ATT WiFi Calling now works over seas for free

[misanman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by audreyh1 I thought WiFi calling was supported on 5c and later iPhones with AT&T Sprint and T-Mobile. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT203032

We have Verizon so that is probably the issue. I couldn't find WiFi calling under Settings and found a "phones supported" list online that didn't include the 5c so I jumped to the conclusion that the 5c was too old or otherwise not capable.

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[mpeirce]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mpeirce Domestically, the advantage is being able to connect to the phone system if your cellular coverage it poor inside where there is good WiFi. Many houses are like this. There is also a case where your cell company might have coverage in an area, but there is WiFi available (typically indoors).

Also domestically, you can use other devices (iPad and iPod Touches) to make calls using a WiFi connection to the general telephone network. I.e. your iPad becomes a fully functional phone.

[Alan]

I updated the O/S last night and enabled wifi for the phone. For me it is going to be most useful for travel in foreign countries. I usually use Skype from my phone or laptop when making US calls from abroad, but only US toll free numbers are free when doing this. Making US calls with the phone over wifi from abroad means all US calls and texts will be free.

As someone earlier pointed out if you need data while abroad (e.g. using Google Maps while driving in a city) then you'll need an international data plan. AT&T has one for $30 for a month which worked great for us last year when driving in Canada.

[Helios]

Question,as this is new to me. After finding a wifi hotspot, just make your call back to us? Does my 6 know not to use cellular? I have turned on wifi calling under settings. Thank you

[Blueskies123]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Helios Question,as this is new to me. After finding a wifi hotspot, just make your call back to us? Does my 6 know not to use cellular? I have turned on wifi calling under settings. Thank you

I assume you have to turn your cellar services off but I am not sure

[Blueskies123]

This is from the att web site:
To enable Wi-Fi calling on iPhone, visit Settings > Phone > Wi-Fi Calling and toggle the "Wi-Fi Calling on This iPhone" switch to the on position. Users activating the service for the first time might have to navigate through an initial setup process. Currently, the feature is limited to iPhone 6, iPhone Plus, iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus models.

Once Wi-Fi calling is enabled on a user's iPhone, and when connected to a Wi-Fi network, the system automatically reroutes incoming and outgoing calls over the Internet. Subscribers can use their regular phone number with the service, so there is no need to remember a special access number or download a special app.

AT&T first introduced Wi-Fi calling on iPhone last year, first rolling out access to a select group of beta testers before opening access to all eligible customers in October.

[Whisper66]

Quote:

Originally Posted by misanman DW has IOS 9.3 on her 5c but I understand that WiFi calling is not supported on older phones such as hers.

Will be glad when/if this capability is available for older phones. In the meantime, my wife and I have been communicating free of charge (text / phone calls) via WhatsApp, a free tool you can download from online that uses internet to send text/voice.

Edit: WhatsApp also is now available to use on your computer as well, including Macs. I've used that from my end a couple times without problem.

[audreyh1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Whisper66 Will be glad when/if this capability is available for older phones. In the meantime, my wife and I have been communicating free of charge (text / phone calls) via WhatsApp, a free tool you can download from online that uses internet to send text/voice. Edit: WhatsApp also is now available to use on your computer as well, including Macs. I've used that from my end a couple times without problem.

I think this is a hardware feature, so don't expect it to appear for older phones.

[mpeirce]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Helios Question,as this is new to me. After finding a wifi hotspot, just make your call back to us? Does my 6 know not to use cellular? I have turned on wifi calling under settings. Thank you

No need to turn off cellular service, the phone looks at the cellular signal (domestically) or the fact that you not talking to an ATT cellular tower (internationally) and enables the WiFi calling if it's called for.

I just snapped these two image on my phone:

The first one shows a two bar cellular signal and "AT&T Wi-Fi" to show it's decided to use WiFI calling.

The second shows I turned on Airplane mode to turn off the cellular radio. Then I turned on WiFi. This still allows WiFi calling.

[MBAustin]

Thanks, mpeirce, that answered my question. This will be great for my trips to Europe this year and Peru next year.

[MichaelB]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mpeirce No need to turn off cellular service, the phone looks at the cellular signal (domestically) or the fact that you not talking to an ATT cellular tower (internationally) and enables the WiFi calling if it's called for.

I've noticed with my Verizon phone that when on a wifi connection it automatically shifts to cellular when the signal has any problems. This happens frequently at hotels with poor quality wifi. Not challenging your post, just wondering if the same thing might happen when abroad.

[Alan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelB I've noticed with my Verizon phone that when on a wifi connection it automatically shifts to cellular when the signal has any problems. This happens frequently at hotels with poor quality wifi. Not challenging your post, just wondering if the same thing might happen when abroad.

I agree. We learned to turn off cellular data even in the USA because of this issue. Last year we had stayed in a Best Western in Monterrey and then while driving up the coast next day we got a text warning us that we had used 75% of our available data for the month. Turns out that while streaming to the TV if the wifi drops out the phone switches seamlessly to data to continue streaming.

[mpeirce]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alan I agree. We learned to turn off cellular data even in the USA because of this issue. Last year we had stayed in a Best Western in Monterrey and then while driving up the coast next day we got a text warning us that we had used 75% of our available data for the month. Turns out that while streaming to the TV if the wifi drops out the phone switches seamlessly to data to continue streaming.

That's another feature, Wi-Fi Assist

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT205296

This option lets the phone use the more reliable data source. In some cases the phone will switch from using WiFi to using cellular data.

You can control this in Settings > Cellular > Wi-Fi Assist

I'm not certain how these (WiFi Assist and WiFi calling) interact. I expect there is some heuristic that picks the more reliable connection to make a call. It might even be dynamic and adjust as conditions change.

[Alan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mpeirce That's another feature, Wi-Fi Assist https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT205296 This option lets the phone use the more reliable data source. In some cases the phone will switch from using WiFi to using cellular data. You can control this in Settings > Cellular > Wi-Fi Assist I'm not certain how these (WiFi Assist and WiFi calling) interact. I expect there is some heuristic that picks the more reliable connection to make a call. It might even be dynamic and adjust as conditions change.

I remember when this feature appeared in iOS 9 and immediately turned it off (default was ON when I did the upgrade).

The experience we had was prior to iOS 9 (which came out last Fall I believe). Adding the ability to turn it off without disabling cellular data is nice to have as a feature.

[samclem]

It will be interesting to see how this might affect the business model of Republic Wireless. Their "niche" is that calls go over Wifi when available rather than using a cellular network.
PROS: It works great, no need for special actions, and is cheap (I pay about $15/mo for all my calls and the data I need). And I don't use "cellular minutes" for calls placed over wifi.
CONS: Gotta buy their specially modified smartphones (Motorola models, which are pretty nice and well priced).

[FIYes]

Okay, this is so cool!

. I don't have an iPhone but I do have an iPad. I just installed Google hangouts and set up a Google number. I made a phone call using my iPad! Now my question is where I will use this. I have a basic tracfone that does not roam. I can see being in a situation where I don't have cell phone service but do have wi fi.

I will be overseas later this spring. Wonder if this will give me the opportunity to call the USA using my iPad on Wi fi.


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[targatom2019]

Peeps, down load Viper app to call Viper app users for free anywhere in the world. All you need is a Wifi connection and a phone to make calls, end text, pictures or videos.