Anybody using Call phones from Gmail
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  1. #1
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    Anybody using Call phones from Gmail

    Google Free phone? I haven't installed the phone system on my computer, but wondering if anyone is using it and the pros/cons of having it?

    Seems you have to be attached to some headphones to use it right?

  2. #2
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    Yes, headphones and a mic are necessary. I've used it a dozen times to talk to my brother out of town and it works as well as Skype's audio does, which is to say it's fine. Once there was a bit of delay with some echo but not an extra-ordinary am't.

    All of the calls were from a PC to an actual phone. I'm not sure how/if it works in reverse. I think you need the paid service for that.

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  3. #3
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    I've used it several times. Works great! I think you need to have Google Voice hooked up for it to work in reverse, but in that case it can get tricky if you've set GV to forward calls to a different phone.

    I don't think you have to install anything if you don't want. Once you have a GV number, it just shows up as an additional link on the left panel of my Gmail.
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  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by NickC View Post
    I've used it several times. Works great! I think you need to have Google Voice hooked up for it to work in reverse, but in that case it can get tricky if you've set GV to forward calls to a different phone.

    I don't think you have to install anything if you don't want. Once you have a GV number, it just shows up as an additional link on the left panel of my Gmail.
    Alright this is where I'm confused. Chat is in Gmail. It's free when Gmail user to Gmail user. Not useable from Gmail user to Att phone user.

    But then there is "Voice". What is Voice and how do I get Voice? Because I would like to use the phone service to call from my computer to a non-Gmail user (Att phone).

  5. #5
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    You need to install the plugin for Voice/video to use the phone option...

    http://www.google.com/chat/voice/

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  6. #6
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    As fink said, you need to install the plugin. You also need to go to http://www.google.com/voice and set up an account if you haven't done so already. During this process, you will choose a phone number. Later, you can choose if you want calls & texts to this phone number forwarded to your regular phone.
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  7. #7
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    Thanks again

    Quote Originally Posted by NickC View Post
    As fink said, you need to install the plugin. You also need to go to http://www.google.com/voice and set up an account if you haven't done so already. During this process, you will choose a phone number. Later, you can choose if you want calls & texts to this phone number forwarded to your regular phone.

    I will search for voice again.

  8. #8
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    Oh, and going back to your original question - there is no real con I can think of with GV. Even if you don't use it much, it just sits there so there is no recurring cost or other issue to deal with. Only thing I can think of is that 'til end of 2011, domestic calls in USA are free. But no guarantees after that. Google has announced that they hope to have enough revenue from international paid calls to provide free domestic calling but don't know if that will happen. If you get hooked on using it, might suck to have free calling taken away!
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  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by fink View Post
    You need to install the plugin for Voice/video to use the phone option...

    http://www.google.com/chat/voice/
    But you can only use it Goog user to Goog user, because I tried calling my brother who has ATT and it never worked.

  10. #10
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    Once I installed the plugin I was able, from my PC, to call any number I tried in canada and the us.. my brother in Florida and in Ottawa Ont and my ISP in southern Ontario. My brother was also able to call me, on my landline in Toronto, from any place he tried in the US and Canada.

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  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by fink View Post
    Once I installed the plugin I was able, from my PC, to call any number I tried in canada and the us.. my brother in Florida and in Ottawa Ont and my ISP in southern Ontario. My brother was also able to call me, on my landline in Toronto, from any place he tried in the US and Canada.
    Hmm....doesn't work for me. I have the chat feature in Gmail, put on the headphone, dialed the number and could hear the ringing. But when the answer machine came on, (maybe that's the problem? there has to be a human on the other end?) I talked and nothing happened.

  12. #12
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    No, doesn't need a person at the other end. Any place you call - whether it's a person or answering machine - doesn't know whether you're calling from GV or a regular phone. It should behave just as a phone. I've called help support, including going through the menus, etc., without any problem from GV.

    When I get home, I'll see if I can paste a pic of what it should look like in your Gmail window when you've got it set up. I don't know if it's the same as "Chat"
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  13. #13
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    Okay, I just checked - it IS under Chat (didn't notice that before). When you set up GV, under Chat you will see a link to "call phone"

    When you click that, it pops up a dialer pad that lets you call any domestic US number for free.
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  14. #14
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    New headphones?

    Hi, I am testing the phone and need some new headphones to make this work. What headphones should I buy? Mine seem not to be working.

    I made a call, the phone rang, and I could hear the other person but they couldn't hear me.

  15. #15
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    If you could hear the other person then the headphones appear to be working... it's your microphone that isn't. Before buying a new one you should have a look at your soundcard properties/mixer and make sure it's enabled and working. What operating system are you using?

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