We are happy to announce that we have made a number of improvements to GrandCentral and are relaunching the service as Google Voice. GrandCentral users have the first opportunity to start using Google Voice, which is a private beta.
In addition to the GrandCentral features you already know (one number, screening, ListenIn, etc.), we've added voicemail transcription, SMS support, conference calling, GOOG-411 integration, low cost international calling, and more. We have also integrated GrandCentral with your Google account and your Google address book.
Over the next few days, instructions will appear in your inbox on how to upgrade your GrandCentral account to Google Voice. You can also learn more about the new features in these short videos.
A few more details on the new stuff:
1. Transcriptions: Now, in addition to being able to listen to your voicemail messages, you can choose to have your new voicemails automatically transcribed. You'll see these transcriptions in your inbox and will be able to search for voicemails. Transcriptions are also included in email and SMS notifications. They are fully automated, so they aren't perfect, but we'll be working to improve this in the future.
2. SMS support: When somebody sends an SMS to your Google Voice number, that SMS will be relayed to each of your forwarding cell phones and stored in your inbox. You can reply from your computer or from any of your mobile phones and the conversation will be saved in your inbox. You'll be able to read through the conversation thread and search for past messages.
3. Conference calling: If you want to talk to more than one person at once, just tell everyone to call you on your Google number. When you get a call waiting notification, you will have the option to press 5 to add them to your existing call.
There's more for you to discover about Google Voice, so sign into GrandCentral to upgrade and check it out!
Posted by Craig Walker, Vincent Paquet, and Wesley Chan, Google Voice Product Managers
