Google Voice gets its first major update in five years

It’s been five years since Google Voice made any significant updates to its apps, but Google just announced new features on Android, iOS and the web.

With Google Voice, you get a free phone number for calls, text messages, and voicemail. You can use the apps on both smartphones and computers, and you can link your number to any mobile or landline number. Here are some of the things you can do with Google Voice:

• Text from your computer or mobile phone
• Read your voicemail and search through it like email
• Personalize voicemail greetings for family and friends
• Make international calls at low rates
• Get protected from spam calls, block unwanted callers, and screen calls before answering

Cleaner, organized, more intuitive design

Your Google Voice inbox will now feature separate tabs for texts, calls and voicemails, as well as single-thread conversations that are searchable. Upgraded group chat features and photo messaging updates are here too. If you use Google Hangouts on your mobile device, it work with Google Voice seamlessly so that switching apps is quick and easy.

If you need some inspiration to join Google Voice, here’s a quick comment from a Product Hunt user on a few features that most people don’t know about:

Learn the latest trends, insights and best practices from the brightest minds in media and technology. Sign up for SMW Insider to watch full-length sessions from official Social Media Week conferences live and on-demand.