Google Voice update brings prefetch for voicemails, improved notifications, more

Google is on track again this week updating a few of their popular applications for the world of Android. Updating Google Maps last week and today the Google Voice app has just received its latest update in the Android Market. Google has brought a few much needed and requested features. A big one is being able to send to multiple recipients.

Updated to version 0.4.2.38 this afternoon you can now prefetch your voicemail. Meaning they can be listened to even when there is no data coverage or you are in a spotty area. Among a few other new enhancements they’ve added a feature that GVoice has been missing for a long time — the option to send messages to multiple recipients. With today’s update you can now easily and simply send messages to everyone you need at the same time whether its co-workers, family, or whoever. Here are the three main new improvements:
-Prefetch voicemails so they can be listened to even when there is no data coverage
-Allow sending text messages to multiple recipients
-Improved text message notification
If you’ve been considering taking the dive into Google Voice now would be a good time. You get a new number you can use for whatever you’d like and it can send or receive calls and messages for much cheaper than your current plan probably offers. I’m pretty excited to give this multiple messages upgrade a try as I’m sure all of you are. Head down to the Android Market via the link below to get the latest and greatest from Google.
[via Google Voice]

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Google Voice is getting MMS – raise your hand if you care

Well folks, it’s Friday, October 14th, and the day that so many have waited so long for has finally arrived. The world waits with breathless anticipation of news concerning their favorite mobile devices. The Google Voice team is implementing MMS into its text messaging services at long last. Reports of college kids rioting in the streets outside the Google campus have not been confirmed.

In all seriousness, I’m sure that there are those out there who sincerely enjoy MMS, I just don’t know any of them. The Google Voice team is working on a work-around to allow users to see the multimedia messages – just set text messages to forward to your email address in the Settings section of your Android app or the Google Voice web site. The fix only works with one carrier so far, but more are coming soon. There’s still no way to view pictures or video in the app itself, but the developers say they’re planning on implementing it in a future upgrade.
Maybe it’s because I never used text messaging regularly until I could get it for free (which started, incidentally, with Google Voice), but MMS never appealed to me. I know it’s an easy way for featurephones to share media quickly, but these days it just seems kind of redundant. And in any case, Android has support for MMS via the default messaging app. We’ll let you know when Google Voice supports the feature so you can party like it’s 1999 for free.
[via Droid-Life]

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