WhatsApp voice calling arrives on iOS, giving iPhone users free calls to anyone on service
Voice calling, which has already landed on the Android version of the app, uses the internet connection rather than call minutes
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.WhatsApp’s iOS app has been updated to allow voice calling, with the service itself being rolled out over the “next several weeks”.
The service allows users to call their contacts anywhere in the world, only incurring relevant data costs rather than using up minutes from their allowance.
It does so by sending the voice calls over a data connection, in a similar way to Skype or Apple’s FaceTime. As such, WhatsApp warns users that the calling could incur data costs.
When a call comes through, WhatsApp will send a push notification to the home screen. Users can then opt to pick up the call or send a message to the person calling them.
The service has already appeared in an Android update, and is also slowly arriving on people’s accounts.
The feature has long been rumoured, and appeared to begin a quiet roll-out in February. It appeared on the Android app at the end of last month and the iOS update has arrived overnight. No update has yet arrived for Windows Phone.
iOS automatically installs app updates, and so it is likely that the app will already have updated. To check, users can head to the “Updates” tab in the App Store, where the update will show and can be automatically begun if it has not yet been added.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments