Google Voice just announced that it will officially support any existing phone number on its platform. This means that the hack that I posted previously is depreciated and you no longer need to use the “Do Not Disturb” option – and this fixes the annoying extra rings that callers would hear upon entering your voicemail.
Steps to enable Google Voicemail on any number:
Step 1: Enable in Settings
The text “Activate Google voicemail for this phone” will show up for any “Mobile” number. If your phone supports call forwarding, change it to “Mobile” in the type of phone number to get this option to show up.
After clicking “Activate Google voicemail for this phone”, it will prompt you for your carrier and then give you directions for enabling answer call forwarding for your phone. For AT&T it will be *004*<GOOGLE VOICE NUMBER>#.
Step 2: Go directly to Voicemail
This step is optional and will only impact you if you have more than one number set up in Google Voice. By default, when someone calls your cell phone and is sent to your voicemail, Google Voice will call your other extensions and try to find someone to pick up that call, and then go to Voicemail. This means there will be a lot of ringing and waiting. To disable this, click “Edit” on your phone number and then “Show advanced Settings.”
Select “Go straight to Voicemail”. This will send callers directly to your voicemail when they ring your phone and you do not answer.
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