Now you can use Gmail for free phone calls to US and Canada. Earlier you could use the Gmail voice and video chat feature but that required both people to be at their computers, signed into Gmail at the same time. Now you can call any phone right from Gmail!
Then…
and now…
Gmail Phone Call Rates
Google promises calls to the U.S. and Canada will be free for at least the rest of the year and calls to other countries will be billed at very low call rates, when compared to local operators —for as little as $0.02 per minute.
Get started with Gmail Phone Calls
The feature is rolling out to U.S. based Gmail users over the next few days. When active, you will see the “Call Phone” link in Gmail Chat. Just click “Call phone” at the top of your chat list and dial a number or enter a contact’s name. Remember you need to install the voice and video plug-in to get this to work.