Having difficulties making calls because your iPhone's signal is not strong enough? Sprint has some good news for you. The US major wireless carrier has officially started deploying Wi-Fi calling capabilities to four of its iPhone models, namely the iPhone 5C, the iPhone 5S, the iPhone 6, and the iPhone 6 Plus.
What makes Wi-Fi calling different from the usual mode of making calls is that it uses the wireless Internet network for incoming and outgoing calls, instead of the voice network commonly utilized by mobile service providers.
Moreover, Wi-Fi calling presents some advantages that the normal voice calling do not offer. Perhaps the most important advantage, especially for consumers who like to make calls, is that Wi-Fi calls do not count against minutes. This means that users who are availing of limited buckets can talk for as long as their phone batteries can hold out.
The second advantage of Wi-Fi calling is that the Wi-Fi network gives callers another option. This is especially useful in areas where the voice signal is absent or too weak to sustain phone to phone conversations. But if those areas have a working Wi-Fi network, users can easily switch to Wi-Fi calling and be able to make and accept calls.
As explained by David Owens, senior vice president of product development at Sprint, Wi-Fi calling is a significant expansion of the carrier's services. Standard voice networks are often limited especially in areas like the interiors of buildings and basements. But with Wi-Fi in place, users can still make phone calls even in those areas.
According to Sprint, subscribers who own the iPhone models mentioned earlier should start to get their software updates already as of this writing. For those who have not, they can expect to have their iPhone devices updated within the week or next.
Sprint has been actively adding smartphones to its list of handsets that are now capable of Wi-Fi calling. With four iPhone models added to the list, the carrier now has over 25 devices from which users can choose from if they want to get a smartphone that can handle calls via a Wi-Fi network.
Also, in terms of Wi-Fi calling capabilities, Sprint may already be catching up to one of its rivals, T-Mobile, which already offers the same feature. But as for Verizon Wireless and AT&T, they are still planning to roll out Wi-Fi calling, likely by the later part of this year.
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