That means whenever you make a voice call while the phone is connected to a Wi-Fi network, your Republic phone places it over Wi-Fi rather than using a costlier cellular phone network.

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One premier feature is Google Voice extensions, which means that if I make a call from my Ooma line, the person I call sees my Google Voice number instead of my Ooma number.

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Users download the free application off the Web, but instead of typing a text message, they use a headset, telephone or microphone and speakers to make a high-quality, two-way voice call to anyone else running the application.

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It also can be a rather multi-step affair to even make a call, since there's no home screen speed dial or voice recognition, and the phonebook can't be searched, only scrolled through.

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