Google Voice location based call forwarding using Tasker and Locale GV Settings Plugin
One of the problems I have with Google Voice is that, to use multiple phones, you either have to set call screening on, or make sure that the voicemail pickup on any of the lines you’re forwarding to is over thirty seconds. For example, if you can’t set your corporate phone system to delay thirty or forty seconds and don’t enable call screening, your work voicemail picks up.
The Locale GV Settings Plugin allows you to configure Google Voice options such as call screening and forwarding from Tasker, based on a variety of trigger options. While you can do some somewhat complicated tasks involving pulling and parsing the Google Voice settings page to enable and disable call screening via Tasker, for the less proficient (or interested) in parsing secure web pages, there’s an easier option in the form of the Locale GV Settings Plugin and Tasker.
I’m not a fan of people being able to access my phone calls if they happen to be in my office while I’m out, nor do I like hunting for the phone while I’m driving to press “1” to answer what should have been a hands-free call. We’ll just say I’ve had some issues with Google Voice over the past year, and this plugin and Tasker have remedied most of my issues that remained after my discovery of GrooVe Forwarder.
A rather simplified version of how I have this set up is this: When I get near my office, my WiFi turns on if it wasn’t already, and when I’m near my office’s collection of WiFi access points, I trigger Google Voice via the Locale GV Settings plugin to enable call screening and forwarding to my work phone. As an exit task for when I’m leaving the work WiFi zone, I disable call forwarding to work and disable call screening, so I can now answer a phone call while driving with my Jabra FREEWAY, simply by saying “answer,” and not having to fumble around for my phone to press “1” to answer.
Other uses I can think of for this are:
- Set your phone to do not disturb and set a voicemail for people in your coworker’s group from 11:00 p.m. – 5:00 a.m. telling them that you’re not a vampire and it can wait ’til morning.
- Forwarding your calls to whatever location you’re at as you step in the door.
- Changing voicemail to tell clients you’re in a meeting and will call them back when you’re out of the office.
- Disabling call screening while you’re driving.
- Enabling DND for a driving teenager when they’re between home and school.
The plugin allows you to change which voicemail greeting is presented, change your do not disturb status, and apply custom settings for groups/circles, and it offers a level of customization that’s absurdly useful.
Locale GV Settings Plugin works with Locale and Tasker and is available for $3.99 from Google Play.
Download: Google Play
