But happily, those times have passed. Now, if you have any iPhone that launched in 2014 or later (which includes the iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, iPhone 6s, iPhone SE, and iPhone 7, and all the associated Plus models), you’ll be able to make Wi-Fi calls natively.
In order to take advantage of this, you’ll need to make sure you’re running the latest software on your iPhone, which means upgrading to iOS 10.2 if you haven’t already. To do so, simply head over to Settings, then General, and click on Software Update. Download and install the most recent software update, then make sure that you also have the latest carrier software package installed on your iPhone. This is done by visiting Settings > General > About, whereupon you ought to see a “Carrier update available” message pop up.
From there, things get much simpler. Go to Settings > Phone, select “Wi-Fi Calling,” and switch the “Wi-Fi Calling on This iPhone” option to the on position. Confirm that you do indeed want to be able to make calls when you don’t have service but do have Wi-Fi, and get chatting.
It’s actually not just the iPhone that now has this feature. The LG G5, Samsung S6, and S6 edge also no longer require the separate Wi-Fi calling app, and Three says that more phones will soon be added.
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