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Google to reportedly kill Voice, integrate it into Hangouts

pcworld.com

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Re: Google to reportedly kill Voice, integrate it into Hangouts

#41

Post by stanleydrew »

toomuchtodo wrote: post #38
stanleydrew wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree with you, which is why I started Bolt (shameless plug: https://bolt.co ). We are just getting started on our messaging app, which will be separate from our voice app due to the completely different use-cases. The monolithic Hangouts app suffers from a bit of a Jack-of-all-trades problem. It's pretty good at four things, but not great at any single one.

Thanks for the plug, headed over to try your app now!

Thanks! Send me an email at andrew@bolt.co and I'll give you my phone number if you want to try a test call.

Re: Google to reportedly kill Voice, integrate it into Hangouts

#42

Post by Jonovono »

stanleydrew wrote: post #36
Jonovono wrote: post #31

Anyone know of alternatives? I bought a jailbroken iPhone and have been just using a iPad sim card in it for the last little while. This way I pay about $10/month for enough data to get talk / text and the ability to surf the net a lot cheaper! Edit: Or maybe I will still be able to do this once it is integrated with +.

Which AT&T plan are you using? I'm about to write up an article about going data-only and could use some more reference plans besides T-Mobile's.

I am actually in Canada, so I use Bell (This is the plan: http://www.bell.ca/Mobility/Cell_phone_plans/iPad_data_plans...). I guess it's actually usually around $20 (sometimes I don't go over the 10MB plan if I am on Wifi lots). This is the best I could find for something in Canada.

Let me see that article when you are done! If I move to the US I'll be looking to try the same thing there.

Edit: I am looking at Bolt. Looks awesome. I hope in a few years phone numbers just don't exist. (well, abstracted out).

Re: Google to reportedly kill Voice, integrate it into Hangouts

#44

Post by morsch »

They also removed the last bit of Jabber interoperability in the new Google Mail chat/hangouts frontend.

I used to be able to talk to my Jabber frieds on both Android and Gmail/Web. They dropped federation on Android with the move to Hangouts, and -- unsurprisingly -- they're now doing the same for Gmail/Web as it's moving to Hangouts.

I'm eyeing TextSecure as a replacement IM tool. Sort of hoping the TextSecure desktop app comes around before the Gmail Hangout integration becomes mandatory; but as cool as TextSecure may be from a security perspective, they haven't exactly blown me away with the timeliness of their releases. ;)

Re: Google to reportedly kill Voice, integrate it into Hangouts

#45

Post by tbh »

berberous wrote: post #30
mdr25 wrote: post #2

Ugh, I hate that SMS is conflated with Hangouts as it is. It causes notifications for work-related chat to get mixed in with notifications for personal text messages on my phone. Can anyone suggest alternative SMS clients for Android?

TextSecure! Nobody I know uses it, so the encryption/privacy features are basically useless, but it's a fast, well-designed, pretty app regardless. It also has a feature I love: persistent notifications for unread texts.

Seconding this, switched to TextSecure when they combined SMS and Hangouts. It is an excellent SMS app replacement. The crypto doesn't get in your way, even when almost none of your contacts also use it.

Re: Google to reportedly kill Voice, integrate it into Hangouts

#46

Post by yukichan »

chimeracoder wrote: post #8

Well, this kind of sucks. I use a Google Voice number that is associated with a Gmail account that I do not use for any other purpose (Hangouts/Talk or otherwise). It doesn't even have a Google+ account associated with it. It's nice to have single number that can ring all my lines. If/when this is killed, what's the alternative? (Article appears to be down/inaccessible for me).

Just integrate with Google+ and then don't use Google+? I don't use Google+, but at some point I integrated with it. It doesn't affect me at all.

Re: Google to reportedly kill Voice, integrate it into Hangouts

#47

Post by yeukhon »

JeremyBanks wrote: post #29
toomuchtodo wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand why you'd roll all of your products into something that has a terrible user experience. I'm a long-time Google/Android user, and its just painful using Hangouts. I disabled it and switched to Telegram.

Google Voice has never received a lot of attention or polish. (Disappointing to me, as a user since it was still named GrandCentral.) I hope it is integrated into Hangouts, because presumably it would see more improvement as part of such an important product than it sees now.

It is sad. I like Google Voice a lot. When it came out it was ahead of its time. When my phone is down I can use Voice to make calls for free (I am US based). I don't think Voice is available to international users yet? Have it?

The ability to call people using Google is already available on Hangout. If you upgrade your Gmail to use Hangout (I still have accounts that are not using Hangout) you will make calls via Hangout interface.

Re: Google to reportedly kill Voice, integrate it into Hangouts

#48

Post by tbh »

matthewn wrote: post #25
mdr25 wrote: post #2

Ugh, I hate that SMS is conflated with Hangouts as it is. It causes notifications for work-related chat to get mixed in with notifications for personal text messages on my phone. Can anyone suggest alternative SMS clients for Android?

TextSecure is a fantastic, free replacement for the built-in SMS app on Android, even if you don't use any of its encryption features.

Agreed! I'm recommending it to anyone uncomfortable with the SMS/Hangouts merge.

Re: Google to reportedly kill Voice, integrate it into Hangouts

#49

Post by rkuykendall-com »

lingben wrote: post #13

this move would be a prelude to the cancellation of voice (after it flounders in its new forced home): http://www.gwern.net/Google%20shutdowns (note google voice is the highest cancellation risk predicted)

I must be missing something. Google voice isn't on the top 10 list, and it's third in the 5-year survival chart. Where is it highest?

Re: Google to reportedly kill Voice, integrate it into Hangouts

#50

Post by aestra »

mdr25 wrote: post #2

Ugh, I hate that SMS is conflated with Hangouts as it is. It causes notifications for work-related chat to get mixed in with notifications for personal text messages on my phone. Can anyone suggest alternative SMS clients for Android?

I love Handset SMS! I never use anything else once I found it! You can customize the alerts you get, icon/vibrate pattern/sound and other features as well.
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