The Daily App: Groove IP For Android

Why pay for minutes when you're in range of free WiFi? That's the rhetorical question we asked when we looked at Groove IP by snrb Labs, whose $4.99 app for Android allows unlimited voice calling in the U.S. and Canada by piggy-backing onto your existing (or new, free) Google Voice account.

Groove IP works on any Android device and uses VoIP (on WiFi or a mobile data connection) to turn a tablet or other non-phone to a full-featured phone using the Groove IP dialer (shown). Android phones can continue to use the Android dialer, contacts and call log or switch back and forth.

There's at least one caveat to using Groove IP: it uses 1.2 MB of system memory for every minute of a call's duration. And until you've tweaked the settings a bit, you might also experience some echo or voice delays during certain calls or will certain equipment. Also, some users might prefer the free (ad supported) version -- Groove IP Lite -- which works only over WiFi and includes no integration with the native dialer.