"We don't have a burning desire or need for coverage," AT&T wireless chief Ralph de la Vega said Friday ...
Well guess what, Ralph.
I have a burning desire for more god damned signal bars at home, and have for years.
Wi-Fi calling will fix that (and make AT&T's cell network redundant at home since I have 50Mb/s Comcast Xfinity internet.)
Anybody notice that when you launch "Mark the Spot" to tell AT&T about crappy cell coverage, you suddenly get a few more bars (actually dots now)? When I have zero dots at home I launch Mark the Spot, and boom: I mysteriously gain 2 dots.
"Apple is also introducing WiFi Calling with iOS 8, and unlike VoLTE, this will be available with earlier iPhones with the iOS 8 update. However, with the newest iPhones, WiFi Calling will also have handover capability with cellular and back. This allows for seamless usage of cellular or WiFi to support voice calls. This capability is going to be offered with iPhones running on T-Mobile in the US and EE in the UK. Both companies have long histories with WiFi calling, so this isn’t very surprising."
It's that seamless hand off that will require an iPhone 6 generation. So walking from a building where you had wi-fi call started and automatically switching to the cell signal outside will require the newest hardware (and currently T-Mobile),
I hope that extremetech is right, but that article reads so much like marketing copy it makes me question how well they did their homework. I guess I'll fid out next week!
I have a 5S on T-Mobile and have been using the iOS beta with WiFi calling. It works fine for both incoming and outgoing calls with the caveat that it seems to drop calls when moving from a WiFi to cellular. I haven't been disciplined in testing that so I can't say if it consistently happens or only periodically.
What I can say is that when my wife and I end up on a call together and both are on T-Mobile's LTE network or she is and I'm on WiFi, the HD Voice quality is terrific. I happily live in a major metro area, having just relocated from the NYC area to the Bay Area. Great T-Mobile coverage in both places.
another concern would be: are carriers going to be creating a "carrier access billing" style system to pay back the amount of calls that are made from the WiFi carrier's network, as compensation to the business, OR a data usage waiver for the amount a carrier uses for voice calls on the business' network. The business should either get compensation or not penalized for traffic data for tier 1 phone company carriers.
This is now being done with VoIP utilization fees, billed in between carriers as a PVU percentage fee every month. Will that money be seen by the businesses that are hosting free calls for phone carriers? Doubtful.
Absolutely not. AT&T et. al. will continue to make you pay for the lines they laid 40 years ago.
"De la Vega cited concerns about the reliability of call handoff between Wi-Fi and GSM networks. It is more seamless when handing off to LTE, but AT&T's Voice over LTE rollout has not yet been completed"
VoWiFI <-> Cellular handoff can ONLY work with VoLTE. It requires the wireless operator to fully support latest IMS core network protocols. The handoff from VoWiFI to 3G/2G Voice simply isn't possible.
So in the US Only T-Mobile has VoLTE deployed across their ENTIRE LTE footprint, covering 234 million americans. That's exactly why Apple and T-Mobile's decided to partner on this. Because they can.
Other operators like AT&T have literally three markets in the Midwest upgraded with commercially live VoLTE, otherwise their network needs to go through some updates.
I see an executive who is complacent, refusing to innovate because market power has allowed him to continue offering the same old spotty coverage and crappy service. Cable companies pull crap like this all the time, keeping out of each other's territories so they can use monopolies to hike rates without any improvement in quality or services.
Yea, yea, yea... Verizon has been promising VoLTE for months. Rather than stick with them, I decided to give T-Mobile a try. Besides, I found their 0% iPhone financing with super cheap plans really refreshing. No contracts, 20x the 4G data, no data overages and no $30 registration fee. Best of all, VoLTE WiFi calling ready to go...
I spoke with a T-Mobile customer service rep today and was told that *ALL* iPhone models that can run iOS 8 will support Wi-Fi calling. I was even put on a "Brief hold" while she verified this. As an iPhone 4s user who sees no reason to upgrade to any of these new iPhones (they do the same thing as mine, just a bit faster), this makes me very very happy!
As an iPhone 4s user who sees no reason to upgrade to any of these new iPhones (they do the same thing as mine, just a bit faster)
Careful, it may not be "just a bit faster." My iPhone 4 really took a really serious hit with the upgrade to iOS7. I now frequently suffer accidental "mis-operations" as a result of lag making me think the phone didn't receive the input. Often the repeat press occurs just as the hardware catches up, causing me to select something I didn't mean to.
It's not the end of the world, but the performance hit was obvious and detrimental to my overall enjoyment of the device. Given the increase in iPhone processor performance over the last few years it's not unreasonable to expect that the new OS may demand more power than a 4S can comfortably provide.
I'm not saying don't, I'm just saying be prepared.
Careful, it may not be "just a bit faster." My iPhone 4 really took a really serious hit with the upgrade to iOS7. I now frequently suffer accidental "mis-operations" as a result of lag making me think the phone didn't receive the input. Often the repeat press occurs just as the hardware catches up, causing me to select something I didn't mean to.
It's not the end of the world, but the performance hit was obvious and detrimental to my overall enjoyment of the device. Given the increase in iPhone processor performance over the last few years it's not unreasonable to expect that the new OS may demand more power than a 4S can comfortably provide.
I'm not saying don't, I'm just saying be prepared.
It happens to me too, but is it worth $750 to upgrade? (I have T-Mobile prepaid, I refuse to sign a contract). I'd rather use that money towards a top of the line Mac Mini.
I'm curious if this feature might be of use for foreign travelers as a way of shortcutting around international roaming by using a locally sourced myfi.
I'm also wondering if only the 6 and 6 Plus support this tech or if the 5, 5C, and 5S also support it with their own LTE and WIFI hardware.
Comments
Does iOS8 WiFi Calling support incoming calls?
"We don't have a burning desire or need for coverage," AT&T wireless chief Ralph de la Vega said Friday ...
Well guess what, Ralph.
I have a burning desire for more god damned signal bars at home, and have for years.
Wi-Fi calling will fix that (and make AT&T's cell network redundant at home since I have 50Mb/s Comcast Xfinity internet.)
Anybody notice that when you launch "Mark the Spot" to tell AT&T about crappy cell coverage, you suddenly get a few more bars (actually dots now)? When I have zero dots at home I launch Mark the Spot, and boom: I mysteriously gain 2 dots.
From ExtremeTech
http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/189786-iphone-6-and-iphone-6-plus-complete-global-cell-coverage-with-best-in-class-lte-and-wireless-connectivity
"Apple is also introducing WiFi Calling with iOS 8, and unlike VoLTE, this will be available with earlier iPhones with the iOS 8 update. However, with the newest iPhones, WiFi Calling will also have handover capability with cellular and back. This allows for seamless usage of cellular or WiFi to support voice calls. This capability is going to be offered with iPhones running on T-Mobile in the US and EE in the UK. Both companies have long histories with WiFi calling, so this isn’t very surprising."
It's that seamless hand off that will require an iPhone 6 generation. So walking from a building where you had wi-fi call started and automatically switching to the cell signal outside will require the newest hardware (and currently T-Mobile),
I hope that extremetech is right, but that article reads so much like marketing copy it makes me question how well they did their homework. I guess I'll fid out next week!
You can't find out currently, unless you have T-Mobile. Perhaps you do. If it works on you earlier phone with iOS8, let us know.
What I can say is that when my wife and I end up on a call together and both are on T-Mobile's LTE network or she is and I'm on WiFi, the HD Voice quality is terrific. I happily live in a major metro area, having just relocated from the NYC area to the Bay Area. Great T-Mobile coverage in both places.
Absolutely not. AT&T et. al. will continue to make you pay for the lines they laid 40 years ago.
VoWiFI <-> Cellular handoff can ONLY work with VoLTE. It requires the wireless operator to fully support latest IMS core network protocols. The handoff from VoWiFI to 3G/2G Voice simply isn't possible.
So in the US Only T-Mobile has VoLTE deployed across their ENTIRE LTE footprint, covering 234 million americans. That's exactly why Apple and T-Mobile's decided to partner on this. Because they can.
Other operators like AT&T have literally three markets in the Midwest upgraded with commercially live VoLTE, otherwise their network needs to go through some updates.
Except this isn't UMA. This is the Next Gen WiFi Calling utilizing IMS network core, hence VoLTE handoff.
Most people have no need for this. For the few that do: be grateful that you are being catered to at all.
I spoke with a T-Mobile customer service rep today and was told that *ALL* iPhone models that can run iOS 8 will support Wi-Fi calling. I was even put on a "Brief hold" while she verified this. As an iPhone 4s user who sees no reason to upgrade to any of these new iPhones (they do the same thing as mine, just a bit faster), this makes me very very happy!
As an iPhone 4s user who sees no reason to upgrade to any of these new iPhones (they do the same thing as mine, just a bit faster)
Careful, it may not be "just a bit faster." My iPhone 4 really took a really serious hit with the upgrade to iOS7. I now frequently suffer accidental "mis-operations" as a result of lag making me think the phone didn't receive the input. Often the repeat press occurs just as the hardware catches up, causing me to select something I didn't mean to.
It's not the end of the world, but the performance hit was obvious and detrimental to my overall enjoyment of the device. Given the increase in iPhone processor performance over the last few years it's not unreasonable to expect that the new OS may demand more power than a 4S can comfortably provide.
I'm not saying don't, I'm just saying be prepared.
I’d ask Apple instead.
Careful, it may not be "just a bit faster." My iPhone 4 really took a really serious hit with the upgrade to iOS7. I now frequently suffer accidental "mis-operations" as a result of lag making me think the phone didn't receive the input. Often the repeat press occurs just as the hardware catches up, causing me to select something I didn't mean to.
It's not the end of the world, but the performance hit was obvious and detrimental to my overall enjoyment of the device. Given the increase in iPhone processor performance over the last few years it's not unreasonable to expect that the new OS may demand more power than a 4S can comfortably provide.
I'm not saying don't, I'm just saying be prepared.
It happens to me too, but is it worth $750 to upgrade? (I have T-Mobile prepaid, I refuse to sign a contract). I'd rather use that money towards a top of the line Mac Mini.
I'm also wondering if only the 6 and 6 Plus support this tech or if the 5, 5C, and 5S also support it with their own LTE and WIFI hardware.