If you are currently using your primary phone number for everything under the sun, you may have noticed that these annoying telemarketing calls have started popping up on your mobile phone. If you have a home phone, you’ll be bombarded with marketing calls no matter what, but until recently, mobile phones were largely immune to this issue.
Unfortunately, if you use your primary phone number when registering on Craigslist or Airbnb, or when applying for a credit card, the number could end up being picked up by these telemarketing companies. Fortunately, you can add a second number to your current phone, which you can use whenever you don’t want to give your main number.
In this article, I will talk about several applications that add a second line to your phone. Prices range from free to nearly $ 10 per month. The more money you are willing to spend, the more features you get. The paid options are mostly for freelancers or people who run small businesses from home.
Second number applications
Basically I only have five app recommendations: Google Hangouts, Sideline, Burner, Skype and Line 2 In terms of cost, Google Hangouts is free, Sideline is $ 3 per month, Burner is $ 5 per month, Line 2 is 10 dollars apiece. month and skype vary according to quantity.
In my opinion, you should start with free first and then move on until you find the app that works best for you. If you’re not running any business, Hangouts will probably be more than enough for most people.
Google Voice / Hangouts
Google Voice / Hangouts
To be clear: you actually create a Google Voice number and then use Hangouts to make calls and send SMS messages. The first thing to do is go to Google Voice and connect it to your main number. After that, click the gear icon on the right and select “Settings”.
You should see your voicemail access number, and next to it you will see a link Get Google Voice number.
When you click on the link, you will need to choose whether you want to use a new number or use your mobile number. Obviously, if you want a second number, select “I want a new number”
On the next screen, you can get a number by region, postcode or city and enter a word, phrase or number if you need something specific. Continue until you set up a new number.
When someone calls your Google Voice number, they default to Google Hangouts. However, you can go to the settings page in Google Voice and, if you like, forward calls to your main number. Thus, the phone will ring like a regular bell.
In addition, you can record your own voicemail greeting and your name. You can also forward text messages and voicemail to your email. On the “Calls†tab, you can configure call filtering so that unknown callers say their name before connecting to you. Google Voice also lets you record calls, switch between calls, and hold conference calls.
The great thing about Hangouts is that it works across multiple platforms, including iOS, Android, and Chrome. If you go to https://hangouts.google.com/, you can send text messages and make audio and video calls from the Internet.
Another nice benefit of Google Voice is that you can receive calls on your phone even without Hangouts installed.
The only drawback I have encountered so far is that sometimes the number is not accepted on certain websites, especially for use in two factor authentication. Most of the time this works, but sometimes you get a message that you cannot use this number, in which case you will have to use your real number. However, this problem occurs not only in Hangouts, but in all second-tier apps.
Like all apps besides Sideline, Hangouts is a VOIP app, which means it uses data to work. If you don’t have a big data plan and are not connected to Wi-Fi, this may cause problems for some users. Sideline is the only application that uses your carrier’s network to make and receive calls, thereby reducing traffic. However, it uses your cellular minutes in the same way as when you call from your carrier number.
Sideline
margin
For $ 3 a month, Sideline gives you a second local number with fewer features than Google Hangouts. You can create your own voicemail greeting, but that’s about it. The app has ads by default, which is annoying. To remove ads, keep your number forever, and enable Wi-Fi calling, you have to spend $ 3 per month.
But even with those features, it still doesn’t offer anything on par with Google Hangouts. For example, when it receives a call to your new second number, it shows the general number in Sunnyvale, California, not the actual caller’s number. You must open the Sideline app to see the actual caller number.
Text messaging is free and there doesn’t seem to be any limit. If your mobile phone plan allows you to call anyone at any time, you can use your extension number in the same way. You can also transfer your number with a $ 3 per month plan.
Learn more – iTunes App Store
More information – Google Play Store
Burner
burner
The purpose of the Burner app is slightly different from all the other apps mentioned here. Firstly, the numbers should “burn out” after a certain time. You can get the premium line, which is the $ 5 monthly subscription I mentioned above with unlimited texts, images, and minutes.
Otherwise, you can choose from a large number of recording devices such as Mini Burner, which will give you 60 texts, no photos, 20 minutes of calls, and automatic burning in 14 days. You can see all types of burners here
To buy burners, you must use credits. You can purchase credits within the app. 3 credits are $ 2, $ 8 is $ 5, $ 15 is $ 8, and $ 25 is $ 11. This is a great app if you need new numbers frequently. If you only need one number for an extended period of time, purchase the premium line for $ 5 per month.
One interesting feature of Burner is the integration or connection to other applications. For example, you can connect to Evernote and create a bot with an SMS answering machine. It makes no sense? Watch the video This is really cool and can be very helpful for some people. Alternatively, you can record text messages to Google Sheets or save voicemail to Dropbox.
There are not many features in the application, but it works well. You can also set your own voicemail greeting for each recording device number you create.
Recording – iTunes App Store
Burner – Google Play Store
Line 2
Streak 2
Next up is Line 2, which is definitely geared towards freelancers and business owners. I used to use Line 2 for my local computer repair business and it was definitely worth the price. They have a personal version for $ 10 a month and a business version for $ 15 a month. You can see the difference between the two services right on the home page.
For real businesses, an auto attendant, a toll free number, multiple lines, and out-of-office call-handling features are a big plus. Obviously, this is much more expensive and I would not recommend it unless you are trying to do business outside your home, etc.
For me, I used the service to record a professional business greeting and then turned on the auto attendant feature. This greatly influenced the perception of my clients’ calls. It was better than when I picked up the phone and said “Hello?”
Line 2 also has a great app and web dashboard to manage all your calls, voicemail, call forwarding rules, and more. It’s a little expensive, but the cheapest option for a business that needs more features.
Skype number
Skype number
If you are already using Skype, you can check to get your Skype number. The great thing about Skype is that you can also get international numbers. Almost all of the other apps mentioned above only work with numbers for the US and Canada. The cost of a room in the USA is about $ 6 per month.
Besides the Skype number, you get all the benefits of using Skype, such as video calling, group video calling, SMS messaging, screen sharing, and file sharing. On Skype, you basically buy credit that can be used for international calls, international SMS, etc.
Overall, it’s very easy to get a second, third, or fourth number for your phone effortlessly. There are many options, and the best one will depend on your use case. The great thing is that you can opt out of all these services whenever you want if you are not satisfied. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to comment. Enjoy!
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