![]() I need a local phone number for my apartment buzzer, so I set up a new Google Voice number to forward to my 610 number.With a few minutes, I received an SMS to my 610 number that I'd missed while my number was disconnected. Unfortunately, I didn't have the instructions with me right then, so I couldn't re-connect my phone. My phone just disconnected with no notice.Of course, their "what to expect" explanation was based on land lines, not Google Voice. It could still take a while after that to complete the porting though. At that point, I needed to call *226 to attach my 610 number to my Verizon iPhone. Verizon explained that, at some point in the next 10 days, my phone would be suddenly disconnected. There was basically no sign that anything had changed. Google Voice showed the same "status" of just being unlocked. I continued to get calls and SMSs to my (610) Google Voice number. My old non-Google Voice Verizon number was still active. When I left the shop, nothing had changed. He said it would take 2 to 10 business days, during which time I might not receive SMSs. The Verizon rep explain what I should expect.Apparently, this failed the first time he tried it (possibly he typed in the wrong number), but worked the second time. I spent about an hour in the shop total. Their system requires an account number.The Verizon rep talked to a manager and various people and eventually learned that he needed to port the (610) Google Voice number as though it were a land line number.The representative appeared to understand what Google Voice was, but wasn't very clear on how to go about this. I already had an existing Verizon contract, so they would need to switch my contract to the 610 Google Voice number. I went into the Verizon store to explain what I needed to do.I unlocked my Google Voice (610) number at Because I'd previously ported that number into Google Voice, I didn't have to pay anything.I couldn't find much online about what to expect when porting out of Google Voice, so I thought I'd write up my experience. Plus, I hated my Android and Google Voice doesn't work as well on an iPhone. So, after much debate, I switched off of Google Voice. People thought I was just being rude and not responding. This works on the MMS protocol, so, again, messages would vanish. This issue became particularly problematic with iOS' new iMessage functionality which supports group chat. Google Voice fails to report any error message on either side. Or, at the very least, they should know that the message was dropped. While I don't need to send my friends a pic every time I see a cute puppy, I do want to know when my friends send me a pic. Why would they disappear? Because Google Voice doesn't support MMS. There were a lot of things I loved about Google Voice - being able to send online, having a history of all my texts, being able to send/receive SMS while traveling internationally (without crazy fees) - but ultimately, the fact that messages would disappear was unacceptable. After using Google Voice as my exclusive phone number for about a year, I finally gave it up and went back to a regular ol' number on Verizon.
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