Messaging, Phone Numbers, Voice
May product updates: expanded coverage, expanded voices
Summer’s just around the corner (here in our Raleigh headquarters, it certainly feels like it’s already arrived!) and we’ve got a few cool releases to share with you this month.
More on-net coverage = higher quality calls
We’ve added 1,000 new rate centers to our already extensive on-net coverage matrix. How does this equate to higher quality? It’s simple – when we’re able to keep more calls on our own network (on-net), there’s less chance for bad-quality culprits like packet loss, jitter, and latency to step in. In addition, we’re keeping more calls on our own network vs. outsourcing to our network partners, so we’re able to deliver outstanding quality at a more cost-efficient rate. It’s a win-win!
New text-to-speech voices
We’ve added a new cast of characters to our text-to-speech voices that you’ve come to know in the Voice and Messaging API Dashboard. Click the links below for a quick soundbyte for each updated voice.
| Language | Voice Name | TTS 1.0 | TTS 2.0 |
| English (US) Female | Susan | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| English (US) Female | Julie | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| English (US) Female | Kate | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| English (US) Male | Paul | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| English (US) Male | Dave | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| English (UK) Female | Bridget | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| English (UK) Male | Simon | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| German Female | Katrin | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| German Male | Stefan | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| Spanish Female | Esparanza | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| Spanish Female | Violeta | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| Spanish Male | Jorge | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| French Female | Jolie | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| French Male | Bernard | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| Italian Female | Paola | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
| Italian Male | Luca | Play 1.0 Example | Play 2.0 Example |
Quick Tip for Developers: If you repeat the same message in your call flow, it may be most effective to record an audio file and use /audio using the fileUrl or <PlayAudio> rather than text to speech.
Which new voice is your favorite? Let us know in the comments below!