Chapter 4. Phone Calls & FaceTime
With each successive iPhone model, Apple improves the iPhoneâs antennas, circuitry, speakers, microphones, and software. And features like Siri, auto-reply, and Do Not Disturb have turned Appleâs phone from an also-ran into one of the most useful gadgets ever to hop onto a cellular network.
Dialing from the Phone App
Suppose youâre in luck. Suppose the bars at the top of the screen tell you that youâve got cellular reception. Youâre ready to start a conversation. To make a phone call, open the Phone app. Itâs usually at the bottom of the Home screen. (The tiny circled number, like , tells you how many missed calls and voicemail messages you have.)
Tip
Using Siri is often faster. You get good results saying things like, âCall Casey Robinâs cellâ or âDial 866-2331.â Truth is, you donât even need the verb. If you utter only a phone number to Siri, sheâll figure out what to do.
Now youâve arrived in the Phone app. The icons at the bottom represent your voicemail (âVisual Voicemailâ) and the four ways of dialing from here:
Favorites. Hereâs the iPhoneâs version of speed dial: It lists up to 50 people you think you call most frequently. Tap a name to make the call. (Details on building and editing this list begin on the next page.)
Recents. Every call youâve recently made, answered, missed, or even just dialed appears in this list. Missed callersâ names appear in red lettering, which makes it easy to spot themâand to call them back.
Tap a name or a number to dial. Or tap the to view the details of a callâwhen, where, how longâand, if you like, to add this number to your Contacts list.
Contacts. This program also has an icon of its own on the Home screen; you donât have to drill down to it through the Phone button. Itâs your phone book; tap somebodyâs name or number to dial it.
Keypad. This dialing padâs big, fat buttons are easy to hit even with big, fat fingers. Punch in a number and then tap to place the call.
Once youâve dialed, no matter which method you used, either hold the iPhone up to your head, put in the earbuds or AirPods, turn on the speakerphone, or put on your Bluetooth earpieceâand start talking!
This, however, is only the Quick Start Guide. Hereâs a more detailed look at each of the Phone-app modules.
The Favorites List
You may not wind up dialing much from Contacts. Thatâs the master list, all right, but itâs too unwieldy when you just want to call your spouse, your boss, or your lawyer. Dialing by voice (Chapter 5) is almost always faster. But when silence is golden, at the very least use the Favorites listâa short, easy-to-scan list of the people you call most often (facing page, left).
Actually, calling is only the beginning. A favorite can be any kind of âaddressâ: for an email, text message, video call, even an internet voice call in an app like WhatsApp, Skype, or Cisco Spark. In other words, you can set things up so one tap on a favorite opens an outgoing text to your beloved, and a different tap triggers a Skype call to your boss.
Tip
Once youâve set up these favorites, you can add them to the Today screen (âThe Today Screen (Widgets)â), so that placing one of these calls or text communications is only a swipe and a tap away.
You can add names to this list in any of three ways:
From the Favorites list itself. Tap to view your Contacts list. Tap the person you want. If thereâs more than one phone number or email address on the info screen, then tap the one you want to add to Favorites.
Tip
Each favorite doesnât represent a person; it represents a number or address. So if your best friend Chris has both a home number and a cell number, then add two items to the Favorites list. Gray lettering in the list lets you know whether each number or address is mobile, home, Skype, Messages, FaceTime, or whatever.
From the Contacts list. Tap a name to open the info screen, where youâll find a button called Add to Favorites. It opens the Add to Favorites panel shown above at right. For each of its four communication methodsâMessage, Call, Video, Mailâyou get a pop-up menu that lists your available apps for performing that sort of human contact.
Tap the one you want to add to Favorites.
From the Recents list. Tap next to any name or number in the Recents list. If itâs somebody whoâs already in your Contacts list, you arrive at the Call Details screen, where one tap on Add to Favorites does what it says.
If itâs somebody whoâs not in Contacts yet, youâll have to put her there first. Tap Create New Contact, and then proceed as described in âAdding to the Contacts Listâ. After you hit Save, you return to the Call Details screen so you can tap Add to Favorites.
Tip
To help you remember that a certain phone number or email address is already in your Favorites list, a gray star appears next to it in certain spots, like the Call Details screen and the Contact Info screen.
The Favorites list holds 50 numbers. Once youâve added 50, the Add to Favorites and buttons disappear.
Note
The face of each favorite peeks out of a round frame next to the name, and if your Contacts card for that person doesnât have a photo, the circle shows the personâs initials instead.
Reordering Favorites
Tapping that Edit button at the top of the Favorites list offers another handy feature, too: It lets you drag names up and down, so the most important people appear at the top of the list. Just use the grip strip () as a handle to move entire names up or down the list.
Deleting from Favorites
To delete somebody from your Favoritesâthe morning after a nasty political argument, for exampleâuse the iPhoneâs standard swipe-to-delete shortcut: Swipe leftward across the undesired name. Tap the Delete button that appears.
(If youâre paid by the hour, you can use the slow method, too. Tap Edit. Now tap the button next to the unwanted entry and tap Delete to confirm.)
The Recents List
Like any self-respecting cellphone, the iPhone maintains a list of everybody youâve called or whoâs called you recently. The idea, of course, is to provide you with a quick way to call someone youâve been talking to lately.
To see the list, tap Recents at the bottom of the Phone app. You see a list of the last 75 calls that youâve received or placed, along with each personâs name or number (depending on whether that name is in Contacts or not), city of the callerâs home area code (for callers not in your Contacts), time or date of the call, and what kind of call it wasâmobile, home, work, FaceTime, FaceTime Audio, Skype, or whatever.
Hereâs what you need to know about the Recents list:
Calls you missed (or sent to voicemail) appear in red type. If you tap Missed at the top of the screen, you see only your missed calls. The color-coding and separate listings are designed to make it easy for you to return calls you missed, or to try again to reach someone who didnât answer when you called.
A tiny or icon lets you know which calls you made (to differentiate them from calls you received).
To call someone backâregardless of whether you answered or dialed the callâtap that name or number in the list.
Tap next to any call to open the info screen. At the top of the screen, you can see whether this was an outgoing call, an incoming call, a missed call, or a canceled call (in which you chickened out and hung up before your callee answered).
What else you see here depends on whether the other person is in your Contacts list.
If so, the info screen displays the personâs whole information card (below, left). A little table displays all the incoming and outgoing calls to or from this person that day. A small gray star denotes a phone number thatâs also in your Favorites list, and a Recent label indicates a recent call from that number.
If the call isnât from someone in your Contacts, then you get to see a handy notation at the top of the info screen: the city and state where the calling phone is registered (above, right).
Tip
If someone who isnât in Contacts has called you, iOS takes a guess at that personâs nameâby looking for a matching phone number in the signature portion of your received email! For example, if Frank Smythe has called you from 213-292-3344, and thereâs also an email from him with his phone number as part of his signature, then the Recents list will say: Maybe: Frank Smythe. Clever!
To save you scrolling, the Recents list thoughtfully combines consecutive calls to or from the same person. If some obsessed ex-lover has been calling you every ten minutes for four hours, youâll see âChris Meyerson (24)â in the Recents list. (Tap to see the exact times of the calls.)
You can erase one call from this list exactly the same way youâd delete a favorite: Swipe leftward across the undesired name. Tap the Delete button that appears. (Once again, thereâs also a long way: Tap Edit, tap next to the unwanted entry, and then tap Delete.)
You can also erase the entire list, thus preventing a co-worker or significant other from discovering your illicit activities: Tap Edit, and then tap Clear at the top of the screen. Youâre asked to confirm your decision.
Contacts
The Phone app may offer four ways to dialâFavorites, Recents, Contacts, and Keypadâbut the Contacts list is the source from which all other lists spring. Thatâs probably why itâs listed several times: once with its own icon on the Home screen, again at the bottom of the Phone app, and also in the FaceTime and Messages apps (when you tap the ).
Contacts is your address bookâyour master phone book.
Note
Your iPhoneâs own phone number appears at the top of the Contacts list. Thatâs a much better place for it than deep at the end of a menu labyrinth, where it is on most phones.
If your social circle is longer than one screenful, you can navigate this list in any of three ways:
First, you can savor the distinct pleasure of flicking through it.
Second, if youâre in a hurry to get to the Vâs, use the A-to-Z index down the right edge of the screen. Just tap the first letter of the last name youâre looking for. Or slide your finger up or down the index. The list scrolls with it.
Third, you can use the search box at the very top of the list, above the Aâs.
Tap to make the keyboard appear. As you type, Contacts pares down the list, hiding everyone whose first, last, or company name doesnât match what youâve typed so far. Itâs a really fast way to pluck one name out of a haystack.
(You can clear the search box by tapping the at its right end or restore the full list by tapping Cancel.)
In any case, when you see the name you want, tap it to open its information card. Tap the number you want to dial.
Groups
Many computer address book programs, including the Macâs Contacts app, let you place your contacts into groupsâsubsets like Book Club or Fantasy League Guys. You canât create or delete groups on the iPhone without a special app, but at least the groups from your Mac, PC, Exchange server, or iCloud account can get synced over to it. To see them, and to switch them all on or off at once, tap Groups at the top of the Contacts list.
Hereâs where groups come into play:
If you canât seem to find someone in the list, you may be looking in the wrong list. Tap Groups at the top-left corner to return to the list of accounts. Tap Show All Contacts to view a single, unified list of everyone your phone knows about.
If you use the Groups feature, remember to tap the group name you want before you create a new contact. Thatâs how you put someone into an existing group. (If not, tap All Contacts instead.)
Note
Contacts imported from Facebook and Twitter are no longer groups that you can hide or show at will. If youâve given those apps access to Contacts, you may find the list hideously bloated with hundreds of people you never actually call. If you donât want to see them, you have to remove them individually. Too bad!
Adding to the Contacts List
Every cellphone has a Contacts list, of course, but the beauty of the iPhone is that you donât have to type in the phone numbers one at a time. Instead, the iPhone sucks in the entire phone book from your Mac or PC, iCloud, and/or an Exchange server at work.
Itâs infinitely easier to edit your address book on the computer, where you have an actual keyboard and mouse. The iPhone also makes it easy to add someoneâs contact information when she calls, emails, or text messages you, thanks to a prominent Add to Contacts button.
But if, in a pinch, on the road, at gunpoint, you have to add, edit, or remove a contact manually, hereâs how to do it:
Make sure youâve selected the right group or account, as described already. Now, on the Contacts screen, tap . You arrive at the New Contact screen, which teems with empty boxes.
It shouldnât take you long to figure out how to fill in this form: You tap in a box and type. But here are a few tips and tricks for data entry:
The keyboard opens automatically when you tap in a box. And the iPhone capitalizes the first letter of each word for you.
Phone numbers are special. When you enter a phone number, the iPhone adds parentheses and hyphens for you. (You can even enter text phone numbers, like 1-800-GO-BROWNS; the iPhone converts the letters to digits when it dials.)
If you need to insert a pauseâfor dialing access numbers, extension numbers, or voicemail passwordsâtype #, which introduces a two-second pause in the dialing. You can type several of them to create longer pauses.
To change the label for a number (âmobile,â âhome,â âwork,â and so on), tap the label thatâs there now. The Label screen shows you your choices. Thereâs even a label called âiPhone,â so you and your buddy can gloat together.
Tip
If you scroll down the Label screen, youâll see that you can also create custom labels. You might prefer someoneâs cellphone number to be identified as âcellâ instead of âmobile,â for example. Or you might want to create a label that says âSkype,â âGoogle Voice,â âLine 2,â âYacht Phone,â or âBat Phone.â The secret: Tap Add Custom Label. (Once youâve created a custom label, itâs there in the list of options for your use later.)
Expand-O-Fields mean youâll never run out of room. Almost every field (empty box) on a Contacts card is infinitely expanding. That is, the instant you start filling in a field, another empty box (labeled add phone or whatever) appears right below it, so you can immediately add another phone number, email address, URL, or street address. (The only nonexpanding fields are First name, Last name, Company, Ringtone, Text Tone, Notes, and whatever oddball fields you add yourself.)
For example, when you first tap add phone, the phone-number box you get is labeled âhome.â (If thatâs not the right label, you can tap it to choose from one of nine othersâor add a custom label.) A new add phone button appears so youâll have a place to enter a second phone number for this person. When you do that, a third add phone button appears. And so on.
In other words, you can never run out of places to add more phone numbers, addresses, URLs, and social media profiles.
Note
Tapping add field at the bottom of this screen lets you add a new miscellaneous field, like Nickname or Department.
Relationships are here. In iCloud accounts, thereâs also the social profile field, where you can list somebodyâs Twitter, LinkedIn, Flickr, Facebook, and even Myspace addresses. Thereâs an instant message field, too, where you can record addresses for chat networks like Yahoo Messenger.
And thereâs add related name. Hereâs where you can list this personâs mother, father, spouse, partner, child, manager, sibling, and so onâor even specify a different type of relationship (tap the existing label and then Add Custom Label).
Note
As you are about to discover in Chapter 5, Siri knows about your relationships. You can tell her to âCall my momâ or âText my boss.â Does the add related name feature mean you can now ask Siri to âCall Chris Robinâs managerâ?
Alas, no. These fields work that way only for your own relationships.
You can add a photo of the person, if you like. Tap add photo. If you have a photo of the person on your phone already, tap Choose Photo. Youâre taken to your photo collection, where you can find a good headshot.
Alternatively, tap Take Photo to activate the iPhoneâs built-in camera. Frame the person, and then tap the white camera button to snap the shot.
In any case, you wind up at the Move and Scale screen. Here you can frame up the photo so the personâs face is nicely sized and centered. Spread two fingers to enlarge the photo; drag your finger to move the image within the frame. Tap Choose to commit the photo to the address bookâs memory. (Back on the info screen where you started, a miniature version of the photo now appears. Tap edit if you want to change the photo, take a new one, adjust the Move and Scale screen, or get rid of it altogether.)
From now on, this photo will pop up whenever the person calls. It also appears next to the personâs name in your Favorites list.
You can choose a ringtone. You can choose a different ringtone for each person in your address book. The idea is that youâll know by the sound of the ring whoâs calling you.
Note
Itâs one tone per person, not per phone number. Of course, if you really want one ringtone for your buddyâs cellphone and another for his home phone, you can always create a different Contacts card for each one.
To choose a ringtone, tap Default. On the next screen, tap any sound in the Ringtones or Alert Tones lists to sample them. (Despite the separate lists, in this context, these sounds are all being offered as ringtones.) When youâve settled on a good one, tap Done to return to the info screen where you started.
Tip
Here, on the ringtone selection screen, youâre offered an Emergency Bypass switch. Turn it on to say, âWhenever this person calls or texts, I want my phone to ring or vibrate even if Iâve turned on Do Not Disturbâ (âDo Not Disturbâ).
You can specify a vibration pattern for incoming calls. This unsung feature lets you assign a custom vibration pattern to each person in your Contacts, so you know by feel whoâs callingâwithout even removing the phone from your pocket, even if your ringer is off. Itâs a surprisingly useful option.
To set it up, start on the Ringtone screen described already; tap Default next to the word Vibration. Youâre offered a choice of canned patterns (Alert, Heartbeat, Quick, Rapid, and so on). But if you tap Create New Vibration, you can then tap the screen in whatever rhythm you like. It can be diddle diddle deeâ¦or the opening notes to the Hallelujah Chorusâ¦or the actual syllables of the personâs name. (âMaryanna Beckleheimer.â Can you feel it?)
The phone records your pattern, which you can prove to yourself by tapping Play. If you tap Save and name that pattern, then it becomes one of the choices when you choose a vibration pattern for someone in your Contacts. Itâs what youâll feel whenever this person calls you. Yes, itâs tactile caller ID. Wild.
You can also pick a text-message sound (and vibration). Just as you can choose sounds and vibrations for incoming phone calls, you can tap Text Tone to choose sounds and vibrations for incoming text messages and FaceTime invitations.
You can add new fields of your own. Very cool: If you tap add field at the bottom of the screen, then you go down the rabbit hole into Field Land, where you can add any of 13 additional info bits about the person whose card youâre editing: a prefix (like Mr. or Mrs.), a suffix (like M.D. or Esq.), a nickname, a job title, a phonetic pronunciation for people with uncommon names, and so on.
When you tap one of these labels, you return to the info screen, where youâll see that the iPhone has inserted the new, empty field in the most intelligent spot. For example, if you add a phonetic first name, that box appears just below the âFirst nameâ box. The keyboard opens so you can fill in the blank.
You can link and unlink Unified Contacts. As noted earlier, your phone can sync up with different accounts. Your Contacts app might list four sets of names and numbers: one stored on your phone, one from an iCloud account, one from Facebook, and a fourth from your corporate Exchange server at work. In the old days, therefore, certain names might have shown up in the All Contacts list two or three timesânot an optimal situation.
Now, as a favor to you, the iPhone displays each personâs name only once in that master All Contacts list. If you tap that name, you open a unified information screen for that person. It includes all the details from all the underlying contact cards.
Note
The iPhone combines cards in the All Contacts list only if the first and last names are exactly the same. If thereâs a difference in name, suffix, prefix, or middle name, then no unifying takes place. Remember, too, that you see the unification only if you view the All Contacts list.
To see which cards the iPhone is combining for you, scroll to the bottom of the card. There the Linked Contacts section shows you which cards have been unified.
You can tap a listing to open the card in the corresponding account. For that matter, you can manually link a card, too; tap Edit, tap link contacts, and then choose a contact to link to this unified cardâeven if the name isnât a perfect match.
Note
Itâs OK to link Joe Carneliaâs card with Joseph Carneliaâs cardâtheyâre probably the same person. But donât link up different peopleâs cards. Remember, the whole point is to make the iPhone combine all the phone numbers, email addresses, and so on onto a single cardâand seeing two sets on one card could get confusing fast.
This stuff gets complex. But, in general, the iPhone tries to do the right thing. For example, if you edit the information on the unified card, youâre changing that information only on the card in the corresponding account. (Unless you add information to the unified card. In that case, the new data tidbit is added to all the underlying source-account cards.)
Note
To delete any info bit from a Contacts card, tap the next to it, and then tap the Delete button to confirm.
Adding a Contact on the Fly
Thereâs actually another way to add someone to your Contacts listâa faster, on-the-fly method thatâs more typical of cellphones. Start by bringing the phone number up on the screen:
In the Phone app, open the Keypad. Dial the number, and then tap Add Number.
You can also add a number thatâs in your Recents (recent calls) list, storing it in Contacts for future use. Tap the button next to the name.
In both cases, finish up by tapping Create New Contact (to enter this personâs name for the first time) or Add to Existing Contact (to add a new phone number to the card of someone whoâs already in your list). Off you go to the Contacts editing screen shown in ???.
Editing Someone
To make corrections or changes, tap the personâs name in the Contacts list. In the upper-right corner of the info card, tap Edit.
You return to the screens already described, where you can make whatever changes you like. After you tap Done (or Cancel), you can return to the Contacts list by swiping to the right.
Deleting Someone
Truth is, youâll probably add people to your address book far more often than youâll delete them. After all, you meet new people all the timeâbut you delete them primarily when they die, move away, or dump you.
To zap someone, tap the name in the Contacts list and then tap Edit. Scroll down, tap Delete Contact, and confirm by tapping Delete Contact again. (Weirdly, the Delete Contact option doesnât appear if you open someoneâs info card from the Recents or Favorites listsâonly from the main Contacts list.)
Sharing a Contact
Thereâs a lot of work involved in entering someoneâs contact information. Itâs a nice touch, therefore, that you can spare the next guy all that effortâby sending a fully formed electronic business card to him.
To do that, open the contactâs cardâit can be yours or anyoneâsâand tap Share Contact. On the Share sheet, youâre offered AirDrop, Message, Mail, and More. (âMessageâ means text message. AirDrop is described in âAirDropâ. And More is a place for new apps to install their sharing options.)
Tap your choice, address the message (to an email address or, for a message, a cellphone number), and send it. The recipient, assuming he has a half-decent smartphone or address-book program on the receiving end, can install that personâs information with a single tap on the attachment.
The Keypad
The fourth way to place a call is to tap Keypad at the bottom of the screen. The standard iPhone dialing pad appears.
Itâs just like the number pad on a flip phone, except that the âkeysâ are much bigger and you canât feel them.
To make a call, tap out (or paste) the phone numberâuse the key to backspace if you make a mistakeâand then tap the button.
You can also use the keypad to enter a phone number into your Contacts list, thanks to the button, as described earlier.
Tip
If you tap the button before touching any digits, you call up the last number you dialed on the keypad, ready to call again.
Visual Voicemail
On the iPhone, you donât dial in to check for answering-machine messages people have left for you. You donât enter a password. You donât sit through some Ambien-addled recorded voice saying, âYou haveâ¦17â¦messages. To hear your messages, press 1. When you have finished, you may hang upâ¦â
Instead, whenever somebody leaves you a message, the phone wakes up, and a notification lets you know who itâs from. You also hear a sound (unless youâve turned on the silencer switch).
Thatâs your cue to open Phone â Voicemail. There you see all your messages in a tidy chronological list. (The list shows the callersâ names if theyâre in your Contacts list; otherwise it shows their numbers.) You can listen to them in any orderâyouâre not forced to listen to three long-winded friends before discovering that thereâs an urgent message from your boss. Itâs a game-changer.
iOS even makes an attempt to transcribe your voicemailsâto understand them and type out what they say. Itâs pretty crude, with lots of wrong and missing words. But itâs usually enough to get the gist.
Setup
To access your voicemail, open the Phone app; tap Voicemail.
The very first time you visit this screen, the iPhone prompts you to make up a numeric password for your voicemail accountâdonât worry, youâll never have to enter it again, unless you plan to actually dial in for messages (âDialing in for Messagesâ). Record a âLeave me a messageâ greeting.
You have two options for the outgoing greeting:
Default. If youâre microphone-shy, or if youâre famous and donât want stalkers calling just to hear your famous voice, then use this option. Itâs a prerecorded female voice that says, âYour call has been forwarded to an automatic voice message system. 212-661-7837 is not available.â Beep!
Custom. This option lets you record your own voice saying, for example, âYouâve reached my iPhone XS Max. You may begin drooling at the tone.â Tap Record, hold the iPhone to your head, say your line, and then tap Stop.
Check how it sounds by tapping Play.
Then just wait for your fans to start leaving you messages!
Using Visual Voicemail
In the voicemail list, a blue dot () indicates a message you havenât yet played.
Tip
You can work through your messages even when youâre out of cellular rangeâon a plane, for exampleâbecause the recordings are stored on the iPhone itself.
When you tap the name of a message, you instantly see the date and time it came in, the personâs name (if itâs in your Contacts) or the cellphoneâs registered city and state (if not), and a rough transcription. The Play slider tells you how many seconds long the message is.
And all the controls you need are right there, surrounding the message you tapped:
Share (). Yes, you can send a voicemail recording to someone elseâby email, text message, or whatever (âThe Share Sheetâ). Thatâs a handy bit of record-keeping that could be very useful in, say, a criminal trial.
The transcript. This is a crude transcript (Apple labels it beta, after all). Thereâs no punctuation. There may be missing ____ and phrases. Some words might be completely wrong. But itâs usually good enough that you can tell if a message is some robocall asking for money, or a message from the school nurse saying your kid has a broken rib.
. Tap to listen to the message.
Speaker. As the name âVisual Voicemailâ suggests, youâre looking at your voicemail listâwhich means youâre not holding the phone up to your head. The first time people try using Visual Voicemail, therefore, they generally hear nothing!
But if you hit Speaker before you tap , you can hear the playback and continue looking over the list.
Note
If youâre listening through the earbuds, a Bluetooth earpiece, or a car kit, of course, then you hear the message playing back through that. If you really want to listen through the iPhoneâs speaker instead, tap Audio and then Speaker. (You switch back the same way.)
Call Back. Tap Call Back to return the call. Very coolâyou never even encounter the personâs phone number.
Delete. You might want to keep the list manageable by deleting old messages. To do that, tap a messageâs Delete button.
If you have a lot of messages to delete, hereâs a faster way: Swipe across the first oneâs name right to left, and then tap Delete. The message disappears instantly. You can work down the list quickly this way.
If you didnât know that trick, you could also do it the slow way: Tap Edit (upper right of the screen). Tap the button next to a messageâs name and then tap Delete to confirm. Tap the next button and continue.
Tip
To listen to deleted messages that are still on the phone, scroll to the bottom of the list and then tap Deleted Messages.
On the Deleted screen, you can undelete a message that you actually donât want to lose yet (that is, move it back to the Voicemail screenâtap it and then tap Undelete) or tap Clear All to erase these messages for good.
Rewind, Fast Forward. Drag the little vertical line in the scrubber bar (beneath the message) to skip backward or forward in the message. Itâs a great way to replay something you didnât catch the first time.
To collapse the expanded message, tap another message in the list, if itâs visible, or just tap the callerâs name.
Even before youâve expanded a messageâs row to view the Play, Speaker, Call Back, and Delete buttons, a few other Visual Voicemail buttons are awaiting your inspection:
Greeting. Tap Greeting (upper-left corner) to record your voicemail greeting.
Call Details. Tap to open the info screenâthe Contacts cardâfor the message that was left for you.
If it was left by somebody whoâs in your Contacts list, you can see which of that personâs phone numbers the call came from (indicated in blue type), plus a if that number is in your Favorites list. Oh, and you can add this person to your Favorites list at this point by tapping Add to Favorites (at the bottom of the screen).
You can return the call right from the info screen, fire off a text message, send an email, place a FaceTime audio or video call, or even send that person some money via Apple Pay (âThe Price of Freeâ).
If the callerâs number isnât in Contacts, youâre offered a Create New Contact button and an Add to Existing Contact button, so you can store it for future reference.
Dialing in for Messages
Gross and pre-iPhonish though it may sound, you can also dial in for your messages from another phone.
To do that, dial your iPhoneâs number. Wait for the voicemail system to answer. As your own voicemail greeting plays, dial * (or # if you have Verizon), your voicemail password, and then #.
You hear the Uptight Carrier Lady announce how many messages you have, and then sheâll start playing them for you. After you hear each message, sheâll offer you the following options (but you donât have to wait for her to announce them):
To delete the message, press 7.
To save it, press 9.
To replay it, press 4. (On T-Mobile, itâs 1.)
Conveniently enough, these keystrokes are the same on Verizon, Sprint, and AT&T.
Tip
If this whole Visual Voicemail thing freaks you out, you can also dial in for messages right from your own iPhone. Open the keypad and hold down the 1 key, just as though it were a speed-dial key on any normal phone.
After a moment, the phone connects; youâre asked for your password, and then the messages begin to play back, just as described already.
Answering Calls
When someone calls your iPhone, youâll know it; three out of your five senses are alerted. Depending on how youâve set up your phone, youâll hear a ring, feel a vibration, and see the callerâs name and photo on the screen. (Smell and taste will have to wait until iOS 13.)
Note
For details on Vibrate mode and on choosing a ringtone, see âNotificationsâ.
How you answer depends on whatâs happening at the time:
If the iPhone is asleep or locked, the screen lights up and says slide to answer (below, left). If you slide your finger as indicated by the arrow, you simultaneously unlock the phone and answer the call.
If youâre using the iPhone, tap the green Accept button. Tap the red hang-up button when youâve both said enough (below, right).
If youâre wearing earbuds, the music fades out and then pauses; you hear the ring both through the phoneâs speaker and through your earbuds. (If you have a vibration pattern set up, then the phone vibrates, too). Answer by squeezing the clicker on the earbud cord or by using either of the methods already described.
Note
If youâre wearing Appleâs AirPods, you hear the ringing only through the âpods, not through the phoneâs speakers. Answer by double-tapping the outside of one of the AirPods.
When the call is over, you can click again to hang upâor just wait until the other guy hangs up. Either way, the music fades in again and resumes from the spot where you were so rudely interrupted.
Same thing if you were watching a video or listening to a podcast; it pauses for the duration of the call and resumes when you hang up.
Online and on the Phone, Together
Donât forget that the iPhone is a multitasking master. Once youâre on the phone, you can dive into any other programâto check your calendar, for exampleâwithout interrupting your call.
You may even be able to use the phoneâs internet functions (web, email, apps, and so on) without interrupting the call. To be precise, you can be online and on the phone simultaneously if any of these things is true:
Youâre in a Wi-Fi hotspot.
You have AT&T or T-Mobile.
You have an iPhone 6 or later, and youâve turned on VoLTE calling (see âA Word About VoLTEâ).
In other words, if you have Verizon (non-VoLTE) or Sprint, and if youâre not in a Wi-Fi hotspot, then you canât get online until the call is complete.
Not Answering Calls
Maybe youâre in a meeting. Maybe youâre driving. Maybe the call is from someone you really donât want to deal with. Fortunately, you have all kinds of ways to slam the cellular door in somebodyâs face.
Silencing the Ring
You might need a moment before you can answer the call, or you need to exit a meeting or put in the earbuds. In those cases, you can stop the ringing and vibrating by pressing one of the physical buttons on the edges (the side button or either volume key). The caller still hears the phone ringing, and you can still answer it within the first four rings, but at least the sound wonât be annoying those around you.
(This assumes, of course, that you havenât just flipped the silencer switch.)
Ignore Itâor Dump It to Voicemail
If you wait long enough (four rings), the call goes to voicemail (even if you silence the ringing as described already).
Or you can dump it to voicemail immediately (instead of waiting for the four rings). How you do that depends on the setup:
If the iPhone is asleep or locked, tap the side button twice fast.
If youâre using the iPhone, tap the Decline button on the screen.
If youâre wearing the earbuds, squeeze the earbuds clicker for two seconds. You hear two low beeps, meaning: âOK, Master; dumped.â
Of course, if your callers know you have an iPhone, theyâll also know youâve deliberately dumped them into voicemailâbecause they wonât hear all four rings.
Respond with a Text Message
Whenever your phone rings, the screen bears a small white Message button (shown in ??? at left). If you tap it, you get a choice of three canned text messages. Tapping one immediately dumps the caller to voicemail and sends the corresponding text message to the phone thatâs calling you. If youâre driving or in a meeting, this feature is a lot more polite and responsive than just dumping the poor slob to voicemail.
Tip
You can edit any of these three canned messages; they donât have to say, âSorry, I canât talk right now,â âIâm on my way,â and âCan I call you later?â forever. To do that, open Settings â Phone, tap Respond with Text, and replace the text in the three placeholder boxes.
The fourth button, Custom, lets you type or dictate a new message on the spot. (âIâm in a meeting and, frankly, your call isnât worth getting fired forâ comes to mind.)
Remind Me Later
The trouble with Respond with Text, of course, is that it sends a text message. What if the caller is using a landline that canât receive text messages? Fortunately, you have another option: Remind Me.
Tapping this button offers you one time-based option, In 1 Hour (which sets up a reminder to return the call an hour from now), and up to three location-based options (previous page, right): When I leave, When I get home, and When I get to work. (The home and work options appear only if the iPhone knows your home and work addressesâbecause youâve entered them in your own card in Contacts.)
These options use the phoneâs GPS circuitry to detect when youâve left your current inconvenient-to-take-the-call location, whether itâs a job interview, a first date, or an outhouse.
Fun with Phone Calls
The iPhone makes it pitifully easy to perform stunts like turning on the speakerphone, putting someone on hold, taking a second call, and so on. Here are the options you get when youâre on a call.
Mute
Tap this button to mute your own microphone, so the other guy canât hear you. (You can still hear him, though.) Now you have a chance to yell upstairs, to clear the phlegm from your throat, or to do anything else youâd rather the other party not hear. Tap again to unmute.
Keypad
Sometimes you have to input touchtones, which used to be a perk only of phones with physical dialing keys. For example, thatâs usually how you operate home answering machines when you call in for messages, and itâs often required by automated banking, reservations, and conference-call systems.
Tap this button to produce the traditional iPhone dialing pad. Each digit you touch generates the proper touchtone for the computer on the other end to hear.
When youâre finished, tap Hide to return to the dialing-functions screen, or End if your conversation is complete.
Speaker (Audio)
Tap this button to turn on the iPhoneâs built-in speakerphoneâa great hands-free option when youâre caught without your earbuds or Bluetooth headset (âBluetooth Accessoriesâ). (If the earbuds are plugged in or a Bluetooth headset or speaker is connected, the button says audio instead. You get a little menu of audio sources for your call.)
When you tap the button, it turns white to indicate that the speaker is activated. Now you can put the iPhone down on a table or a counter and have a conversation with both hands free. Tap speaker again to channel the sound back into the built-in earpiece.
Tip
On iPhones before the 7, the speaker is on the bottom edge of the phone. If youâre having trouble hearing it, and the volume is up, consider pointing the speaker toward you, or even cupping one hand around the bottom to direct the sound. (That works on later models, too, although thereâs a second speaker in the earpiece.)
Add Call (Conference Calling)
The iPhone is all about software, baby, and thatâs nowhere more apparent than in its facility at handling multiple calls at once.
The simplicity and reliability of this feature put other cellphones to shame. Never again, in attempting to answer a second call, will you have to tell the first person, âIf I lose you, Iâll call you back.â
As youâll read, however, the details depend on whether youâre using a GSM phone (AT&T or T-Mobile) or a CDMA phone (Verizon or Sprint).
Suppose youâre on a call. Here are some of the tricks you can do:
Make an outgoing call. Tap add call. The iPhone puts the first person on holdâneither of you can hear the otherâand returns you to the Phone app and its various phone-number lists. You can now make a second call in any way you want. The top of the screen makes clear that the first person is still on hold as you talk to the second.
Receive an incoming call. What happens when a second call comes in while youâre already on a call?
To answer on a GSM phone, tap End Call + Answer. On a CDMA phone, tap End Current Call; the new call makes the phone ring again, at which point you can answer it normally. Weird but true.
You can also tap End Current Call (answer the incoming call, hang up on the first) or Decline Incoming Call (send it to voicemail).
When youâre on two calls at once, the top of the screen identifies both other parties. Two new buttons appear, too:
swap lets you flip between the two calls. At the top of the screen, you see the names or numbers of your callers. One says Hold (the one whoâs on hold, of course) and the other bears a time counter, which lets you know whom youâre actually speaking to (next page, left).
Think how many TV and movie comedies have relied on the old âWhoops, I hit the wrong button and now Iâm bad-mouthing somebody directly instead of behind his back!â gag. That canât happen on the iPhone.
You can swap calls by tapping swap or by tapping the Hold personâs name or number.
merge calls combines your two calls so all three of you can converse at once. The top of the screen announces the names of your callers.
Tip
On a GSM phone, you can tap next to someoneâs name; at this point, you can drop someone from the call by tapping End or talk privately with someone by tapping Private. Tap Merge Calls to return to the group call.
This business of combining calls doesnât have to stop at two. At any time, you can tap Add Call, dial a third number, and then tap Merge to combine it with your first two. And then a fourth call, and a fifth. With you, that makes six people on the call.
Then your problem isnât technological; itâs social, as you try to conduct a meaningful conversation without interrupting one another.
FaceTime
Tap this button to switch from your current phone call into a face-to-face video call, using the FaceTime app described starting in âGet Your Ringtones Backâ.
(This feature requires that both you and the other guy have iPhones, iPads, iPod Touches, or Macs.)
Hold
The FaceTime button appears in place of what, on earlier iPhones, was the Hold button. But you can still trigger the Hold functionâby holding down the Mute button for a couple of seconds. Now neither you nor the other guy can hear anything. Tap again to resume the conversation.
Contacts
This button opens the address book program so you can look up a number or place another call.
Call Waiting
Call waiting has been around for years. With a call-waiting feature, when youâre on one phone call, you hear a beep indicating that someone else is calling. You can tap the Flash key on your phone to answer the second call while you put the first one on hold.
Some people donât use call waiting because itâs rude to both callers. Others donât use it because they have no idea what the Flash key is.
On the iPhone, when a second call comes in, the phone rings (and/or vibrates) as usual, and the screen displays the name or number of the caller, just as it always does. Buttons on the screen offer you three choices (facing page, right):
End & Accept. Hangs up on the first call and takes the second one.
Hold & Accept. This is the traditional call-waiting effect. You say, âCan you hold on a sec? Iâve got another call,â to the first caller. The iPhone puts her on hold, and you connect to the second caller.
At this point, you can jump back and forth between the two calls, or you can merge them into a conference call.
Send to Voicemail. The incoming call goes straight to voicemail. Your first caller has no idea anything has happened.
If call waiting seems a bit disruptive, you can turn it off, at least on the AT&T iPhone (the switch is in Settings â Phone â Call Waiting). When call waiting is turned off, incoming calls go straight to voicemail when youâre on the phone.
If you have T-Mobile, Sprint, or Verizon, then you can turn off call waiting only one call at a time; just dial *70 before you dial the number. You wonât be disturbed by call-waiting beeps while youâre on that important call.
Call Forwarding
Hereâs a pretty cool feature you may not have known you had. It lets you route all calls made to your iPhone number to a different number. How is this useful? Let us count the ways:
When youâre home. You can have your cellphoneâs calls ring your home number so you can use any extension in the house, or so you donât miss any calls while the iPhone is turned off.
When you send your iPhone to Apple for battery replacement. You can forward the calls you would have missed to your home or work phone number.
When youâre overseas. You can forward the number to one of the web-based services that answers your voicemail and sends it to you as an email attachment (like Google Voice).
When youâre going to be in a place with little or no cell coverage. Letâs say youâre hiking in Alaska. You can have your calls forwarded to your hotel or to a friendâs cellphone. (Forwarded calls eat up your allotment of minutes, though.)
You have to turn on call forwarding while youâre still in an area with cell coverage. Hereâs how:
AT&T. Tap Settings â Phone â Call Forwarding, turn call forwarding on, and then tap in the new phone number. Thatâs all there is to itâyour iPhone will no longer ring. At least not until you turn the same switch off again.
Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile. On the dialing pad, dial *72, plus the number youâre forwarding calls to. Then tap . (To turn off call forwarding, dial *73, and then tap .)
Caller ID
Caller ID is another classic cellphone feature. It displays the phone number of the incoming call (and sometimes the name of the caller).
The only thing worth noting about the iPhoneâs implementation of caller ID is that you can prevent your number from appearing when you call other peopleâs phones:
AT&T. Tap Settings â Phone â Show My Caller ID, and then tap the on/off switch.
Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile. You can disable caller ID only for individual calls. For example, if youâre calling your ex, you might not want your number to show up on his phone. Just dial *67 before you dial the number. (Caller ID turns on again for subsequent calls.)
Custom Ringtones
The iPhone comes with more than 50 creative and intriguing ringing sounds, from an old car horn to a peppy marimba lick. âNotificationsâ shows you how to choose the one you want to hear when your phone rings. You can also buy ready-made pop-music ringtones from Apple for $1.29 each. (On your iPhone, open the iTunes Store app. Tap More and then Tones).
But whereâs the fun in that? Surely you donât want to walk around listening to the same ringtones as the millions of other iPhone owners.
Fortunately, you can also make up custom ring sounds, either to use as your main iPhone ring or to assign to individual callers in your Contacts list. All kinds of free or cheap apps are available for doing that, with names like Ringtone Designer Pro 2.0 and Ringtones for iPhone; they let you make ringtones out of songs you already own, or even sounds you record yourself.
You can also use GarageBand, a free Apple program available for iOS or Mac. For instructions, see this chapterâs free online appendix, âMaking Custom Ringtones.â Itâs a PDF available on this bookâs âMissing CDâ page at missingmanuals.com.
Because apps arenât allowed to manipulate the iPhoneâs ringtones list directly, the process isnât altogether automatic; it involves syncing the ringtone to iTunes on your computer and then syncing it again to your phone. But the appâs instructions will guide you. (iPhone ringtones must be in the .m4r file format.)
Tip
One feature blatantly missing on the iPhone is a âvibrate, then ringâ option for incoming calls. Thatâs where the phone first vibrates silently to get your attentionâand begins to ring only if you havenât responded after, say, 10 seconds.
GarageBand offers the solution: Create a ringtone thatâs silent for the first 10 seconds and only then plays a sound. Then set your iPhone to vibrate and ring. When a call comes in, the phone plays the ringtone immediately as it vibratesâbut you wonât hear anything until after the silent portion of the ringtone has been âplayed.â
Get Your Ringtones Back
If you had custom ringtones in previous versions of iOS, but they no longer show up, you have two options:
If they came from the iTunes store, re-download them. (On the phone, open Settings â Sounds & Haptics â Ringtones, and tap Download All Purchased Tones.)
If theyâre on your computer, reinstall them. Connect your phone to your computer, open iTunes, and drag the ringtone files into the left-side sidebar, where your phoneâs name appears. (Theyâre in your Music â iTunes â iTunes Media â Tones folder.) Details are at support.apple.com/en-us/HT201593.
FaceTime Video Calls
Your iPhone, as youâre probably aware, has two camerasâone on the back and one on the front. And that can mean only one thing: Video calling has arrived.
The picture and audio are generally rock-solid, with very little delay. Now Grandma can see the baby, or you can help someone shop from afar, or you can supervise brain surgery from thousands of miles away (some medical training recommended).
You can enjoy these Jetsons fantasies not just when calling other iPhones; you can also make video calls between iPhones and iPads, iPod Touches, and Macs. You can even place these calls when youâre not in a Wi-Fi hotspot, over the cellular airwaves, when youâre out and about.
FaceTime couldnât be easier to fire upâin many different ways:
From Siri. The quickest way to start a video call may be simply to say, âFaceTime Mom,â âFaceTime Chris Taylor,â or whatever.
From Favorites. Whenever you designate someoneâs FaceTime contact info as a favorite, a new entry appears in the Phone appâs Favorites list (âThe Favorites Listâ).
When youâre already on a phone call with someone. This is a good technique when you want to ask first if the other guy wants to do video, or when youâve been chatting and suddenly thereâs some reason to do video. In any case, thereâs nothing to it: Just tap the FaceTime button thatâs right on the screen when you pull the phone away from your face. (Your buddy can either accept or, if he just got out of the shower, decline.)
From the FaceTime app. You can also start up a videochat without placing a phone call first. Thatâs handy when you have Wi-Fi but no cell signal; FaceTime can make the call even when Verizon canât.
Of course, if youâre not already on a call, the iPhone doesnât yet know whom you want to call. So you have to tell it. Open the FaceTime app. It presents a list of your recent FaceTime calls. Tap a name to place a new call to that person, or tap to view a history of your calls with that person (and buttons for placing new ones).
Or, to find your callee from your own Contacts list, tap the button. Find a name, tap it, and then tap Video to place the call.
From Contacts. In the Contacts app, if you tap a personâs name, youâll find a FaceTime button. Or, in the Phone app, call up your Favorites or Recents list. Tap next to a name to open the contactâs card; tap FaceTime.
From Messages. If youâre chatting away with somebody by text and you realize that typing is no longer appropriate for the conversation, tap the name or photo at the top of the screen. Tap FaceTime.
At this point, the other guy receives an audio and video message inviting him to a FaceTime call. If he taps Accept, youâre on. Youâre on each otherâs screens, seeing and hearing each other in real time. You appear on your own screen, too, in a little inset window. Itâs spinach-in-your-teeth protection.
Once the chat has begun, hereâs some of the fun you can have.
Note
In iOS 12, Apple has moved all the useful controlsâmute, flip camera, effects, and so onâinto a single new screen. It takes two taps to get there: tap the screen to make the buttons appear (shown on the facing page at right), and then tap to reveal the page of options.
Rotate the screen. FaceTime works in either portrait (upright) or landscape (widescreen) view; just turn your phone 90 degrees. Of course, if your calling partner doesnât also turn her gadget, sheâll see your picture all squished and tiny, with big black areas filling the rest of the screen. (On the Mac, the picture rotates automatically when your partnerâs gadget rotates. You donât have to turn the monitor 90 degrees.)
Tip
The (rotation lock) button described in ??? works in FaceTime, too. That is, you can stop the picture from rotating when you turn the phoneâas long as youâre happy with full-time upright (portrait) orientation.
Show whatâs in front of you. Sometimes youâll want to show your friend what youâre looking at. That is, youâll want to turn on the camera on the back of the iPhone, the one pointing away from you, to show off the baby, the artwork, or the broken engine part.
This process is trickier in iOS 12. Tap the screen to make the buttons appear; tap to open the Options screen; tap flip; swipe down to put away the Options screen. Now you and your callee can both see what youâre seeing. Repeat the process to return to the front camera.
Snap a commemorative photo. You can immortalize a chat by using the screenshot keystroke (sleep + home on most iPhones; see âCapturing the Screenâ). You wind up with a still photo of your videochat in progress, safely nestled in the Camera Roll of your Photos app.
Mute the audio. Tap the screen to make the buttons appear; tap to open the Options screen; tap mute to silence the audio youâre sending. Great when you need to yell at the kids.
Mute the video. When you leave the FaceTime app for any reason (open a different app), the other guyâs screen goes black. He canât see what youâre doing when you leave the FaceTime screen. He can still hear you, though.
This feature was designed to let you check your calendar, look something up on the web, or whatever, while youâre still chatting. But itâs also a great trick when you need to adjust your clothing, pick at your teeth, or otherwise shield your activity from the person on the other end.
In the meantime, the call is technically still in progressâand a green banner at the top of the Home screens reminds you of that. Tap there, on the green bar, to return to the video call.
You can mute the video even if youâre not leaving the app. Tap the screen to make the buttons appear; tap to open the Options screen; tap camera off. Now youâre just transmitting a black screen.
Apply a special effect. One of iOS 12âs big-ticket new features is the wealth of real-time, animated special effects it can apply to your video self as you broadcast, either by FaceTime or in Messages (Chapter 6). You can add speech balloons or fireworks around your head; you can substitute a cartoon animalâor cartoon Memoji version of yourselfâfor your actual head; you can apply an Instagram-type filter; you can slap âstickersâ onto yourself; and much more.
Once your FaceTime call is under way, tap the screen to make the buttons appear, and then tap to reveal the row of available effects buttons. (Feel free to drag the effects panel upward to see more choices.) Tap one, dress yourself up, and revel in the admiration (or exasperation) of your videochat partners.
Youâre welcome to add more than one of these effects at once. (Animoji and Memoji are available only on X-class phones.) Note, however, that many of them, like the text effects, are designed to be used only when the phone is upright (in portrait orientation).
All these effects are described in depth in âEffectsâ.
Some of the special effects are rather impressive, arresting, and intriguing, at least at first. In practice, though, if youâre over 13, you may find that the novelty wears off quickly.
To turn off all the effects youâve applied so far, tap the white button to turn it off (gray). You now look normal to your callers once again.
When you and your buddy have had quite enough videochatting, tap the screen to make the buttons appear, and then tap to terminate the call. (Although itâs easy to jump from phone call to videochat, thereâs no way to go the other direction.)
And marvel that you were alive to see the day.
Group FaceTime
Well, it took only eight years. But FaceTime, at last, can connect more than two people at once in a video chat. In fact, it can connect up to 32 people simultaneously, creating a video party lineâas long as everyone concerned has iOS 12.1 or later, or macOS Mojave.
Note
A Group FaceTime call is incompatible with pre-12.1 FaceTime calls. For example, if you have iOS 11, you canât place a FaceTime call to someone whoâs already in a group call; your FaceTime button is simply dimmed.
Begin the Call
Often, youâll want to dive into a group video call from within Messages, where a group chat is already under way. To do that, tap the participant-names strip at the top of the window, and then tap FaceTime (facing page, left). (Or, for a straight-up audio conference call, hit audio.)
Each participant gets a special Group FaceTime message, complete with a Join button (facing page, right). Once you tap it, that special button in Messages changes to show how long the call has been going.
Tip
If youâre in a group Messages session, that Join button remains yours to tap for as long as the group FaceTime call is still going. That is, you donât have to hop on instantly.
Or you can start in the FaceTime app. Tap the at top right; in the To box, specify the names of the participants. Then tap Audio or Video.
The other peopleâs phones start ringing, and when they tap Accept, the audio or video conference begins!
During the Call
In regular FaceTime calls, the other guyâs image fills the screen. How are you supposed to conduct a call with dozens of people?
Each face occupies its own rectangle; the more people joining, the smaller the rectangles get.
When someone is talking, FaceTime brings that personâs rectangle front and center (and makes it bigger) automatically. In a lively conversation, therefore, the four main boxes seem to be constantly inflating and deflating to reflect whoâs talking.
But even if someone is not speaking, you can bring him to the front on demand, with either of two degrees of prominence:
Tap his box once. It comes to the front, gets slightly larger, and reveals his name or iCloud ID (next page, left).
Double-tap his box. Now it gets much bigger, shamelessly covering up everyone elseâs boxes. This is for when you really want to focus on this one person. (Tap again to enshrink the box again.)
Tip
If youâve tapped once, you can tap the little icon to zoom that slightly enlarged box into the fully enlarged version.
The Roster
The FaceTime app canât display big rectangles for more than four people at once. Starting with the fifth joiner, a horizontally scrolling row of faces appears at the bottom of the screenâApple calls it the Roster (next page, left). But the idea is the same: If one of them speaks, her box jumps into one of the larger four spots on the screen. And even if sheâs not speaking, you can tap or double-tap her square to give it one of the two zoom treatments described already.
Coming and Going
If someone is inviting you to a group call, a notification lets you know. Youâll see an option called Join, Tap to Join, or , depending on what youâre doing on the phone. Or, if youâre in Messages in a group chat, youâll see a Join button.
If youâd like to add someone to a call thatâs underway, tap the screen, tap , and tap Add Person.
If someone drops off the call (by tapping ), everyone else stays on the call, just as with a traditional conference phone call.
Effects
All the usual FaceTime fun is available during a group FaceTime call. You can flip your camera around, mute your audio or video, apply a sticker or two, add some floating text, or (on an X-class phone) turn yourself into an Animoji or Memoji (âApple Payâ).
To see the options, tap the screen once to view the buttons (facing page, right). Then tap the button as usual for effects, or the for the Flip, Mute, Speaker, and Add Person buttons.
FaceTime Audio Calls
Video calling is neat and all, but be honest: Donât you find yourself making phone calls more often? Video calling forces us to be âon,â neatly dressed and well behaved, because weâre on camera. Most of the time, weâre perfectly content (in fact, more content) with audio only.
And FaceTime audio calls donât eat into your cellphone minutes and arenât transmitted over your cell carrierâs voice network; instead, these are internet calls. (They use data, not minutes.) When youâre in a Wi-Fi hotspot, theyâre free. When youâre not, your carrierâs data network carries your voice.
You start out exactly as you would when making a video call, as described already. That is, you can start from the FaceTime app, the Contacts app, the Phone app, Messages, and so on.
In each spot where FaceTime is available, you get a choice of two types of calls: Video () and Audio (). (In Messages, if you tap the , you get a choice of two voice options: Voice Call and FaceTime Audio. Unless youâre in a group chat, in which case Audio automatically means âGroup FaceTime Audio.â)
When you place an audio FaceTime call, the other personâs phone rings exactly as though youâd placed a regular call. All the usual buttons and options are available: Remind Me, Message, Decline, Accept, and so on.
Once you accept the call, itâs just like being on a phone call, too: You have the options Mute, Speaker, FaceTime (that is, âSwitch to videoâ), and Contacts. (Whatâs missing? The Keypad button and the Merge Calls button. You canât combine FaceTime audio calls with each other, or with regular cellphone calls. If a cellphone call comes in, youâll be offered the chance to take itâbut youâll have to hang up on FaceTime.)
Youâll find that the audio quality is amazingâmore like FM radio than cellular. It sounds like the other person is right next to your head; you hear every breath, sniff, and sweater rustle.
Try out FaceTime audio calls. Whenever youâre calling another iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Mac, or even Apple Watch owner, youâll save money and minutes by placing these better-sounding free calls.
Tip
iOS even offers FaceTime Call Waiting. If youâre on a FaceTime audio or video call, and someone else FaceTime calls you, your phone ringsâand you can either tap Decline or End & Accept.
Bluetooth Accessories
Bluetooth is a short-range cable elimination technology. Itâs designed to untether you from equipment that would ordinarily require a cord.
Most people use Bluetooth for two purposes: communicating with a smartwatch or fitness band, or transmitting audio to a wireless speaker, car stereo, or Bluetooth earpiece.
Note
This discussion covers monaural Bluetooth earpieces intended for phone calls. But the iPhone can also handle Bluetooth stereo headphones, intended for music, as well as Bluetooth speakers. Details are in âSpeakers and Headphonesâ.
Pairing with a Bluetooth Earpiece or Speaker
Pairing means âmarryingâ a phone to a Bluetooth accessory so that each works only with the other. If you didnât do this one-time pairing, then some other guy passing on the sidewalk might hear your conversation through his earpiece. And neither of you would be happy.
The pairing process is different for every cellphone and every Bluetooth earpiece. Usually it involves a sequence like this:
On the earpiece, turn on Bluetooth. Make the earpiece or speaker discoverable. Discoverable just means that your phone can âseeâ it. Youâll have to consult the gadgetâs instructions to learn how to do so; itâs usually a matter of holding down some button or combination of buttons until the earpiece blinks.
On the iPhone, tap Settings â Bluetooth. Turn Bluetooth on. The iPhone immediately begins searching for nearby Bluetooth equipment. If all goes well, youâll see the name of your earpiece or speaker show up on the screen.
Tap the gadgetâs name. Type in the passcode, if necessary. The passcode is a number, usually four or six digits, that must be typed into the phone within about a minute. You have to enter this only once, during the initial pairing. The idea is to prevent some evildoer sitting nearby in the airport lounge, for example, to secretly pair his earpiece with your iPhone.
The userâs manual for your earpiece should tell you what the passcode is (if one is even required).
To make calls using a Bluetooth earpiece (or speaker as a speakerphone), you dial using the iPhone itself. You usually use the iPhoneâs own volume controls, too. You generally press a button on the earpiece or speaker to answer an incoming call, to swap call-waiting calls, or to end a call.
Note
When youâve got Bluetooth headphones or an earpiece successfully connected, the symbol appears on your status bar (âHome-Button Phones: The Status Barâ). The earpieceâs battery gauge () may appear there, too.
If youâre having problems making a particular gadget work, Google it. Type âiphone jambox mini,â for example. Chances are good that youâll find a write-up by somebody whoâs successfully worked through the setup.
Bluetooth Car Systems
The iPhone works beautifully with Bluetooth car systems, too. The pairing procedure generally goes exactly as described previously: You make the car discoverable, enter the passcode on the iPhone, and then make the connection.
Once youâre paired up, you can answer an incoming call by pressing a button on your steering wheel, for example. You hear the caller through the carâs speakers, and a microphone for your own voice is hidden in the rearview mirror or dashboard. You make calls either from the iPhone or, in some cars, by dialing the number on the carâs own touchscreen.
Of course, studies show that itâs the act of driving while conversing that causes accidentsânot actually holding a cellphone. So the hands-free system is less for safety than for convenience and compliance with laws.
Pairing with a Smartwatch or Fitness Band
The latest Bluetooth technology, called Bluetooth LE (for âlow energyâ), Bluetooth Smart, or Bluetooth 4.0 (or 5.0), turns on only when necessary and then turns off again to save power. Bluetooth LE has made possible a lot of smartwatches and fitness trackers.
As a handy bonus, you usually do the pairing right in the gadgetâs companion app, rather than fumbling around in Settings. That setup makes a lot more sense. For example, when youâre setting up an Apple Watch, you use the Watch app to pair the watch; when youâre setting up a Fitbit, you connect your band wirelessly in the Fitbit app.
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