I got my Grand Central invitation and I am partying like a rockstar!
Google Grand Central is uber-cool. My quest for a free voicemail service has turned out to be more rewarding than I thought. Over 24 hours ago I didn’t know anything about Google Grand Central and now today I don’t think we can ever part. Grand Central has very impressive features and goes far beyond just being a voicemail service.
How it works
Google Grand Central gives you one phone number which you can port/forward all of your phones to. Basically, you have the choice to choose your area code and phone number, like I chose (919) 816-2764. Once you have your phone number you simply give a phone number to forward calls to (I gave a number, but in my case I just wanted a voicemail service so at the time I have elected to turn on the “Do Not Disturb” so by default all calls go to voicemail). Now once all this is set up you simply start using your new phone number as your default phone number. You can set up multiple forwarding numbers. The Grand Central system also reocrds each call, giving you caller ID information for missed calls. It also sends an email notification for new voicemail messages, where you can playback the phone message from a one-click link in the email. If you ever used VoIP services like Vonage then you probably know what I am talking about. The reason for Grand Central is to give a centralized phone number for all your phone needs. It definitely helps with doing business and keeping track of your messages.
The Inbox
The Inbox is simple, but robust. It is where you will find and listen to new voicemail messages. You also have the option of displaying the call log to see any missed calls and call history. You have features such as forwarding the voicemail message, posting the voicemail to your website by copying the code, blocking the caller, adding the caller to your list of contacts, calling the phone number, storing notes, and mapping the caller physical address with Google Maps.
Import/Export Contacts
You have the option of creating a list of contacts which will compliment your caller ID information and will generate your address book.
Settings
Under the settings tab is where all the features are at. As you see I have Do Not Disturb enabled, which simply mean all calls will be automatically routed to voicemail. There are dozens of features and settings that are manageable from the settings control panel.
Overall
Google Grand Central is a powerful solution for call forwarding, voicemail messaging, and contact management. You can use groups to ring different phones depending on who is calling. There are so many useful uses. Now with that said, something I would like to see which would make this even more powerful, is a social networking functionality, something sorta like LinkedIn profiles so you can find others and contact others on a large social scale, though of course with an option to opt out of the social networking or public search. Google should also consider importing Grand Central with Google Maps so you can easily use the data in Grand Central as your Google local search profile information. Another great feature I would like to see is the ability to handle faxes, where the phone number (or separate number) has the ability to receive faxes to the inbox as a downloadable attachment (or at least readable with Google Docs). Another thing missing is the voicemail options for the caller — they should be able to play their message back, erase and rerecord, etc. but instead when pressing the pound (#) button you are instantly disconnected and your message is left without any edit options — that sucks for a lot of reasons. I think if I give Google enough time then I may see my wish list come true!
Grand Central is great for those who change phone numbers frequently and want to give people one phone number which they can hold on to for life, without having to give out your phone number to all your friends and family every time the number changes. Also, I think it is useful for those who have friends or family in distant areas and you wish to give them a local number to call so they don’t incur long distant charges, because they haven’t gotten on the VoIP bandwagon yet. For the self-employed like myself, Google Grand Central is all you need for call forwarding, voicemail messaging, and contact management. For businesses and companies who employ multiple employees then this may not be the heal all solution, but it can be used as the electronic receiptionist for the company.
Since right now Google Grand Central is in beta mode and by invite only, if you are in need of a Google Grand Central invite then let me know and I will send you one. I have seven more invites left as we speak!
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Posted February 29, 2008 
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