Post #15 WiFi Calling For Travel? Starter Thoughts

Date

20.11.23

I am not a professional smartphone tech. nor I.T. trained. You may wish to follow along with my own layperson thoughts that I am happy to share here after my internet research. Your own thinking & conclusions are also necessary. Hopefully I can save you some time by sending some of your thoughts in helpful directions & towards useful questions.

Phone connectivity anywhere traveling; even at a remote beach? Not quite, though getting closer. Something I am starting to explore for travel phone calls: WiFi calling. Once you set up this feature, you can use your smartphone as usual & sometimes be making/receiving calls/texts over a WiFi network instead of only over your cellular service provider’s network.

To me, there is a Lot of information to absorb on the subject, and I have begun.

WiFi calling was limited to some high-end phones until several years ago. But now, if your smartphone was made ~2019 or later, there’s an excellent chance it can do WiFi calling. It’s available on many newer mainstream smartphones, whether iPhone or Android. Trickier though: not all carriers support WiFi calling on all smartphones, with all their phone plans, & for international travel calls (at a lower cost).

Possible advantages of WiFi calling include:

– it extends your coverage beyond what your cellular service provider can offer (you do need access to a reliable WiFi network);

– it can potentially provide cost savings for int’l. calls or when traveling to other countries, because instead of roaming charges, with the right provider & plan you can connect to a local WiFi network to use; &

– there can be improved call quality.

It does sound fairly simple to activate WiFi calling on many smartphones (I found it on my smartphone), though if you don’t find a “WiFi Calling” Setting, then possibly your cell carrier doesn’t support it on your phone, or your phone might need a software update.

Which carriers/plans enable this function at low cost for international travel? And I will be questioning if there are security (of the phone calls) concerns when using WiFi calling. If many other questions occur at this point, I know the feeling. I am “on it”; there will be further posts.

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