April 6th, 2007

Google Voice Local Search just launched

Posted by Garett Rogers @ 12:48 pm

Categories: Google Labs

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Just minutes ago, Google updated their Google Labs page with what they call "Google Voice Local Search".  It appears to be similar, if not related, to the long dead "voice search" project that doesn't work anymore.

According to the product page, you can use it to actually connect to the business you are searching free of charge — perhaps this could be used as an easy way to make long distance calls for people without long distance plans?

Using this service, you can:

• search for a local business by name or category.
  You can say "Giovanni's Pizzeria" or just "pizza".

• get connected to the business, free of charge.
• get the details by SMS if you’re using a mobile phone.
  Just say "text message".

To use the service, dial 1-800-GOOG-411 from any phone.  Unfortunately it's only available in English for US businesses from US phones.  It's still experimental, so the service may still be unreliable.

Here is a handy "cheat sheet" for the service.  Use it to get the information you are looking for:

When you are asked for city and state, you can:

• say the city and state like "beverly hills california".
• say the zip, e.g. "nine-oh-two-one-oh".
• type the zip code using the key pad, e.g. "9-0-2-1-0".

When you are asked for a business name or category, you can:

• say a business name, like "Giovanni's pizzeria".
• say a category name, like "hardware stores".
• say "go back" to change city and state.

When browsing through results, you can:

• say the listing number (e.g. "number two") or press the corresponding key (e.g. "2") to choose a listing or navigate between results.
• say "text message" or press "9" to receive a text message, when you are calling from a mobile phone.
• say "details" to get more information about the current listing.
• say "start over" or press "*" to start from the main menu.
• say "go back" to change business or category.