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Google Voice: configuring a complex home office

Summary: In this article, we'll look at how you can set up a complex home office with two phone line and Google Voice.

David Gewirtz

By for ZDNet Government |

All projects: DIY-IT Project Guide This project: The Ultimate Google Voice How-to Guide

This article is a continuation of our Google Voice series. In this article, we'll look at how you can set up a complex home office with two phone lines, have multiple handsets, and enable either person to easily answer either phone line from any handset, all while using Google Voice.

This article assumes you've already got a working Google Voice account and it's linked to your phone. If you don't, please read the first article in this series.

Our old, land line solution

Throughout this series, I've shown you the various steps I took in setting up my Google Voice system. The reasons I took those specific steps had to do with the phone "environment" my wife and I wanted in our new home, which is also where our office is. We had a very specific set of requirements, borne out of years of working and living together, and knowing our specific productivity needs.

Before I tell you where we wanted to go, it'll be instructive for you to understand our phone environment prior to our move, back when we had two land lines in the old house.

Back then, we had two lines. One was mostly for work and the other was mostly for friends and family. We also each had an iPhone. I almost never used my iPhone for voice calls, using it as a test engine for software development, an email client, and a network diagnosis tool. Denise used her iPhone when she was out, but not for much more.

When a call came into either of our two land numbers, it was handled by a two-line Panasonic KX-TG6502 phone system. Both lines went into the base unit, and we had four wireless phones and chargers scattered throughout the house: one in her office space, one in mine, one in the bedroom (with ringer turned off), and one in the media room.

From anywhere in the house, either of us could answer an incoming call on any line, we could conference between the lines, we could put a caller on hold, we could intercom between us, and the other person could pick up that caller and talk to him or her.

It was, essentially, a baby PBX.

Next: Requirements for our new solution »

« Previous: Our old solution

The Definitive Google Voice How-To Series:

Requirements for the new solution

One of the reasons we didn't just go with our iPhones and leave it at that is we wanted a phone system where either person could pick up either line. This was not as important from a personal perspective, but was absolutely essential for office work.

We also wanted to be able to answer calls from anywhere in the house. We didn't want to get a call and have to run all over the house to find the one iPhone that could answer the call. You can't get from one end of the house to the other in three rings without running, and we didn't want to sound out-of-breath when answering a business call, especially for many of the media calls I get.

When making a call, we also wanted to be sure the person we were calling saw the proper Caller ID. We didn't want callers to get a random mobile phone number, but rather to see the usual business line or personal line they were used to and comfortable with.

Because we were spending so much time between locations, on assignment, and on the road, we wanted a new feature. We wanted our incoming calls to follow us, no matter where we were. If Denise left the house, we wanted calls to the personal line to immediately go to her mobile phone, without requiring any special fuss or changing of settings.

For the business line, we wanted it to always ring at the house in case one of us was there, but if we were both out, we wanted it to also ring on my mobile phone.

We also wanted to make sure we could both make outgoing and receive incoming calls at the same time. We're often both talking on the phone to different friends, clients, contractors, and customers and we didn't want to have to wait until one person was done before the next person could make a call.

Next: Our one remaining land line »

« Previous: Requirements for our new solution

The Definitive Google Voice How-To Series:

Our one remaining land line

There was one other requirement, but it's a completely separate component, outside of our solution. I still needed a land line phone to call into the CBS Interactive webcast system. I do a lot of webcasts and radio interviews, and the mobile/VOIP solution I was putting together would still not have the audio fidelity needed for broadcast.

That said, I also didn't want to incur all sorts of costs and expenses. The land lines we got rid of cost us as much or more than our mobile phones, and it didn't make sense to keep all that expense.

In the new house, we put in one land line, and it lives in my sound-proof studio. We don't have a long-distance plan or any features on it, because I dial into 800 numbers or the radio stations I'm on prefer to dial me, anyway.

That one, barely provisioned land line costs about $25/mo.

I hooked the old Panasonic KX-TG6502 base unit to this, turned the ringers off, and set the outgoing message on the base unit to indicate that the phone is never answered.

This is an important factor. You might ask, since we're paying for a single land line, why not use it as part of the phone system? The answer is that I don't want Call Waiting, Call Forwarding, or any other service, and I don't want the chance that someone will pick up a phone extension. I need this line dedicated completely to broadcast use.

There's one tangible benefit to this spare land line, in addition to its use for work. It does have 9-1-1 service on it, so if there's an emergency, we have immediate 9-1-1 access.

Next: Components of our home office solution »

« Previous: Our one remaining land line

The Definitive Google Voice How-To Series:

Components of our home office solution

Now that you know the scope of what I was putting together, here's a list of the various elements that make up the final system:

  • Two iPhones: Denise has her beloved iPhone 4 and I have my much-maligned and barely tolerated iPhone 3G. These serve us (and annoy me) when we're away from the house. Both are on AT&T.
  • AT&T MicroCell: When we first bought the new house and realized AT&T's signal was non-existent, we bought the MicroCell so we'd have some level of service. We pay $20/mo so Denise can have unlimited outgoing calls. I have more than 5,000 minutes banked, so I'm just registered as a guest on the MicroCell.
  • Two Google Voice numbers: These are the numbers we ported from the old house.
  • Broadband Internet: A key component to making this all work is a broadband Internet connection, a cable modem, a router, and a pile of switches. I put GigE into every wall of the house. I have a massive central patch panel in the studio, and network connectivity is distributed house-wide.
  • Email accounts: Although we could log into Google Voice to check messages, we both get voicemail and SMS messages via Outlook and the Exchange server we have in the cloud.
  • The OBi VoIP box: This is the device that allows us to connect a RJ11-based phone system to Google Voice and gives inexpensive VOIP services.
  • The Link-to-Cell phone system: This is the product that pulls it all together and helps us meet our mini-PBX requirements. It's the subject of the rest of this article.

Next: Configuring the Link-to-Cell phone system »

« Previous: Components of our home office solution

The Definitive Google Voice How-To Series:

Configuring the Link-to-Cell phone system

As you might imagine, makers of land line-based phone systems have been taking a bath, as late. With more and more people moving off land lines to cell phones or VoIP solutions, producers of traditional consumer telephony products have had to find new markets and new opportunities.

One such opportunity has been to create phone systems that work both with land lines and with mobile phones. More and more phone systems are adding a Bluetooth integration capability, allowing their handsets to effectively become full-featured Bluetooth headsets for mobile phones.

This is where the Panasonic Link-to-Cell Cellular Convergence Solution, model KX-TG6582 comes into the picture. This gadget, purchased for about $75 from my local Staples, consists of a base unit and two handsets (now that we've got it working, I've ordered another two handsets).

The base unit has one RJ11 land line phone port on it, but can also accept up to two Bluetooth mobile phone connections (although only one can be active at once). This is where things start to get interesting.

If Denise and I both wanted to use this device to talk on the phone at once, and we wanted to do it through our mobile phones, we wouldn't be able to, because only one Bluetooth connection can be in use at once. But, if one of us used Bluetooth and one of us used the land line port, we could both be on handset extensions at the same time.

Ah, now you're beginning to see where the OBi and VoIP come in, aren't you?

When you run a phone cable between the OBi and the Link-to-Cell, the Link-to-Cell is convinced it's connected to a jack in the wall. It has no idea that it's connecting via the OBi to Google Voice, and then, through that, to the outside world.

So that's our configuration: we have the OBi wired to the Link-to-Cell. We have both iPhones registered with the Link-to-Cell as Bluetooth devices. And we have both iPhones registered with the AT&T MicroCell so we get something resembling cellular phone service.

Next: Putting it all together: making calls »

« Previous: Configuring the Link-to-Cell phone system

The Definitive Google Voice How-To Series:

Putting it all together: making calls

Both Denise and I have a Link-to-Cell handset at our desks. If I want to make an outgoing work call, I pick up my Link-to-Cell handset, key in the number I'm calling, and press the Talk/Phone button. This initiates a call via the RJ11 jack, out through the OBi, and out through my Google Voice account to the person I'm calling. The Caller ID shown is that of my old land line work number

If Denise wants to make a personal or family call at the same time, she keys in the number she wants to call, and instead if hitting the Talk/Phone button, she hits the CELL button. The Link-to-Cell then gives her a choice of dialing out through her mobile phone or mine. Once she chooses her phone, the Link-to-Cell initiates a mobile call, which goes out through the AT&T MicroCell, and then through our Internet connection.

The only drawback is that calls made through the Link-to-Cell CELL option don't show the Google Voice Caller ID, but instead the Caller ID of the mobile phone. For her, this is fine, since she's generally calling people who are already aware of her mobile number.

We also have the option of setting up a second Google Voice account on the OBi. If she wanted to make an outgoing call that displayed the family Caller ID, she could type in a short access code, using the Talk/Phone button, and it'd dial out via Google Voice rather than via her iPhone.

It shouldn't have to be this way. As with many things, Apple's restrictions get in the way. If we were able to choose which app was used by default by Bluetooth devices to dial outgoing calls, we'd be able to tell it to use Google Voice to make the call, instead of the iPhone's Phone app. Hopefully, this will change in the future since I don't think I'll ever be able to pry the iPhone out of her hands in favor of an Android device.

Next: Putting it all together: receiving calls »

« Previous: Putting it all together: making calls

The Definitive Google Voice How-To Series:

Putting it all together: receiving calls

The other side of the equation, of course, is receiving calls. In the end, this was the most important part of our entire land line rescue operation. Once again, let's give a quiet nod of thanks to the FCC for making number portability part of our telecommunications strategy. Otherwise, none of this would be possible.

When someone calls the work number, they're routed through Google Voice. Google Voice then forwards the number to both my mobile phone and the OBi box, which then sends the call to the Link-to-Cell, and the Link-to-Cell handset rings -- as does my iPhone, unless I've turned my ringer off.

If I'm not at home, I just pick up the call on my iPhone. If I am at home, either of us can answer using our own Link-to-Cell handset.

This works quite well, but when we first set the whole system up, there was a complete cacophony whenever a call came in. The Link-to-Cell defaults to speaking (well, more like yelling) the Caller ID number out loud. It also defaults to the base unit and each handset ringing at pretty much the same time it yells out the caller's number.

When a call came in, the iPhone would vibrate and then ring, then the Link-to-Cell base unit and each handset would ring, and at the same time, the base unit and each handset would yell out the number of the incoming call.

It was like a menagerie of twisted tech, screaming for attention. Sheesh!

Fortunately, you can turn those features off, and now the system rings like it should.

For the family line, a similar process happens. A call to the family line is routed to Google Voice, which forwards it to Denise' iPhone. If she's home, the call is routed through the MicroCell and then the Link-to-Cell "sees" the incoming call and rings. Either of us can answer by picking up our own Link-to-Cell handset and talking.

If Denise is not home, incoming family calls don't ring at the house. You can't imagine what a blessing this is for me, when I'm on a writing deadline! Instead, the calls just ring Denise on her iPhone, and she can answer and talk from wherever she happens to be.

Next: Final thoughts »

« Previous: Putting it all together: receiving calls

Final thoughts

This is a very complex solution, and it's not something everyone needs to set up. We've had a well-oiled office and home environment for years and didn't want the new phone operation to spoil that.

What we liked about this new solution is that it gives us a lot of added flexibility, allowing us to get calls no matter where we are, but also using all of the Google Voice features to manage those calls.

From a cost perspective, our monthly expenses have gone down. Sure, we both have to maintain insanely pricey AT&T iPhone plans, but we'd have to do that, anyway. Our monthly expenses, though, for phone service have dropped to about a quarter of what they were before we moved.

In fact, the savings in our phone service costs are pretty much paying for both iPhone plans.

There are still glitches. Phone quality is adequate, but it's not nearly as good as a pure land line solution. This drives me a bit nuts, but most people out there are so used to "can you hear me now" that the loss in quality doesn't seem to matter much.

We also still have too many phones ringing in the house when a call comes in, because one or both of us tend to forget to turn off our mobile phone ringers.

Because AT&T's cellular service in this part of town can best be described as "drek", we're also almost entirely reliant on our Internet connection for phone service, so if the cable goes out, we're out of luck, telephonically speaking.

All those items aside, this is a pretty powerful telephony solution, it cost just over $200 to set up (end-to-end) and it works.

The definitive Google Voice how-to series

Read the rest of our Google Voice series:

Good luck with your Google Voice implementation. Tell us about what you're doing in the TalkBacks below.

Topics: Google, iPhone, Mobility, Telcos

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6 comments
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  • RE: Google Voice: configuring a complex home office

    What about Faxing?
    JPH66609
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Google Voice: configuring a complex home office

      @JPH66609 We use a fax service. I think it's Jfax, but don't quote me on that.
      David Gewirtz
      Reply Vote

    • Fax to Email

      I think a solution like fax to email should also be included in a complex home office as <a title="fax" href="http://faxtoemail.org.uk">fax to email</a> has certainly helped me in my home office and it is reasonble in price for those who are just starting a small business. Definitely a telecommunications solution like this pertinent.
      Pareto99
      Reply Vote

  • i use ringcentral and get an 800 number

    I've had service from RingCentral for a couple of years and it all works over my DSL line... I do have a monthly charge but it gives me an 800 number I can provide to customers, and there is an iphone app that I can use to place calls from my iphone that appear to come from the 800 number. They say it's scalable if you want to keep adding lines and extensions for a full office system. I've been pretty happy with it.... but it's not as good as FREE!
    aklsdjfhaklsdfh
    Reply Vote

    • also provides a nice fax service

      I forgot to mention, it also includes a nice fax service and viewer so you can send faxes from your desktop and even receive and view faxes on your iphone.
      aklsdjfhaklsdfh
      Reply Vote

  • RE: Google Voice: configuring a complex home office

    again have to say many thanks for this information <a href="http://makhzannoor.com" >nspire</a>
    ishantech
    Reply Vote
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