Remember Google Voice, the app that introduced voicemail transcriptions and gave everyone free phone numbers back in 2009, but then seemed to fall into a years-long coma? It returned with a few minor updates on Monday and promises of more to come.
The fact that Google Voice languished isn't surprising—it was designed to make phone conversations easier at a time when social networks and smartphone texting apps made phone calls anachronistic for everyday communication. So it's only natural that Monday's updates to the Android and iOS Google Voice apps are focused on beefing up the messaging side of service.
The app's revamped interface now has separate tabs for text messages, calls, and voicemails. The new messages tab is the left-most of the three, so it's easier to head straight for it when you first open up the app. As with Facebook Messenger and Apple Messages, texts sent to your Google Voice number now arrive as threaded conversations, so tapping on a contact opens up all of your texts with that person. The same organization layout now also supports group messages.
Rounding out the messaging updates is support for photo MMS and in-notification replies, while the only non-messaging addition is Spanish voicemail transcription. The updates start rolling out today, and Google says they'll be available to everyone "in the coming weeks."
Not all Google Voice users have the mobile app, since you can also make and receive Google Voice calls through the Google Hangouts app or in the Hangouts chat client in Gmail. Those users won't notice anything different with today's changes, although Google suggested they start using the Google Voice app to get ready "as we continue to bring new improvements."
None of Monday's updates will come as a surprise to iOS users, who can already take advantage of all of them using Apple's competing Messages service. Messages does fall short when it comes to Google Voice's original innovation, however—the ability to ring all of your phones from a single number. But whether or not that innovation continues to be relevant in 2017 is an open question.