8 Reasons Why you should NOT use Google Voice as your primary number? [Opinion]

By Alok Saboo on August 5th, 2009

@mjgraves made an interesting tweet earlier about why he was not ready to use Google Voice as his primary number. His tweet inspired me to think the pros and cons of using Google Voice as your primary number. We are all familiar with the positives of GV like ability to make free calls within USA, send free text messages, save cell phone minutes, etc. Let me discus why I think Google Voice is not ready for prime-time. I am using this service since its early avatar, GrandCentral, so I probably know a thing or two about it.

Ability to receive SMS: Although GV allows you to send text messages (SMS) to USA/Canada numbers and some other international numbers, I am not very confident of its SMS receiving capabilities. Many applications do not deliver text messages to GV numbers, Ericsson labs being one of them. Also, a GV number may not be very useful where you have to list the carrier of your number. Some users are complaining about messages not being delivered to some networks.
Making calls is not seamless: GV app for Android is a great example of how GV should integrate with your smart phone. Unfortunately, this is still not a reality for most smartphones. Apple recently rejected the official Google Voice App and removed all the Google Voice app from its App Store. Till the integration is seamless, making calls using Google Voice will take a few more clicks (see 7 below).
NO in network calling: Most carriers allow free calls within their networks. If you use GV as your primary number, then you may not be able to make use of this. Not only will it hurt your ability to make free calls within your network, research has shown that it will lower the number of calls that other people will make to your number. This would mean that if you use your Google Voice number, you would also USE YOUR CELL PHONE MINUTES.
Reliability: With all due respect to Google, Google Voice is still an IT application. We all know that applications or networks are bound to fail. I am sure you would have heard about the recent Gmail outages. Imagine what would happen if your GV number goes down for a few hours. For businesses or managers, this may be very crucial. Further, there is always the risk of carriers blocking Google Voice numbers.
Delay in voice: Although it has improved, lot of users have complained about a slight delay in the voice while using Google Voice. Note that by using Google Voice, you are adding a layer in between and it is bound to have some implications.
Privacy concerns: Since all your calls are routed through Google servers, it may be a potential risk for lot of users.
No SIP support: Google Voice does not natively support SIP (at least as yet). This makes using Google Voice a little cumbersome. You have to rely on the website or some other app to make calls.
No support in case of any issues: This may be the most important issue for business users. In case of any difficulties, it is almost impossible to contact Google and get an answer to your queries. Many users would be happy to pay for a premium version, with support, Service Level Agreements (SLA), etc.

Did I miss anything? Why do you think that you should or should not use Google Voice as your primary number?

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digital_busines_ phone
Great! Thank for information, I'm looking for it for a long time,

NBtheTruth
crap post.......AT&T customers setup your GV number onj your "A" list and set your caller id to show only your GV number= free calls all day

Tmobile users setup your GV number as a fav 5 again, set your caller id to show only your GV number= free calls all day, no deduction from minutes. LISTEN to those of us who use it not the noobs.

This is why it ws dumped from the app store.

Alok Saboo
Thanks for your comment, but I do not think you got what I was saying here. All I wanted to say was that using Google Voice as your primary numbers prevents from using the free unlimited within network calls. Even if you use the Fav-5 or A-list, the others may not do that.

As regards the Fav 5 and other such plans, we covered that way back. See http://truvoipbuzz.com/2009/07/use-google-voice...

justingoldberg
You don't use your cell phone minutes if you set it as your friends & family, or "Pick 3" number.

Alok Saboo
You are absolutely right. Under certain plans you could save your cell phone minutes even while using Google Voice. Some such plans are discussed http://truvoipbuzz.com/2009/07/use-google-voice...

davidsmith11756
Almost every point you made will most likely get better or be fixed with time, GV is still in its development stages, which is why its still currently invite only. I've found that when it comes to Google's network things are generally very reliable. A few points I can agree with, like if an entire network blocks GV numbers, and not having IN calling, but these are things im sure google will eventually sort out.

Alok Saboo
You are right and I hope Google fixes most of the points. The objective was to highlight the "not so great" aspects of Google Voice..

davidsmith11756
Ya I know, sorry if I sounded like I bit your head off a bit. The fact Google lets us try out GV is definitely a benefit to Google, and to us as well. Googles main business is gathering information, the more people that use Google services, like GV, the more information Google has to make a better service, and the more services and information Google can sell to other companies. The groundwork of Google really does create a Win Win Win situation. All parties essentially come out on top... even if there is a slight security risk by sending them potential sensitive information. Anyways, I don't mean to get off topic, or stir up any Google haters. I am just stating one mans opinion.

Alok Saboo
You are absolutely right, it is a WIN WIN for everyone and I would encourage everyone to use Google Voice. Lets just hope that Google learns quickly and plugs the holes ASAP.

There are several tutorials on this site to extend the functionalities of Google Voice, so look around...

Name
The only thing about Google Voice that I don't like so far is that I couldn't have a 703 area code.

Pascal Bruno
I believe @mjgraves has different needs, everybody has different needs. And in that case, Google Voice is just not for everybody, and why would he want to switch a business line he has working fine to a Google Voice number. You cannot look at it in just one way. This is where you are making a big mistake. Nobody said that you have to use Google voice as your Business Number. GV might not be for you, if you think it was meant to be a business line replacement.

Ability to receive SMS: Google Voice was not meant to be a cell phone number replacement. You can use it to forward your calls on a landline, there is no complaints about that since either way you cannot receive SMS on a landline. And by experience, I get all SMS sent to me on my number, and the ones I send go thru fine.

Making calls is not seamless: Well, it was not meant to be your phone carrier replacement neither. This is a convenience and it is free. If you smart enough, you can save some big bucks. Example: ever heard of a cell carrier called MetroPCS? They have a plan for $30 unlimited local calling. Smart people would not need the $50 plan to call long distance, if they can call there google number to access their account and place free calls in all USA. Google might not be for everybody.

Reliability: Well, not only Google can fail, any company's system can fail. DIDs fail, voip providers fail, comcast have had many outage, twitter just had one, AT&T was down at my old job for a couple of hours, I dont know who do not experience down times. I am sure you PC have failed on you before. So if thats a real reason, you shouldnt use any services.

Delay in voice: Well, even TMobile in there ad campaign say that their network has the less drop calls something like that. They know nobody's perfect. Do you want to tell me your voice communication are always perfect all the time?

Privacy concerns: Who has privacy nowadays? Why you using the internet? you think everything is ok for you? You think nobody can have your informations? If they want it, they will have it. You know that. So I dont see your point.

No SIP support: First of all, if you call you google voice number, you can make free calls. If you smart enough you can use it productively. You landline at home can have a local plan, then you call your local GV number to place long distance call. No web. And more over, my Google voice account in connected to my Asterisk server. Here again, no web. Just think smart and act smart. And knowing google, this feature is coming soon.

No support: Why you want to use it as a business phone. Why not a convenience to forward you calls to your office phone when you at your office. Should start thinking outside the box bro!

I have millions why and how you could use Google Voice smartly and productively, I'll send you a link when I am done writing it.

Alok Saboo
Can't argue much with your comment, point well taken!! However, you are missing the point that I wanted to communicate. Google Voice is a great service. It is probably the only good thing that has happened to telephony in a long time. I'm myself a great fan of the service and use it extensively and advocate the service (read earlier posts on GV). That said, I though it would be nice to point out some of the weaker points of the service, so that everyone can take educated decisions. In any case, this post was not about not using GV, but about whether you should use it as your primary number. How many of us have completely stopped giving out our alternate numbers and only communicate our GV numbers?

If you are concerned about any of the above points, then you may think twice about completely switching over to GV. But if you can live with them, then GV is the way to go. In any case, it is a free service and (way better then a lot of paid services) there are no reasons for not using it.

May be I should have used a different title for the post...

Pascal Bruno
I believe @mjgraves has different needs, everybody has different needs. And in that case, Google Voice is just not for everybody, and why would he want to switch a business line he has working fine to a Google Voice number. You cannot look at it in just one way. This is where you are making a big mistake. Nobody said that you have to use Google voice as your Business Number. GV might not be for you, if you think it was meant to be a business line replacement.

Ability to receive SMS: Google Voice was not meant to be a cell phone number replacement. You can use it to forward your calls on a landline, there is no complaints about that since either way you cannot receive SMS on a landline. And by experience, I get all SMS sent to me on my number, and the ones I send go thru fine.

Making calls is not seamless: Well, it was not meant to be your phone carrier replacement neither. This is a convenience and it is free. If you smart enough, you can save some big bucks. Example: ever heard of a cell carrier called MetroPCS? They have a plan for $30 unlimited local calling. Smart people would not need the $50 plan to call long distance, if they can call there google number to access their account and place free calls in all USA. Google might not be for everybody.

Reliability: Well, not only Google can fail, any company's system can fail. DIDs fail, voip providers fail, comcast have had many outage, twitter just had one, AT&T was down at my old job for a couple of hours, I dont know who do not experience down times. I am sure you PC have failed on you before. So if thats a real reason, you shouldnt use any services.

Delay in voice: Well, even TMobile in there ad campaign say that their network has the less drop calls something like that. They know nobody's perfect. Do you want to tell me your voice communication are always perfect all the time?

Privacy concerns: Who has privacy nowadays? Why you using the internet? you think everything is ok for you? You think nobody can have your informations? If they want it, they will have it. You know that. So I dont see your point.

No SIP support: First of all, if you call you google voice number, you can make free calls. If you smart enough you can use it productively. You landline at home can have a local plan, then you call your local GV number to place long distance call. No web. And more over, my Google voice account in connected to my Asterisk server. Here again, no web. Just think smart and act smart. And knowing google, this feature is coming soon.

No support: Why you want to use it as a business phone. Why not a convenience to forward you calls to your office phone when you at your office. Should start thinking outside the box bro!

I have millions why and how you could use Google Voice smartly and productively, I'll send you a link when I am done writing it.

conectionz
I agree with you totally but unroll it gets to the point where it gets outrageous I'll stick with google voice for making my calls

Alok Saboo
Agreed...even I would continue to use Google Voice for making calls, but these are some of the reasons for not making it my primary number.

Dave M
I think this is an odd post. Based on the tag cloud, this blog is very much in favor of free long distance, cheap calls, free calls, and saving money. Google Voice offers all that - yet 8 reasons not to use it?

I strongly believe that the right telecom solution varies for everyone. Google Voice is clearly not a business service as currently packaged - but there are lots reasons to consider using it. It is great to have another tool in the arsenal.

A few points of contention in your 8 reasons.

SMS receiving: Was not familiar with Ericsson Labs, presumably based in Sweden. Google Voice only supports US services today. That is indeed a limitation. But the real nice thing about SMS on Google is the ability to check texts online. I've been known to forget my cell phone. With Google Voice I can transparently send calls to a different cell (including texts) or view them online.

Making calls is a pain in the ass, agreed. For GV users with a SIP PBX, the best solution is outbound callerid Solution (and pay for the call). Almost all cheap calling solutions are a pain - including Skype and calling cards. Hopefully, GV will add speed dials or voice contacts or something to fix this. My hunch is they will.

I don't buy the reliability arguments. I have more outages on my SIP trunks (thanks to Comcast) than I do on my GV. Nor do I agree it is adding an additional hop - certainly not as many as say calling a cell phone does.

Agreed on in network calling is lost. But I also save a lot of minutes by answering the phone on my landline when people would have otherwise called my cell.

I have not noticed any delay.

Privacy - I don't see why it is any different than using anything else. SIP calls are rarely encrypted. Anything going over the Internet is subject to compromise. Google doesn't actually use the Internet except for Gizmo; easily avoided if you are worried.

No SIP support is redundant. Your point is outbound calling is a pain. It also contradicts your privacy concerns.

No support is clearly true, except there is a ton of peer support online. More so than there is on most other services. I use callcentric for SIP, they offer (good) support through email only. But calling Qwest for support is no joy ride either.

I provide these points to feed the discussion. I think Google Voice can make sense for many people and I think the service will get better. Weather it should or should not be used depends on too many situational factors. I am willing to use it personally, but not professionally.

Alok Saboo
Thanks Dave for your comment, some great insights!!

Although the blog seeks to help readers lower their communication cost, the objective is to educate the consumers about VoIP and what it can do for them. As an information intermediary, the blog aims at disseminating objective information so that the reader can take more educated decision. I am a huge fan of Google Voice (you can see that from my recent posts) and use it all the time. The only thing I wanted to communicate with this post is that you may have to compromise on a few things with GV. Most (almost 99%) of the users will be happy using Google Voice services. The fact that you are not willing to use it professionally is a testimony to this...

Response to some of your comments

SMS Receiving: Ericsson Labs gives you an API to send messages all over the world (https://labs.ericsson.com/apis/sms-send-and-rec...). It works flawlessly for other numbers, but not for GV. There are other services that I have encountered that have not been able to send messages to my GV number.

Reliability: I have experienced outages on GV. For a business or a manager, this can be crucial if people are not able to reach them. For some users a lost call can mean lost business and which is why they are ready to pay those exorbitant sums for reliability. Why do people still pay for USA DID, when they can get one for free at ipkall? Reliability is the clincher for a lot of users.

Delay: Most users, including myself, would have not noticed a delay. But then there are others who have, just wanted to highlight this.

Privacy is clearly a big element here. Google explicitly acknowledges that the information can be used for other purposes. Read http://truvoipbuzz.com/2009/07/google-voice-fit... for a deeper analysis.
SIP support is important even for receiving calls. Right now, I have to forward GV calls to an ipkall number and then I can use my ATA to receive calls. If GV starts providing SIP support, I can eliminate one hop. This can also help in saving cell phone minutes, if you can receive calls over wifi (e.g. through Nimbuzz)

Peer support does not replace company support. While the community is a great resource and is way better than most company support, there should be another channel to reach the provider in case of emergency.

Once again, I would like to reiterate that these points may not be relevant for most users. I would just like Google to provide an option for the demanding users. Your final statement that you are not ready to use Google Voice professionally summarizes my argument. When using the service at a personal level, the stakes are low. However, when you use the service professionally, some of these points may be important...

I completely agree with you that whether to use the service or not depends on a lot of factors and I was just trying to help people make the best decision for them. Hope you see that now...

8 Reasons Why you should NOT use Google Voice as your primary number? [Opinion]

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