Google Voice – The latest phone technology, but do you need it?

[Mariela Perez-Simons]

Google Voice is a new web-based phone service with lots of bells and whistles. It might be the latest and greatest technology since Gmail, but is it for you?
The main draw is the single phone number you get that acts as the central hub for all your locations - your home, work, and mobile numbers wrapped up into one virtual phone number. Other cool features, just to name a few, include:

* conference calling (up to 4 callers)
* call record (for in-bound calls only at this point)
* voicemail transcription (sent to your email or as a text message)
* call screening

According to top technology reviewers, the many Google Voice pros outweigh the few cons. Since I only use a cell phone for everything - home, work, and mobile, I'll be sitting this one out until I regularly use more than one phone.

My husband, on the other hand, would benefit greatly from this new service. If he uses his Google Voice account for his primary work number, his clients will be able to reach him at the office or on his cell phone when he's out and about, ensuring he won't miss an important call. He'll also be able to call clients in the evening from his cell phone and not worry about his private mobile number showing up on caller ID (this feature requires an extra step and may only work on certain smart phones).

If you have more than one phone that you regularly use, check out Google Voice to see if it's a good fit for you (it's free!).