PC Doctor September 14, 2021

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Dear PC Doctor:

I am self employed and work from home. My cell phone works great everywhere but in my office, which is in our barn. The wifi works there on my computer, and someone suggested I try wifi calling. What is wifi calling?

Signed,

Len

Dear Len:

Wifi calling is a way of making telephone calls when you don’t have a cell connection. You’ll use your internet connection instead. You may need to refer to your phone’s support website and your cell carrier’s service center to get it set up, but it sounds like it may be worth trying.

Most cell phone carriers and newer phones should have this option available. Whether it costs you anything will depend on your phone plan – if you purchase a limited amount of minutes, it will still use your minutes. If you have an unlimited plan, it most likely will not affect your bill.

To turn on wifi calling with iPhone or Android, follow these steps:

For iPhone, open Settings. Tap Cellular. Scroll down to Wi-Fi Calling. Toggle Wi-Fi Calling on This Phone so that it is on. (The slide will show as green if it’s on.) You should get a pop up window – Choose Enable. You'll know it's working if there's a Wi-Fi signal next to your carrier name at the top of your screen.

For Android, Open the Settings app on your device. Tap Networks & Internet or Connections, depending on your Android device. Go to Connections in Settings. Tap Mobile network. Depending on your device, Wi-Fi Calling may be an option here, without the need to first go to Mobile network. Choose Advanced, then Wi-Fi Calling. Toggle it on.

Note: When you use wi-fi calling, please be sure that your emergency address (for 911 calls) is updated. You should see the option to change it right below where you toggled to turn on wi-fi calling.

Good luck!

Until next time,
Happy Computing!
PC Doctor

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