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iOS 8.3 Enables WiFi Calling for Sprint, EE Subscribers

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macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
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Today's iOS 8.3 update expands iOS 8's WiFi calling feature to two new carriers: Sprint in the United States and EE in the United Kingdom.

WiFi calling is a feature that was first introduced in iOS 8, letting users make phone calls using WiFi instead of a cellular network when connected to a WiFi network. T-Mobile has thus far been one of the only carriers to support Wi-Fi calling in the United States, until today.

sprintwificalls.png
Following the iOS 8.3 update, Sprint users can toggle on Wi-Fi calling in the "Phone" section of the Settings app, which will let them make calls over Wi-Fi when a Wi-Fi network is available. Wi-Fi calling can be useful when cellular signal is low, and calls also have improved sound over Wi-Fi.

According to Sprint's website, users will need to install the iOS 8.3 update and download Carrier Version 19.1. Sprint says the carrier update can be triggered by going to Settings --> General --> About after installing iOS 8.3, but the company's announcement suggests it may take a few days to roll out to everyone.

Enabling Wi-Fi calling is a similar process for EE subscribers in the United Kingdom. According to Engadget, EE users will need to update to iOS 8.3 and then enable WiFi calling in the Settings app, after which the feature will be activated in a few hours. EE's limiting the number of iPhones able to register for WiFi calling to 100,000 per day, so there may be a waiting period for some users.

WiFi calling is available for iPhone 5c, 5s, 6, and 6 Plus users with Sprint and EE service.

Article Link: iOS 8.3 Enables WiFi Calling for Sprint, EE Subscribers
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2015/04/08/ios-8-3-wifi-calling-sprint-ee/
TMRJIJ

TMRJIJ

macrumors 68040
Dec 12, 2011
3,464
6,435
South Carolina, United States
Warning:
Wi-Fi Calling does not support the iOS & OSX feature of Continuity. Wi-Fi Calling will need to be turned off to use this feature.

Other devices will no longer be able to make or receive calls through your iPhone
 
M

mateytate

macrumors regular
Apr 10, 2014
181
179
Intelligent said:
Difference between this and facetime audio?
Click to expand...

FaceTime audio only works to other iOS devices. Wifi calling works to any phone number in the world. Instead of using a cell tower it uses your wifi router. I've had this on T-Mobile for a while and it's a great feature, especially if you have patchy coverage at home.

----------
TMRJIJ said:
Nope, only iMessages

http://support.sprint.com/support/a..._calling/173e331f-8423-453e-93cb-4688f6a91f67
Click to expand...

Wonder why? T-mobile allow texting.
 
C

cloudsurfer1733

macrumors newbie
Jul 24, 2009
5
2
ozziegn said:
I'm actually amazed that this wasn't enabled much sooner since we all know how bad Sprint's service is.
Click to expand...

The service is quite usable now. Is it blazing fast? No. Is it as ubiquitous as Verizon? No. However, Sprint offers a lot of value for the price and is pro Net Neutrality. It works for me, but understandably not all.
 
ozziegn

ozziegn

macrumors 65816
Aug 16, 2007
1,294
831
Central FL Area
cloudsurfer1733 said:
The service is quite usable now. Is it blazing fast? No. Is it ubiquitous as Verizon? No. However, Sprint offers a lot of value for the price and is pro Net Neutrality. It works for me, but understandably not all.
Click to expand...

Their service in our area (central FL) is on the same level as Tmobile which is anything but good. Guess that's the reason why both companies can offer their services dirt cheap.
 
A

aajeevlin

macrumors 65816
Mar 25, 2010
1,427
715
The paragraph caught my attention "when you join a Wi-Fi network, information about taht network will be sent to your carrier to establish billing details like the originating country for calls."

Does that mean wifi calling originating from foreign country to the states will be counted as international calling? I recall Tmobile used to count wifi calling to/from foreign country back to the states as national calls, and won't charge extra.

I wonder if the rules are different now. The last time I used wifi calling was the Tmobile UMA and I loved that service.
 
JM

JM

macrumors 601
Nov 23, 2014
4,082
6,373
Supporting that latest government net neutrality bill, and now WIFI calling?

You go Sprint-co-co.
 
Anonymous Freak

Anonymous Freak

macrumors 603
Dec 12, 2002
5,561
1,252
Cascadia
citi said:
Good job Sprint...your up Verizon. :mad:
Click to expand...

Seconded - hurry up, Verizon! I'm sick of one-bar-requiring-my-phone-to-sit-on-the-windowsill-in-my-home-office signal! (I fairly regularly yank my phone off the window sill down on to my desk with my headphones.)

Edit: When WiFi calling was first announced, Verizon's CFO blasted it as "unnecessary" with Verizon's "great network", essentially saying that T-Mobile's embrace of it was because their network sucks.

Well, guess what, Verizon - ALL the networks suck in some places. In my home office, my work-provided Verizon phone gets a worse signal than my (not WiFi-calling-enabled) personal T-Mobile phone! So, ironically, the carrier that supported WiFi calling first is the one I need it least on.
 
pittpanthersfan

pittpanthersfan

macrumors 6502
Jun 7, 2009
362
51
aajeevlin said:
The paragraph caught my attention "when you join a Wi-Fi network, information about taht network will be sent to your carrier to establish billing details like the originating country for calls."

Does that mean wifi calling originating from foreign country to the states will be counted as international calling?
Click to expand...

Yes. Think of wi-fi calling as your normal 'phone call plan,' but with potentially better reception.

For international to be treated the same as domestic, you would want a VOIP call such as FaceTime, Skype, Google Hangouts, etc.
 
T

tmiw

macrumors 68030
Jun 26, 2007
2,523
605
San Diego, CA
cloudsurfer1733 said:
The service is quite usable now. Is it blazing fast? No. Is it as ubiquitous as Verizon? No. However, Sprint offers a lot of value for the price and is pro Net Neutrality. It works for me, but understandably not all.
Click to expand...

This. I think LTE + no longer emphasizing "unlimited" in their marketing (and trying to get people to change over to capped plans) helped significantly.
 
A

aajeevlin

macrumors 65816
Mar 25, 2010
1,427
715
pittpanthersfan said:
Yes. Think of wi-fi calling as your normal 'phone call plan,' but with potentially better reception.

For international to be treated the same as domestic, you would want a VOIP call such as FaceTime, Skype, Google Hangouts, etc.
Click to expand...

Yea I suppose that would make sense, but if I recalled correctly the Tmobile UMA (this is 5-6 years ago?) would allow you to make/receive calls back to the states without charging your extra. I might have to do some digging.
 
JosephAW

JosephAW

macrumors 603
May 14, 2012
5,963
7,916
The only reason I switched to sprint from verizon was for unlimited data. Now we get the icing on the cake.
 
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