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dialing from contacts

C

CorruptedSanity

macrumors member
Original poster
Aug 3, 2010
64
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I am used to dialing a contact from the phone menu by typing in the name using the numbers. So dialing dad would be 323 and that would show me names that have the combinations of letters.

This is not possible in the iPhone 4?
Do I have to always enter contacts, search for the name, then enter it then hit dial? Or must I memorize all the numbers?

I just migrated over from an Android device.

thanks!
 
Frequently called names will be under 'Recents' on the bottom, you can place all of your favorites in the first 'Favorites' list, but yes...choose 'Contacts' and you will have all of your contacts. No need to search, just touch the letter on the side and quickly go to all your names that start with that letter.

Also, after you make a call, your phone will most likely already be on 'Recents' or perhaps 'Voicemail' if that is what you used last in the phone section.

I rarely go to 'contacts'...mostly just go to 'recents'....as I would assume, do most people.
 
CorruptedSanity said:
I am used to dialing a contact from the phone menu by typing in the name using the numbers. So dialing dad would be 323 and that would show me names that have the combinations of letters.
Click to expand...

I'm not 100% sure what you mean since 323 are numbers and not letters. But if I follow what I think you are saying it might work with the general search screen which is quickly reached by tapping the Home button 1 to 3 times - depending on which screen you're on the first time you hit it.

Of course someone I call frequently would be in my favorites as well.
 
LFSimon said:
I'm not 100% sure what you mean since 323 are numbers and not letters.
Click to expand...

In the 'olden days' ;) we used to type text with the number keys, so Dad=323 and, on the OP's phone, might also bring up saved numbers for Daddio's Pizzeria, Mike Dadd...etc.

One thing I can say for certainty: on the iPhone numbers are numbers and letters are typed with the keyboard.
 
Small White Car said:
In the Phone app, look for the 'Favorites' star. Learn to love that little star.

That + 'Recents' should get you through the day.
Click to expand...

+1


I didn't come over from android, but I do remember the days of typing the first few letters of the name via the number pad to get to contacts quickly.

I've found that I forgot the old way of doing things pretty quickly because, while different, apple's contact browsing and dialing is pretty quick and convenient.

Remember, though, you can change the way names are listed. One vestige of my dumbphone days is that the contacts are sorted alphabetically by the FIRST name, not last name. I changed this from the default because it just seemed weird the other way around.
 
one tap dialer works great for this...
.99 in the app store...once you tap the persons icon it will ask you call or text..gives you that option when you set the persons speed dial up on your home screen...
 
mstrze said:
In the 'olden days' ;) we used to type text with the number keys, so Dad=323 and, on the OP's phone, might also bring up saved numbers for Daddio's Pizzeria, Mike Dadd...etc.

One thing I can say for certainty: on the iPhone numbers are numbers and letters are typed with the keyboard.
Click to expand...

Exactly. In the old days when cell phones only had a keypad, you typed the letter by pressing a number key several times.
Ah, fond memories of typing 73 presses just to type the words "hi, how are you?"

But the iPhone has both a keyboard and a numbers. They're not combined anymore.

Recents and/or favorites are the way to go. But if you're feeling quite sprightly then you can use Spotlight. Type in DAD and you'll see his contact come up. Then you rock out you wild and crazy rebel! :D
 
textone.png


I got my favorites filled.

Blackberry is the same. You start typing something and it comes up.

Just go into the contact and tap the number or put it in your favorites. Favorites is better.
 
Last edited:
mstrze said:
Frequently called names will be under 'Recents' on the bottom, you can place all of your favorites in the first 'Favorites' list, but yes...choose 'Contacts' and you will have all of your contacts. No need to search, just touch the letter on the side and quickly go to all your names that start with that letter.

Also, after you make a call, your phone will most likely already be on 'Recents' or perhaps 'Voicemail' if that is what you used last in the phone section.

I rarely go to 'contacts'...mostly just go to 'recents'....as I would assume, do most people.
Click to expand...

I tap the home button twice to bring up Favorites which are the ones a talk to the most. If no one on that list,recents it is unless of course it is someone i havent talked to recently ;)
 
I use the voice control quite a bit. Hold down the home button or mic button until a tone is heard then speak.. "Call Dad, mobile (or home or whatever)" I'm personally impressed with how well it works.

I also agree that the search is very convienant and much faster if you have a lot of contacts.
 
thanks for the input everybody..all very good... work arounds!

I am used to hitting call , then typing in the name like 323 for dad, 24637 for cinestar cinemas and so on.

Sure the recents and favorites work well but I do have a tendency to call people who :

1- have not recently contacted me
2- not been added to my favorites list
3- I have not memorized their number (the movies, restaurants.. etc)

Is going into contacts, hitting search, typing in the name, then entering the contact, then hitting the dial button the only way? Surely not....


Favorites and recents are good but adding my whole list to favorites defeats the purpose of favorites option and is not practical .


Sure double tapping the home button then typing in the name works but thats exactly the same as entering the contacts menu.

Perhaps theres some app for this? :apple:
 
CorruptedSanity said:
Is going into contacts, hitting search, typing in the name, then entering the contact, then hitting the dial button the only way? Surely not...
Click to expand...

Well...I just open my phone app, quickly scroll to the contact of my choice and select their number. No hitting search or typing required....

I have also used Voice Dial by simply holding down the Home button and saying, "call Dad."
 
Also if you do have to go into your contacts to find a number of someone that you don't call too often, you don't have to do anything more than to touch their number. The iPhone will automatically switch to the phone app and dial the number. You need do nothing else.

One thing I should add about the Voice Dialing, and that is to speak slowly and distinctly. It may be just me, but I have found it to work much better and more accurately when I slow down and pronounce the name carefully. This becomes really necessary when you have people with say the same last names or names that sound a lot alike.
 
Yes, no searching required...in contacts...see that alphabet on the right side of the screen? Run your finger down it and stop on the letter of the person or business you have in contacts, click the name and call. VERY easy!

I am also shocked that someone uses Spotlight. I only used it when half of my screen didn't work and I could only access certain things that way. Strange how features one person doesn't use are the most important to another. Heck, I have NEVER gone to the 'Contacts' App on the home page...only through the phone icon. :D
 
CorruptedSanity said:
Sure the recents and favorites work well but I do have a tendency to call people who :

1- have not recently contacted me
2- not been added to my favorites list
3- I have not memorized their number (the movies, restaurants.. etc)

Is going into contacts, hitting search, typing in the name, then entering the contact, then hitting the dial button the only way? Surely not....
Click to expand...

Of course not. As mentioned before, there's voice command, which works no matter what you're doing on your phone. Just hold the home button down till the blue voice command screen pops up and then say "call <name of contact>" and there you are.

I use it all the time. Works great and I don't even have to navigate to the phone app.
 
It's also easy to find businesses/store contacts and add them using the map application.

If I'm looking for a restaurant for carry out. I'll use the mapping app. When found, a "pin" in map appears and by touching the pin it opens the phone, address etc and has an option to add to contacts. There's no extra typing or flipping back and forth involved. So very easy. There is a free white pages app that also easily allows you to search for people and businesses and add contacts.

Other than my own, I don't think I know any numbers by heart anymore... kinda scary but true.
 
Reefbone said:
Other than my own, I don't think I know any numbers by heart anymore... kinda scary but true.
Click to expand...

I'll tell you, an emphatic ME TOO! I found this out the hard way when my iPhone battery died and I had to try to find a payphone to make an important call (payphones are hard to find these days, too!) and couldn't for the life of me remember the number!:eek:
 
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