hangoutsGoogle has today updated its Hangouts messaging app with the ability to make voice calls, Google Voice integration, inline GIFs and more.

What's New in Version 1.3.0

- See which of your friends is using Hangouts, and who can be reached right now
- Call phone numbers from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch (free to the US and Canada)
- Make and receive calls using your Google Voice number
- Send and receive animated GIFs that play inline
- Hangouts will temporarily turn down your music (instead of stopping it) when you receive an incoming message

While the app allows users to make voice calls, Google Voice users also get the ability to receive calls via their Google Voice number and can use Voice calling credits to make international calls, notes Google+ Hangouts product manager Kate Cushing in a Google+ post.

The new feature comes after both Facebook and Apple have made efforts to direct people away from using traditional cell phone calling using carriers' radio towers and instead use VoIP services like Facebook Messenger voice calling and FaceTime audio.

Hangouts is a universal app that's available in the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Top Rated Comments

oneMadRssn Avatar
oneMadRssn
160 months ago
Does it still offer no way of going "offline," or signing off without really logging out of the entire app?

I'd love this app, but I don't want to be on gchat 24/7.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ElZeus Avatar
ElZeus
160 months ago
Can someone give me one fair reason to put google back into a new ipad I got

Free calling.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bozzykid Avatar
bozzykid
160 months ago

I'm unsure why they integrated Google Voice calls into Google Hangouts because it doesn't seem the right place for it, but I'm happy you can finally do this in an official Google app.

Google has said Hangouts is the future of Google Voice. Eventually the GV app will probably be dead and all the functionality will be rolled into Hangouts. I'm guessing the GV messaging feature will be the next feature to roll into Hangouts.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
NocturnalJazz Avatar
NocturnalJazz
160 months ago
Google Voice app on iOS needs a redesign. Woof.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
deannnnn Avatar
deannnnn
160 months ago
Does it still offer no way of going "offline," or signing off without really logging out of the entire app?

I'd love this app, but I don't want to be on gchat 24/7.

This is the exact reason I don't use it. Why can't I log out when I want to log out and log back in when I want to log in without having to re-set up the entire app? Google wants us to replace iMessage with gChat/Hangouts, but gChat has a fundamentally different purpose for me.

----------

Can't you simply close the app?

No. Closing the app keeps you logged in.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Poisonivy326 Avatar
Poisonivy326
160 months ago
Can someone give me one fair reason to put google back into a new ipad I got because the tablet I tried last Xmas with quite reasonable specs like the nvidia t30s for the time, was so trashy that even a Nokia Lumia I got for the total 6 months the tablet was between me and the service was thriving in comparison?

Even if gapps are much better for iOS than their laggy trashy stack they call an operating system, with 6% effectiveness against native coding because they use JAVA VM to copycat the iOS layers like micro$oft with silverlight and wp7+8 shouldn't I be called a dumb idiot to install them again?

I get ballietic the moment I see adcoiches and all the google gimmicks for serving damn ads in every place of my canvas trashing my eyes with neon-faux badly designed intrusive ads they purposefully make them look like this?

Forgive my bitterness but google has become so greedy that they destroyed their tablet share with the fragmentation and they'll realize it. Google apps shouldn't be in the AppStore but I understand their being there because of the accounts many users have. I have completely written google off, even as search engine. And I'm not the only one.

You don't even browse youtube? Or have a gmail account?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments

Popular Stories

airpods pro 3 purple

New, Higher End AirPods Pro Coming This Year

Tuesday January 20, 2026 9:05 am PST by
Apple is planning to debut a high-end secondary version of AirPods Pro 3 this year, sitting in the lineup alongside the current model, reports suggest. Back in September 2025, supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple is planning to introduce a successor to the AirPods Pro 3 in 2026. This would be somewhat unusual since Apple normally waits around three years to make major...
Read Full Article • 108 comments
smaller dynamic island iphone 18 pro Filip Vabrous%CC%8Cek

iPhone 18 Pro Leak: Smaller Dynamic Island, No Top-Left Camera Cutout

Tuesday January 20, 2026 2:34 am PST by
Over the last few months, rumors around the iPhone 18 Pro's front-panel design have been conflicted, with some supply-chain leaks pointing to under-display Face ID, reports suggesting a top-left hole-punch camera, and debate over whether the familiar Dynamic Island will shrink, shift, or disappear entirely. Today, Weibo-based leaker Instant Digital shared new details that appear to clarify the ...
Read Full Article • 57 comments
Apple Logo Spotlight

Apple Expected to Unveil Five All-New Products This Year

Wednesday January 21, 2026 10:54 am PST by
In addition to updating many of its existing products, Apple is expected to unveil five all-new products this year, including a smart home hub, a Face ID doorbell, a MacBook with an A18 Pro chip, a foldable iPhone, and augmented reality glasses. Below, we have recapped rumored features for each product. Smart Home Hub Apple home hub (concept) Apple's long-rumored smart home hub should...
Read Full Article • 64 comments
Liquid Glass App Store Feature

App Store and Apple TV Experiencing Outage

Tuesday January 20, 2026 4:36 pm PST by
Apple's App Store, iTunes Store, and Apple TV service are experiencing an outage at the current time, according to Apple's System Status page. Apple says that some users may be experiencing issues with the App Store and iTunes Store. Apple also says some users may be seeing intermittent issues with Apple TV. The Apple TV Channels feature is down too, and users may be unable to access some...
Read Full Article • 42 comments
airtag prime day 2

Apple Developing AirTag-Sized AI Pin With Dual Cameras

Wednesday January 21, 2026 12:31 pm PST by
Apple is working on a small, wearable AI pin equipped with multiple cameras, a speaker, and microphones, reports The Information. If it actually launches, the AI pin will likely run the new Siri chatbot that Apple plans to unveil in iOS 27. The pin is said to be similar in size to an AirTag, with a thin, flat, circular disc shape. It has an aluminum and glass shell, and two cameras at the...
Read Full Article • 132 comments