Here's the situation:

My Dad has an AT&T MicroCell (3G) set up in his living room, above his basement man cave so that he can get reception on his iPhone SE. He complained that he could never make or receive calls down there until I set this up.

Since it's getting a little old, I decided to get him a new MicroCell and I find out that AT&T has discontinued them with the reason being that WiFi calling on modern smartphones has made them obsolete.

I'm about to get him an iPhone 8 this weekend and would like to enable Wi-Fi calling and get rid of the MicroCell then. I'm completely ignorant of how WiFi calling works or how to set it up but am tech-savvy.

Could someone enlighten me on how this all works? Is it just a setting on the phone itself?

Not sure of how it actually works, but it was a very simple setup process on my Samsung GS9+

Rarely have any issue with it, and switch WiFi off when it acts up & make the call over cellular.

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:

I'm about to get him an iPhone 8 this weekend and would like to enable Wi-Fi calling and get rid of the MicroCell then. I'm completely ignorant of how WiFi calling works or how to set it up but am tech-savvy.

Could someone enlighten me on how this all works? Is it just a setting on the phone itself?

I don't have an iPhone8, I have an iPhone X, but enabling WiFi calling is probably the same on both phones: Settings --> Phone --> WiFi Calling. That's all there is to it! Just turn it on.

I am not positive about this next point, but I think that this is a carrier-specific feature, so if your cell service provider does not offer it, you will not see it in the settings menu.

I have that enabled on my iPhone, I'm with Verizon.

Settings, then Cellular settings, then Enable WiFi Calling.

Basically you're telling the phone to use Wifi when available if the Cellular signal is weak.

If you're in an area where cellular connection is weak or non existent, but wifi is available, your phone will connect with wifi for phone calls, not just data. Next week I'll be in California where the cell signal is terrible but the wifi in the house is very strong.

Works great! I like it.

You will (probably) have to enter a 911 address when you enable it as well, since dialing 911 on WiFi typically may not give a location otherwise.

I have terrible Mobile data reception at home. I also do not have a landline phone. I didn't want to wake up in the middle of the night with a heart attack, and no reception bars. So now I use Wi-Fi on my Samsung S7. I also purchased a Netgear Wi-Fi router. My phone Wi-Fi reception at home now is great.

BTW, I second the comment above about possibly needing to give location information to 911. Your phone may not.

quote:

Basically you're telling the phone to use Wifi when available if the Cellular signal is weak.

That's exactly what it is. If there is a solid WiFi connection (phone to router) and internet is at least 5 mbps, WiFi calling is a great option. No additional cost, and good connectivity and clarity on calls.

I use the wifi calling at my house as cell service inside is sketchy due to the metal roof and living in the middle of the woods. One thing I do because the cell service is borderline is I put my phone in airplane mode then enable wireless. This forces the phone to use wifi only.

This prevents dropped calls or missed calls when the cell service is iffy and it also saves the battery as the phone isnt constantly looking for a better cell signal.

Just remember to take it out of airplane mode when you leave the house.

It's akin to VoIP with your cell phone. The trick is the 911 aspect as mentioned earlier.

It's dependent on your wifi signal, if I'm using wifi calling at the house and go to a particular corner, the calls start dropping out, but if I leave wifi altogether, it switches to the cell network seamlessly.

I use it at a cabin with awful reception, and some of my people use it at sites with the same.

In my experience the hand off from WiFi to cell is usually OK but occasionally clunky or drops. If you're not leaving the WiFi area mid-call not an issue.

I had to open a chat with AT&T a few years ago. They asked me for some information from the phone, then had me reboot it.

All done. You may or may not need to do that now.

On a rather obvious note, you'll need to have your phone connected to your WIFI in order to use it.

I apologize if this is obvious, but your dad's WiFi network has to have an internet connection for WiFi calling to work.

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:
I apologize if this is obvious, but your dad's WiFi network has to have an internet connection for WiFi calling to work.

Yes, he’s got Comcast Internet with an Apple Airport router, I think last time I checked he was getting 50-60 Mbps

I use WiFi calling through AT&T on my iPhone 6s Plus. I also recommend placing the phone in Airplane Mode when in the house.

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:

I'm about to get him an iPhone 8 this weekend and would like to enable Wi-Fi calling and get rid of the MicroCell then. I'm completely ignorant of how WiFi calling works or how to set it up but am tech-savvy.

Could someone enlighten me on how this all works? Is it just a setting on the phone itself?

I don't have an iPhone8, I have an iPhone X, but enabling WiFi calling is probably the same on both phones: Settings --> Phone --> WiFi Calling. That's all there is to it! Just turn it on.

I am not positive about this next point, but I think that this is a carrier-specific feature, so if your cell service provider does not offer it, you will not see it in the settings menu.

I have an iPhone 8 ( Verizon ) and your instructions are exactly correct. Default option is off, simply slide the bar to on and your done.

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:
I apologize if this is obvious, but your dad's WiFi network has to have an internet connection for WiFi calling to work.

Yes, he’s got Comcast Internet with an Apple Airport router, I think last time I checked he was getting 50-60 Mbps

Xfinity (Comcast) provided and installed free of extra charge their latest router which replaced my old Comcast/Airport combination. Removing the extra component (the Airport router) has simplified my set up and has so far been rock solid.

WIFI Calling on my Iphone 7 is sketchy at best. When it works it is fine, but I cannon force the phone to stay on WIFI. It may switch back to the weak cell signal and possible drop the call. Airport mode doesn't seem to help.
My solution is a cellular booster at this point.
Works somewhat better so far.

I had a microcell due to living in a rural area with limited reception in my home.
The new wifi calling just requires a change in the settings and works about the same. The handoff to cellular seems to be about the same, maybe slightly better.
I have AT&T and when they decided to do this, they didn't give any notice, and still haven't. That is my only real complaint.