I installed the Google Chat Voice plugin today, and found that I was able to make free Google Voice calls from Canada to both a US and a Canadian POTS number. I’m still unable to register for Google Voice at google.com/voice, and I cannot use the Google Voice app on my Android phone, but at least I can initiate a call from inside GMail on my laptop now.

Does this mean that Google is about to roll out full Google Voice support for Canada, or just that they forgot to plug a hole in the code that that’s supposed to prevent non-US accounts from using the service?

Google Voice on my Android phone would be fantastic, because I could make unlimited North American phone calls on (say) a 6 GB, $30/month data plan instead of paying the world’s highest cell phone bills for (limited) voice and long distance. I’m sure Rogers and other mobile carriers won’t be happy about that, but I hope their lobbyists can’t stop it.