Google Voice No Big Deal

The talk of the tech town this week is all about Google and its new Gmail service that allows subscribers to call standard landline and cell phone numbers through the online portal using a virtual, on-screen keypad and the computer's mic and speakers (or a pair of 3.5mm headphones.) Call me a skeptic, a pessimist, a cloud of despair hanging over the head's of tech enthusiasts everywhere, but what's the big deal?

Google Voice offers essentially the same thing that services like Skype, Vonage, or virtually any VoIP-based calling service (even that cool Bud Phone I wrote about last month!) has been offering for some time now. The only difference here, in my eyes, is the six letters that come before the "voice."

Nevertheless, those six letters may very well give Skype, arguably the global leader in online VoIP-based calling, a run for its money. To ramp up interest in the Google Voice service, which was officially made available yesterday, Google is offering call to the U.S. and Canada for free for "at least the rest of the year." Calls made to other countries range in price, but are reasonable, with most popular countries at just $0.02/min. For example, a call to landlines in Japan, South Korea, and China would cost two pennies per minute. Where calling services are available to mobiles, however, pricing can jump significantly. For example, it'll run you $0.02/min. to call landlines in Mexico; but $0.19/min. to chat to someone via mobile phone there. In Germany, a call to a mobile is $0.23/min. versus the standard two-cent rate.

Google is clearly taking a jab at Skype by undercutting its pricing ever-so-slightly: calls from Skype to Japan start at 2.3 cents-per-minute; and to China and South Korea, 2.1 cents. That means after five hours' worth of chatting, you'll save about a buck. If you were to chat for an hour every day, 365 days a year, you'd save about $65. Er, not really a major incentive to switch, if you ask me.

To make a call using Google Voice, log in to your Gmail account, than click on "Call phone" in the chat list on the left-hand menu. Punch in the 10-digit phone number, or enter the person's contact name.

If you should so desire, calls can also be received via the service. When someone calls the dedicated number (which can easily be discovered via Caller ID to your first call recipient), a call window will pop up on screen, along with a ringtone. Click on the "answer" button and talk away. Don't want to chat? Just hit "ignore." One really cool feature: the ability to screen calls, and listen to the person leaving a voicemail. If you have a change of heart and want to talk after all, just hit "answer" and he'll be immediately connected with you. There's also a call forward feature for seamlessly switching from a Gmail conversation, for example, to mobile. Press "*" and the call will ring through to your mobile, allowing you to continue to conversation as you head out the door. Unfortunately, Google Voice is only available in the U.S. thus far. Canadians can only enjoy outgoing calls for now.

The service is certainly enticing, and poses an affordable option to contact friends and family in other provinces or countries while at home; or even to keep in touch with people back home while traveling. Imagine being able to call your family from the hotel room while on a business trip without having to incur long distance charges from the room's phone; or roaming fees from a cell. But there are plenty of services that offer this already; several of which I've already mentioned.

And of course there are always the multitude of text-based alternatives for staying in touch; from e-mail to SMS, BlackBerry Messenger (or other instant messaging services), social networking Websites like Facebook; or even posting personal videos on YouTube (a service that Google also owns.) Of course, as many would argue, in certain situations, none of these methods can truly compare to hearing someone's voice.

So what really sets Google's service apart? I tried it out, and the process was very familiar. It's just like all the other services. The software takes up 20+ MB on your computer (it requires Windows XP+, Mac OS X (10.4+) or Linux), and installs within minutes. Upon making the first call, I discovered what my Google Voice number was. Calling into it, however, just brings up a generic voice message that notifies me that the person I'm calling dialed me from a computer using Gmail. Drats. I forgot: that part of the service, as noted above, is not yet available in Canada.

Nevertheless, the cheery female voice urges me to use the service as well. She rolls off a Web address where I can find more information to "start saving money." Smart move, Google, in masking the fact that we can't yet accept incoming calls by forcing callers to listen to a 5-second advertisement when they try.

Aside from the fact that it has Google's brand name behind it, I don't see anything earth-shattering about Google Voice; at least not to warrant the barrage of media coverage it has received (I guess this post isn't doing much to help the issue.)

To me, this service just seems to be another notch on Google's belt that allows the company to say it has a hand in every sector of the online technology business. It's possible the power of the Google name, and the integration with the Gmail service, could entice people to switch. But Skype has such a stronghold on this market, that it's almost like trying to oust Tim Horton's from its spot as Canada's favourite coffee house. It's worth a shot. But at the end of the day (or rather at the beginning) most will keep getting their double-doubles at the home of the Timbit. And most will continue to Skype away once the initial excitement over Google Voice subsides.