers because of the crazy "Caller Pays" system in
much of Europe).