Google Voice vs Skype
The Skype and Google Voice are both VoIP Services which make communication much easier and cheaper. Google Voice comes with the one number concept by providing you a single phone number. It has got additional features such as: voice mail transcription, voicemail send in text format; SMS to email. Google retains its advantage of providing call quality on low bandwidth by utilizing propriety CODEC technology.
The Skype and Google Voice are both VoIP Services offered by Skype and Google respectively. Before discussing the other features of these two VoIP services, the major technical difference between Skype and Google Voice is Skype uses propriety CODEC, whereas Google Voice uses Standard CODEC.
Skype is an application software which works as VoIP (Voice over IP Protocol) client to originate or receive voice and video calls. Skype offers free voice and video calls between Skype users, call any phone numbers in the world by charging on per minute rate and connection fees (Skype Out), sending SMS, Chat, file sharing, call conferencing, call forwarding, providing local phone numbers worldwide (at the moment 24 countries only) to receive calls to Skype software (Skype In) and Skype to Go Number to access Skype Out services where ever you go.
Google Voice is a voice service offered by Google. Google will provide you a single phone number, no matter where you go you can set the call to that number to be delivered on your mobile, home phone or office phone by defining criteria and use single voice mail system. On top of this Google Voice offers, Voice Mail Transcription, One Number, Personalized Greetings, International Calling, SMS to email, Share Voicemails, Screen Callers, Mobile Apps and Conference Calling.
Both Skype and Google Voice have mobile clients to make calls to Skype to Skype or Skype Out and the same in Google Voice. So users can download and install Google Voice or Skype client on mobile phones. Google Voice mobile app currently supports Blackberry Phones and Android phones. Both either use data within the existing data plan in your mobile or wi-fi to perform all these functionalities. Since Google Voice and Skype offers DID services that are providing a local fixed line phone numbers to terminate the calls on mobile apps and also it consumes data from your existing data plan subscribed, this, in near future may kill the mobile operator’s voice revenue stream. With this services, no matter where you go you don’t need to have voice roaming enabled, instead you can have a local country data plan subscribed in your mobile phone to get calls to the number subscribed from Skype or Google Voice.
Voice mail transcription
One Number
Block Callers
Conference Calls
Both Google voice and Skype are quality voice and video calls software’s. But I would still vote for Skype b/c it has superior voice quality as compared to GV. However, recently, I have discovered another very good alternative: RHUB`s web conferencing servers and it beats both Skype and GV.