Bijan Sabet

Running Google Voice on the iPhone

For some time now, I was using an iPhone as my one and only phone.

But the battery life and AT&T coverage was bumming me out.

So a few months ago, I bought a Verizon Blackberry Tour. And since then I’ve been carrying around two devices. I use the Blackberry for voice/SMS/email and the iPhone for browser/ipod/camera/apps.

This combo has some nice benefits. The immediate one is that I no longer feel guilty or stress about battery issues on the iPhone. In the old days I would avoid listening to music on the road because I didn’t want to drain the battery. And Verizon’s network is sweet.

The downside of the two phones thing is voice and sms portability. There are times when I’m running around town with the kids and I don’t want to carry two phones. I just want the iPhone. Google Voice is the perfect solution but that app was blocked by Apple.

This morning, I took the steps and hacked my iPhone by following the directions here.

After I did the jailbreak, I was able to install GV Mobile on my iPhone. Now I have Google Voice running on my iPhone and my Blackberry. Works like a charm.

I’m going to test this setup for a few weeks. If this works well, then I will need to update my contacts with my new GV number. It will be a one time hassle but I think it’s worth it.