Users are split up among the three apps, and switching from one to the other has a learning curve. The instant-messaging app Allo, for instance, can’t send text messages or place voice calls it’s not even available for desktop computers. Each has its pros and cons, and limitations. Google now has three messaging apps: Google Voice, Hangouts, and Allo. And it's good to finally be able to send pictures in a text message. The UI tweaks align the desktop version with the mobile version of Google Voice, making programmers’ lives easier.
Overall, this update appear pretty slap-dash, with most of the emphasis on mobile functions such as picture and text messaging. The History link shows everything (texts, calls, and voicemails) on one screen. You'll also regain another feature that's gone from the new version. That big red CALL button (the one that lets you call ANY number) will be there. Click those three dots on the left, scroll down, and under Settings, you'll see the option for "Legacy Google Voice." Click that, and a new window will open with the familiar legacy version of Voice. In my opinion, all of these things were easier to find in the old version.īut hey, that reminds me of my favorite feature of the new Google Voice. Google Voice settings are buried under the three dots that appear on the LEFT side of the screen. The options for Archive, Mark as Spam, Block Number and Delete are still there, but you have to select a message, then click the three little dots on the right, just under your profile icon to find them. In the old version of Voice, the History link pulled all your texts, calls and voice messages together on one screen. Call records can be searched by caller’s name only you can’t find call records by searching for a phone number. However, it searches only one type of message at a time, not voicemails and text messages in one search. The “Search” function at the top of the new Voice interface searches the text of voicemails that have been converted to text, as well as text messages. I can't figure why the smart people at Google would remove the ability to easily make a VOICE call in an application called Google VOICE. You could simply enter any number, and off you go.
The previous (legacy) version of Google Voice had a big red button labelled CALL. So how do you call someone you haven't called or texted before? You can't! Google's help file says: "To call someone you haven’t called before, use your phone instead." Wow.
At the TOP right, click the phone icon to call that person, then choose a linked number to use for the call. Open the Google Voice tab for Texts, and click on a previous conversation with the other person. If you have previously shared a text message with someone, placing a voice call to that person works just a bit differently. At the BOTTOM right, click the link to call that person, then choose a linked number to use for the call. Click on a previous call or voicemail with the other person. To call someone you've already talked to, first open the Google Voice tab for Calls or Voicemail. One big downside of the new Voice is that placing a voice call from the desktop is much more cumbersome, and in some cases, impossible. Google also notes that in the new version, “conversations stay in one continuous thread.” To some degree that was possible in the legacy version, but conversation threads are much cleaner and clearer now. That feature was missing in the previous (legacy) Google Voice.
On the plus side, everyone can now send photos via SMS message, even Sprint customers. Apparently, Google wants to encourage text messaging, which probably costs it next to nothing compared to voice calls. “Send message…” appears prominently in the top left corner, and in several other places.
A little poking around quickly reveals how to navigate records of calls, text messages, and voicemails. The new user interface now looks like a mobile app: brightly colored icons and not much in the way of text labels.