Gmail signups now Open (in the US)

[dubbz]

According to this blog entry Gmail signup's have been opened for those in the U.S.

It does require access to a mobile phone, since they'll send a verification code to your phone to make sure you're a real person.

No Signup available for me on the Gmail frontpage, so I guess they check the IP, or something similar, to make sure you're in the US.


Of course, everyone I know already have a Gmail address already

 

[mbdamdg]

i'm sure someone could email you an invite.....I have somewhere around 50 invites......Now if you're friends were really your friends they would invite you. Or maybe they're trying to save you from the 'Google take over the world plot' by not introducing you to gmail.....

 

[debroglie]

i'm sure someone could email you an invite.....I have somewhere around 50 invites......Now if you're friends were really your friends they would invite you. Or maybe they're trying to save you from the 'Google take over the world plot' by not introducing you to gmail.....

I don't think that he is saying that he needs to get an account, he was just saying that supposedly signups are now open, yet he can't find the page

 

[yippy]

I will confirm that signups are available. On the US gmail sight you give them your phone number and they text message an invitation code to you. There is a limit of 10 codes per phone number.

I can give you a screen shot if you want it.

 

[michaelrjohnson]

They do seem to be available to the general public, as the OP said.

 

[dubbz]

I can give you a screen shot if you want it.

That whould be nice.


Thanks for the offer, mbdamdg, but I already have several Gmail accounts.

 

[Flying Llama]

I think Google is also partially doing this whole "invitation" thing to make you feel special and part of the "club". It's actually quite a good marketing trick, since I and thousands have fallen for it!

llama

 

[quackattack]

I think Google is also partially doing this whole "invitation" thing to make you feel special and part of the "club". It's actually quite a good marketing trick, since I and thousands have fallen for it!

llama

Yes, not that nearly everyone has 50 invites, it is not the most exclusive club! Good to see it is now more open, although it is not truely open to all just yet.

 

[yippy]

This is what the US site looks like to sign up.

 

[ITASOR]

I do, but many people do not have a mobile phone. Why not use e-mail verification? It proves you are real, but still is something that anyone can use.

OR!

Even better, they could just CALL the phone number you give them and a voice read the number. This way you could give them a home phone number. Almost everyone has a phone of some sort, but it's definitely not everyone who has a mobile phone.

By limiting it to only people who have a mobile phone, it STILL looks like they are trying to cut back on the number of users on Gmail.

 

[wdlove]

The offer leaves me out I don't personally have a mobile phone. Seems strange that they wouldn't just use the computer and E.Mail.

 

[AoWolf]

The offer leaves me out I don't personally have a mobile phone. Seems strange that they wouldn't just use the computer and E.Mail.

I guess so it makes it that much harder to use a bot...

 

[dubbz]

The offer leaves me out I don't personally have a mobile phone. Seems strange that they wouldn't just use the computer and E.Mail.

Do you have to own a phone yourself? It whould seem possible just to have the code sent to a friends phone, if you don't have one yourself.

 

[StarbucksSam]

Do you have to own a phone yourself? It whould seem possible just to have the code sent to a friends phone, if you don't have one yourself.

Makes sense to me. They have no way of knowing whose phone it is. Or do they... hehe.

 

[buryyourbrideau]

The offer leaves me out I don't personally have a mobile phone. Seems strange that they wouldn't just use the computer and E.Mail.

well if you would like one, i would be more than happy to give a fellow MR friend an invite!

 

[freiheit]

I will confirm that signups are available. On the US gmail sight you give them your phone number and they text message an invitation code to you. There is a limit of 10 codes per phone number.

What an incredibly pointless use of technology. You HAVE to have (and use) a cell phone's text messaging in order to sign up for an email account? I mean, my god, imagine going to a car dealer, paying for a car and having them tell you they won't give it to you until you go home and listen to the radio to hear your "lucky number". Just because text messaging exists doesn't mean it should be used as the sole means of obtaining other things.

I expected better from Google.

 

[Heb1228]

Maybe after taking over the internet, Google will take over the cell phone business too.

 

[Counterfit]

Ha, maybe I'll finally get around to making a gmail account for myself...



naahhh

 

[Mechcozmo]

I do, but many people do not have a mobile phone. Why not use e-mail verification? It proves you are real, but still is something that anyone can use.

OR!

Even better, they could just CALL the phone number you give them and a voice read the number. This way you could give them a home phone number. Almost everyone has a phone of some sort, but it's definitely not everyone who has a mobile phone.

By limiting it to only people who have a mobile phone, it STILL looks like they are trying to cut back on the number of users on Gmail.

Nigerian spammers would abuse it soooo badly. Quite a bit safer now, methinks.

 

[Le Big Mac]

I think Google is also partially doing this whole "invitation" thing to make you feel special and part of the "club". It's actually quite a good marketing trick, since I and thousands have fallen for it!

llama

In general I agree, but since I didn't score an invite quickly enough, my standard user name has been taken by someone else. Guess I'll stick with yahoo and/or hotmail.

 

[watcher2001]

From their FAQ as to why you have to have a cell phone

Can I sign up without the invitation code? Or without a mobile phone?
Answer


You need to receive and enter a special invitation code in order to create an account. Currently, we are only sending these codes as text messages to US mobile phones. So you will need to have a mobile phone with text message capabilities (most phones have this) and the invitation code itself.

One of the reasons we are offering this new way to sign up for Gmail is to help protect our users and combat abuse. Spam and abuse protection are two things we take very seriously, and our users have been very happy with the small amount of spam they've received in their Gmail accounts. We take many measures to ensure that spammers have a difficult time sending their spam messages, getting these messages delivered, or even obtaining a Gmail account (spammers will often use many different accounts to send spam). Sending invitation codes to mobile phones via SMS is one way to address this, as the number of accounts per phone number can be limited.

If you want to open an account a different way, you may want to ask a friend with a mobile phone to receive an invitation code for you or to ask someone you know who already has a Gmail account to email you an invitation.

Looks a lot like they are trying to keep out the spammers. That being said if anyone wants an invite PM me with your e-mail addy and I will send you one.

 

[jopebythesea]

From their FAQ as to why you have to have a cell phone



Looks a lot like they are trying to keep out the spammers. That being said if anyone wants an invite PM me with your e-mail addy and I will send you one.

It does kind of bias it for use in the States only. Which is odd, for a service that comes in 38 languages... But I'd rather go through the hassle of scrounging an invite now than watch my account fill up with spam.