Among the GrandCentral features that we have carried over to Google Voice, is the ability to tag a caller as spam. This means that future calls from that number will not ring your phones, will not be in your messages when you check voicemails from your phone, but will end up in a Spam folder that you can check whenever you feel like it, similar to your Gmail spam filter. Tagging a caller as spam only affects your account and is not shared with other users.
One of the lesser known features of the Phone Spam filter is that we also collect numbers from reported (and confirmed) Phone spammers to block them for the benefit of all our users (we call it Craig's list internally since Craig came up with that idea). These are not individual pranksters reported by individual users, but automated dialers that call thousands of numbers every day.
Phone Spam is something most of us wish we had never experienced (those of you who have not yet received your "second notice that the factory warranty on your vehicle is expiring", count yourself lucky), but it is unfortunately a growing trend.
The Phone Spam list has also carried over to Google Voice and data shows its growing usefulness: we are blocking tens of thousands of calls on a daily basis, and that number is growing daily. Although we can't promise you won't get reminded about your factory warranty, we'll do what we can to help you avoid it...
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We have received several questions about what happens to GrandCentral accounts after upgrading to Google Voice.
Although no new call/voicemail will show up in the GrandCentral account, you can keep accessing your GrandCentral voicemails, call log and address book even after you have upgraded.
Note that you can export your GrandCentral address book and import it in your Google address book if you don't already have them there.
Posted by Vincent Paquet, Google Voice PM
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Hello GrandCentral (and soon to be Google Voice) users:
We have started the upgrade process, and are rolling the service out to new users on an ongoing basis. When your account is ready to upgrade, you will notice an "Upgrade" message at the top of your GrandCentral inbox.
Once you choose to upgrade, you will automatically get all the great new features (transcription, SMS, conference calling, cheap international calling, Goog411 integration, etc.), and new voicemail and SMS messages will begin appearing in your Google Voice inbox.
After you upgrade, any new voicemail messages will appear in your inbox at www.google.com/voice, and all of your prior voicemail messages will still be available through your GrandCentral account at www.grandcentral.com.
After the upgrade you should go to your "Settings" tab and do the following:
1. Re-record your voicemail greeting
2. Re-record your user name (callers hear this the first time they call you if Screening is on)3. Select any custom settings you want (display caller ID, screening on/off, etc.)If you want to move your contacts from GrandCentral to Google Voice, here are some instructions on how to do that. If you have any group or contact specific settings or any WebCall buttons (now called "Call Widgets") you will need to re-create those as well.
We hope you enjoy the new Google Voice service! -
GrandCentral users,
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
