No signal, no problem: EE’s WiFi Calling service launches with the Galaxy S6 on 10 April

EE has revealed that its WiFi Calling service will launch on 10 April, debuting with the Samsung Galaxy S6, S6 Edge and Microsoft Lumia 640.

The service is aimed at customers who’ve got spotty cellular connections in their homes, suffering from poor call quality or even the inability to make calls and receive texts in certain areas of their house.

WiFi Calling eliminates that by allowing devices to make and receive calls as well as texts, using a Wi-Fi connection. It’s a welcome feature, but it does sadly mean that we might soon start hearing people nattering away on Underground platforms.

While other networks like Three also offer this service, they require separate apps. EE’s solution is built-in to the actual devices themselves, and WiFi Calling is automatically enabled the moment a Wi-Fi connection is established.

That means that users can use their devices exactly as they would normally – the same dialler, the same text app – without having to take any extra steps or open up another app.

We’ve been testing the service out for the past week, and it’s worked as advertised, letting us make calls in notorious dead spot rooms without any problems.

There’s no specific list of supported devices yet (and EE was unable to confirm iPhone support), but we do know that EE is planning to bring the service to more than 5 million customers by summer.

WiFi calling is a feature present in iOS 8, so we’ll eat our SIM cards if EE doesn’t roll out the feature to its Apple-toting customers in future.

Update: EE has told us that the WiFi Calling feeature is actually available a day early, for iPhone users who have downloaded the latest iOS 8.3 update from Apple. Compatible handsets include the iPhone 5s, 5c, 6, and 6 Plus.

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Esat Dedezade Contributor

About

Esat has been a gadget fan ever since his tiny four-year-old brain was captivated by a sound-activated dancing sunflower. From there it was a natural progression to a Sega Mega Drive, a brief obsession with hedgehogs, and a love for all things tech. After 7 years as a writer and deputy editor for Stuff, Esat ventured out into the corporate world, spending three years as Editor of Microsoft's European News Centre. Now a freelance writer, his appetite for shiny gadgets has no bounds. Oh, and like all good human beings, he's very fond of cats.