October 5th, 2010

GV Mobile + for iPhone – app review

iPhone, by Albel.

GV Mobile+ for iPhone made its first appearance in the app store a while back before it got quickly pulled, along with any other Google Voice type app. Google cried foul, the FCC got involved, and we saw no type of Google voice app for quite a while. Since Apple revised their App Store approval process, GV Mobile+ has made it’s second debut in the App Store.

[iTunes Link]

GV + Mobile is an application that you can use to connect to Google Voice. For those of you not familiar with the service, it essentially allows you to choose a phone number Google Voice (free) that you can use to forward calls to any number. The Google Voice used to be known as Grand Central. I think the name of Grand Central was a little less confusing. Keep in mind, Google Voice is not a VoIP service, so you’ll still use your minutes plan. The main idea behind it is that you can give everyone a number and it will transfer all your calls to any number of your choice.

One perk Google Voice does offer is free SMS. GV Mobile+ has an extremely nice layout which integrates your current address book and you’ll be able to text anyone from your Google Voice number the same way you’d send a regular text via the Messages app. For a lot of people, this could be an excellent way to get rid of texting completely. I wouldn’t recommend it just yet though. One big feature GV Mobile+ is lacking is push notifications. It’s rather annoying to have to keep checking the app to see if you’ve received new messages. Push is supposed to be coming in an update. I’m not quite sure why it wasn’t there upon launch. If you’re really looking to ditch texting quickly, there are always workarounds. I currently use Notifo [iTunes Link] to send me push notifications for Google Voice. You can set it up online and it’ll only take about 5 minutes of your time. Growl apps and other push services will also work just fine until GV Mobile+ is updated to support push.

The app is extremely simple to use and you can even create a separate list as favorites in your address book. The app gives you all the key features of Google’s voice in a neat package. Downstairs you have your keypad (Directory), SMS, history, voicemail, and settings. When you place a call, your phone rings (you) and you just reply and it will connect the call. It is dead simple to use. SMS works just as one might suppose, and voice mail revealed not only the audio, but the translations as well.

Push is still a huge factor that keeps this app from being awesome. Once push is added, I think it’ll be amazing. I’ve tested having someone leave a voicemail or texting my GV numher while I’m in the app and I’ll get it pretty much instantly. If push will be that quick, I can see several people using this app as their main communication app. I know I would. Let’s cross our fingers it comes quick!

As a side note, in my video I wasn’t sure what call presentation did. As a helpful YouTube user pointed out, call presentation is the feature that asks unknown callers to state their name before it connects to you. You can then hear their name and choose to either accept or deny the call. Neat!

Pros

  • Slick interface
  • Easy to set up
  • Extremely responsive (no crashes or failed calls as of yet)

Cons

  • No push (yet)
VN:F [1.9.10_1130]
Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)

People who read this also read:

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Back Top

Responses to “GV Mobile + for iPhone – app review”

  1. No comments yet.
  1. No trackbacks yet.

Leave a Reply

Back Top