The thing with Google is that the name is becoming more buzz than substance. They mark something, like a fire hydrant, and everybody suddenly forgets that there are others in the world who do it better.
G-Voice has some nice features but the transcription service isn't really that good and it's still a kind repackaged voicemail with the Google scent on it.
YouMail provides a much better (also free) service. Every caller can have their own customized greeting which you can assign from a selection of 1000's of pre-recorded greetings. Most of these are hysterical. My personal favorite, which I use a lot, is a recording of an East Indian man who answers with the proper accent: "The person you have called has outsourced their voicemail to India. I am (long Indian name anglos can't pronounce) but you can call me Tom...." But I also have John Cleese, from his best MP skits, answering for other family members. For business associates I have something appropriately professional and for telemarketers, etc., a recording plays that indicates my number is no longer valid.
They also provide a transcription service which is amazing with nearly 100% accuracy. Most times I *read* my voice messages from my phone.
For BlackBerry users they have a great native visual voicemail application, and you don't need the latest model or your carrier's cooperation to use it. I've heard an Android and iPhone version is coming soon. For all other phones they have a nice visual voicemail web interface. And none of this requires that you call to get your voicemail. No more listening to the mechanized voice telling you to press #9 or press #7... You can play the message directly from your phone with a single click.
--DH
"Not to beat a dead horse, but I do find the hollow thumping sound soothing..."
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The thing with Google is that the name is becoming more buzz than substance. They mark something, like a fire hydrant, and everybody suddenly forgets that there are others in the world who do it better.
G-Voice has some nice features but the transcription service isn't really that good and it's still a kind repackaged voicemail with the Google scent on it.
YouMail provides a much better (also free) service. Every caller can have their own customized greeting which you can assign from a selection of 1000's of pre-recorded greetings. Most of these are hysterical. My personal favorite, which I use a lot, is a recording of an East Indian man who answers with the proper accent: "The person you have called has outsourced their voicemail to India. I am (long Indian name anglos can't pronounce) but you can call me Tom. ..." But I also have John Cleese, from his best MP skits, answering for other family members. For business associates I have something appropriately professional and for telemarketers, etc., a recording plays that indicates my number is no longer valid.
They also provide a transcription service which is amazing with nearly 100% accuracy. Most times I *read* my voice messages from my phone.
For BlackBerry users they have a great native visual voicemail application, and you don't need the latest model or your carrier's cooperation to use it. I've heard an Android and iPhone version is coming soon. For all other phones they have a nice visual voicemail web interface. And none of this requires that you call to get your voicemail. No more listening to the mechanized voice telling you to press #9 or press #7... You can play the message directly from your phone with a single click.
--DH
"Not to beat a dead horse, but I do find the hollow thumping sound soothing..."