As Google slowly rolls out the Google Voice invites, we are busy figuring out how to make the best use of this great service. We already talked about how you can use Google Voice on your iPhone. Today, we will discus a great way to save your precious cell phone minutes using Google Voice.
Please note that this is relevant only for the US consumers as the carriers in a “developed” country like USA fleece their consumers left, right and center for using their cell phones. For instance, consumers in the US get a “princely” 450 minutes for $40 (taxes and fees not included) per month and these minutes are used for both making and receiving calls, making it an extremely costly affair.
If you are sick of consuming your cell phone minutes, then Google Voice can offer some help. Some carriers allow you to make unlimited calls to a limited (pre specified) numbers on any network as a part of the plan. For example, Verizon wireless has Friends and Family offer, wherein you can call up to 5 or 10 numbers on any network and talk as long as you want. Sprint offers Pick 3 option, T-mobile has MyFaves. Unfortunately, there is nothing similar for AT&T consumers. These plans also allow unlimited incoming calls from there numbers as well. Check with your carrier if they have something similar.
What you need to do is sign up for one of these plans. Register your Google Voice number as one of the contacts in the plan. You can then use Google voice to make unlimited free calls to USA and Canada. And since you have registered your Google Voice number as one of the favorite number, you will not loose minutes on those calls. Please note that you have to set the caller id to be the Google Voice number and not the caller’s number (this is a slight inconvenience for saving your minutes – I am sure you would not mind that). For all of us perpetually starved of cell phone minutes, this is a great trick to save some serious money. You can use this trick to get unlimited cell phone minutes on your plan.
You can use the Google Voice website to initiate the calls or you could use your phone to use Google Voice. This trick is adapted from a tip mentioned on another forum.
No more checking your cell phone minutes!! So there you go, another reason you should use Google Voice…