Google has officially applied Incoming Number Portability which allows the Google Voice users to move their primary phone number to Google Voice and then forward to a new number assigned by their carrier. Google Voice users now can port. For ex, When people call that ported # you can set up what phones to ring. (ex. Cell, Home, Work, or all). And yah, Google is charging a $20 fee for number porting from your wallet. But in order to take advantage of all of Google Voice’s benefits, you’d have to get a new phone number. As of now it only works on non-corporate mobile phones, meaning landlines and your work phone number can’t be ported, yet.
According to Google, this feature is still being tested and may not be available to everyone yet. Google stated that “We’re continually testing new features to enhance the user experience. For a limited amount of time, we’re making the Google Voice number porting process available to users. We don’t have any additional details to share at this time, but plan to offer this feature to all users in the near future.”
To port your number into your Google Voice account, You just click on Settings in the top right corner, and then Voice settings. Now, on the phone tab next to your GV number, select (if now available)on Change / Port. Now click on “I want to use my existing mobile number instead” and follow the on-screen instructions to port your number.
Google Voice is only available in the US at the moment and calls to the US and Canada are free throughout 2011. Google Voice is Great, but note that if you already just use one number and have Google Voice, then you don’t really need this feature and if you’ve two phones it would be worth it.
Update: The option seems to be gone now.
[via: TechCrunch, Source: Google Voice]