If Palm is Working on a Google Voice App, It Can Measure Up 59
With all of the brouhaha surrounding Apple, Google, the FCC, and Google Voice (check out TiPb's excellent roundup here), it's only natural that a nation would turn its lonely eyes to other platforms and ask "Whither Google Voice." Over at TechCrunch, Michael Arrington did just that, suggesting that "A source close to Palm" says the "company plans to roll our deep integration with Google Voice on the Pre [...] sometime in the next month."
Arrington casts aspersions on the whole ordeal because from Google's side, he doesn't see evidence of the company working closely with Palm on the integration. He also says that because Google doesn't yet offer a real API for Google Voice, Palm is going to have a very difficult time making an app feel as deeply integrated as it ought.
We can't speak to whether or not Palm is working on a Google Voice app (we hope they are), but if we're going to hold some speculative, unreleased Palm-created Google Voice App to a standard, let's at least make that standard realistic.
(Oh yeah, there's plenty more, read on)
First, Arrington helpfully points to one of the three Google Voice apps in our Homebrew App gallery, but in the interest of full disclosure, there are three Homebrew Google Voice apps right now:
With these apps, you can dial Google Voice, send SMS messages, view your Google Voice call logs, SMS history, and Voicemails, list and search contacts, and access the mobile Google Voice site in-app. They're quite full featured.
Arrington's main gripe is that these apps can't integrate deeply with the phone:
There are already third party Google Voice apps for the Pre, such as this one, but again, those apps can’t integrate deeply with the phone. That’s because Google Voice has no API right now, so Google has to build deep integration apps directly
...and later in the comments, he elaborates the following point several times:
[...] without the API it doesn’t work perfectly. For example, if you call out to someone, it calls you, then calls them and connects you. And it can’t take over the call log and dialer properly.
With regard to how dialing out works, it's not perfect, but it's actually pretty decent. The Homebrew Apps have a "web based dial" option that uses what amounts to an API to send the command to Google to ring you up to initiate the call. Would it really be that difficult for Palm to use that method and then just auto-answer the incoming Google Voice call to get you connected? No, no it would not.
Yes, a full and official API from Google would be welcome - I certainly want one, but it's not necessary for a relatively elegant Google Voice app. The betas I have listed above are already elegant apps, limited mainly by the fact that the Mojo SDK doesn't give the full access to the deeper guts of the system (access Palm certainly does have). I suppose it's possible that the methods these apps use to access Google Voice could break someday, but given the rate at which they've been developed (believe me, I've been watching), I am confident that such changes would be tiny bumps in the road.
Arrington's complaint really consists of two parts - that Google doesn't have an API and that the Mojo SDK doesn't allow deep level access for apps to futz with the call log and dialer. We've addressed the API part, what about the Mojo SDK part?
Why is Arrington holding the Pre to a higher standard than, well, than the iPhone? Does anybody really think that were the Google Voice App for the iPhone accepted, it would be allowed to "integrate deeply" and "take over the call log and dialer properly" on the iPhone? Seriously? It probably can't be as integrated as it is on Android, granted, but if Google decides to chip in, it certainly could be.
If the standard the Pre has to compare to is Google's own smartphone OS (Android) talking to Google's own service, would we expect any other implementation to be as elegant? Even without Google's direct help, it's possible for Palm to build a Google Voice app that's at least as elegant and powerful as anything that Apple would have possibly allowed on the iPhone.
Actually, with the Homebrew Apps above, we're already there.
59 Comments
Ok, I must be living in a cave but what is google voice? And what is Android? TIA
Check it out for yourself buddy...https://www.google.com/accounts/ServiceLogin?passive=true&service=grandcentral<mpl=bluebar&continue=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Fvoice%2Faccount%2Fsignin%2F%3Fprev%3D%252F&gsessionid=CWUhW05kH2knQn6_j0GM0Q
you know you could have simply googled that right? right?
Here you go: Google Voice and Android Phone
A cave? no...more like a Fallout Shelter!! A simple googling of either would answer your...shall we say...abnormally unknowing wonderings...
As much as it will bring alot of customer praise to do, I doubt Sprint or Bell will premit this on the OEM pres unless its going to be on their billing listings for service which thus negates to purpose of the app.
Why not? You are using your minutes when you call out or receive.
Not necessarily.. Sprint has a program I believe is called '3 number any network' which is basically a Favorites list. They don't advertise it but will offer it to people who threaten to drop thier service.
Simply have Sprint add this feature to your account and add your GV number to the list.
Then, in your GV settings, set the Caller ID setting to display your GV number so Sprint will recognize it.
Once this is done, EVERY call sent or recieved using GV will be free and show on your Sprint bill as "Mobile to home"..
I've used 58 anytime minutes all month and over 700 free minutes (over 350 of which are GV prime time minutes..)
Enjoy..
Thanks for the info! Do you know if they offer a family plan with the same '3 number any network'?
Im on a family plan and I had that feature added to all 3 phones on my account..
Sprint just gave me "Pick 5" for both of my lines! Google Voice is being used for both. hehehe
What Sprint told me is that the calls you initiate to those numbers are free, but calls received from those same numbers are not. I haven't confirmed it on my bill yet, but two agents confirmed that to me.
Thats odd.. I was told all cxalls to and from the numbers I select are free..
Guess I'll have to check my bill to verify..
They told me the same thing too. I asked twice to be sure.
I just got off the phone with Sprint and pressured them on the 3 number plan...they no longer offer it. They did try to sell me the mobile to home for a single number, but that would cost $8/month...I did find out, as I was about to move up to the Everything Unlimited plan, that the discount I get through my employer wold not be applied to that one...so I went with the 900 minute plan. I originally had gone with the 450 minute plan, but found out htat it was not enough...I thought it was my son using all of the minutes on the Verizon contract! :-)
Try acting like you want to disconnect your service. They'll send you to the Retentions department. I'm sure they'll offer it to you there..
This would be the case if they made this into a VOIP app.
This is true. By using Google Voice, you cut out your mobile to mobile minutes during peak hours.
Yeah the only real problems in the us are with plans where you have unlimited calling to chosen numbers. you could select google as one and get unlimited calling. Europe is a different situation as everyone pretty much has free incoming and, with how the apps work now, one would have unlimited calling (same applies to us cellular).
I think the carrier would have a list of black out numbers that cant be included as one of the unlimited calling numbers. No carrier would allow anyone to get unlimited calling like that, not without paying for an unlimited plan entirely.
I don't see how that's possible. When I signed up for my gVoice account, I chose a number. I don't see how the cell providers are going to determine that this is a google number. And without that ability, it's hard to ID how they'll black list the numbers.
Is there some way that the providers can ID that a given number is a google number?
shhhhh. perhaps no one is taking this into consideration.. lol.. hell its not like there isn't a monthly fee even if you don't go over your minutes.. maybe this could be the beginning of cell phone calling plans evolution..
Not sure how they would block this given that Google Voice is rolling out number portability. I have already given my google number to Sprint as one of my fav 5.
So what is Google Voice?
http://www.google.com/voice
I'm not sure that I agree that a google API is required in order to have deep integration with the phone. A google API is required in order to have deep integration with google voice. But IMHO, the integration that gDial Pro has with its web dial feature is pretty darn good on the google voice side.
The problem, IMHO, is it's integration on the phone side. I'd like to go into the native apps (like contacts & messaging) tap a contact and have it dial via gDial Pro instead of the standard dialer. Or hit SMS in the contacts and have it message via gDial Pro.
IMHO, the integration with google voice is a red herring. gDial Pro did it just fine w/out an API. The real integration problem is with the phone. And only Palm (or apple or other phone manufacturers) are going to be able to provide that integration.
That's true. An API would definatley help with that. But APIs change, too. Certainly not as frequently as websites but they change. And depending on the API doesn't alleviate the risk associated with change.
I just tried to get one of these free dialing programs from Sprint and I was informed that they are no longer available. I may try again, but the service rep put me on hold and was away to see if there was a way to add this anyway and came up empty.
Anyone else?
Nokia? You must live outside the US. Nokia being unsubsidized makes it a non-player in the US.
I just called Sprint and spoke with retentions. They added "pick 5" to both of my phones. I added my GV to one of them. Still need to get signed up for GV for the other. They said it takes effect the first day of your new billing cycle and said it includes incoming and outgoing calls. :)
Something for people to consider when using Google Voice that makes it kind of pointless (to me) until Google adds the function, is that it doesn't support MMS messages or even let the sender/receiver know that the message was even not received/attempted. They just vanish into the air, so you still basically have to give out your real number to anybody who might send you MMS messages.
So it would be like texting on an iPhone? [zing]
The proper term these days is a d-bag
I know I'm changing the subject slightly, but we already have great GVoice apps in the Homebrew apps ... what we really need from Google and/or Palm are application like
- a CALENDAR (the built-in is pathetic)
- Email with search, tags, copy/cut/paste, multiselect, ...
- SEARCHABLE contacts (with a flexible search like Google Contacts has)
- photoupload to other services (like Smugmug)
- multiselect for attachments when writing emails
- a native Remember The Milk application
and more.
Lets focus on what is sub-standard please !!!
+1
Google & Palm should merge.
So, I mentioned this idea to a co-worker who is on T-Mobile and has the Google Voice app on his blackberry. This is the story for *outgoing* calls.
He checked his call log after making a call with Google Voice, and there was no incoming call on his phone log-- it was an outgoing call and it was *not* to his Google Voice number-- it calls another number (I'm sure to connect to Google Voice and then connect to whoever it is he's calling).
I don't know if it always calls the same number to connect, if so you could still use that method mentioned above (if you can select a few numbers for unlimited calling), but if it's not always dialing the same number to make the connection, it obviously wouldn't work.
The way the Homebrew apps work is the same as how it works if you initiate a call on their web site-- but it's not the same as how the actual app by Google works (as far as I can see).
I'll have to see how incoming calls are treated.
Ok when I call his google voice number, although Google Voice connects my call to his phone, my number shows up on his caller ID. So with the native google app, one's google number couldn't be used on a "five faves" or whatever feature for unlimited calling.
Ah. so it might work for incoming calls. Outgoing would still be an issue unless it's a consistent number that it calls to connect you (and it would be a different number than the one for incoming calls).
@rumz
I don't think this has anything to do with native or not - Have him go to his Settings / General / Caller ID and switch it to "Display my Google Voice number" and see what happens. Let us know please!
Sprint's Fave 5 system doesn't know you're calling a Google number so how would it know to charge for this call!
@Matthew
"someone analyzed the Android code" that's a great idea!! Palm has done it with iTunes before, why not here ...
Is everyone using the same gvoice as I am.
WHen I dial I don't use the "web app". The call doesn't call me back, it simply dials my gvoice #, and forwards it from that.
When I am on the Pre it shows my # the whole time, but never calls me back.
Now if you don't use the built in dialer, then yes, it calls you back.
But if you are worried about minutes, just use the automated voicemail method when calling if yo have a fav 3 or 5.
I would be willing to bet that Sprint is hoping that there is a Google Voice app for webos, and soon. Anything that may attract new customers is a plus in their book.
And, fwiw, I dou bt they really care if you evade using minutes by putting you gv number on pick3 or pick5. They aren't going to be any more upset about that than when my wife runs up 3000 n&w minutes in a month.
Obviously tthere is a gv api, even if it's not published. It probably wouldn't take a small group of talented and motivated programmers long to start to figure it out, and build a decent app. So more power to palm, bring on the gv app!
I would be willing to bet that Sprint is hoping that there is a Google Voice app for webos, and soon. Anything that may attract new customers is a plus in their book.
And, fwiw, I dou bt they really care if you evade using minutes by putting you gv number on pick3 or pick5. They aren't going to be any more upset about that than when my wife runs up 3000 n&w minutes in a month.
Obviously tthere is a gv api, even if it's not published. It probably wouldn't take a small group of talented and motivated programmers long to start to figure it out, and build a decent app. So more power to palm, bring on the gv app!
Over 12,000 have downloaded one of the Google apps, so I would say interest is there. I like the app like it is Google Pro, if it gets better great, I call that a bonus. Go Pre, Go Google! 6 months out from launch and life with Palm Pre is perfect. Thanks Palm Pre apps and HomeBrew apps!