FaceTime Audio – Why and How You Should Use It

The estimated reading time for this post is 4 minutes

If you have an iPhone, iPad, Mac computer, Apple Watch or iPod Touch you have a way of making phone calls worldwide for free: FaceTime audio. By using FaceTime audio you have an alternative way to make phone calls beyond using your cell phone service.

What Is FaceTime Audio

FaceTime audio is a free service from Apple that lets you make voice calls between Apple devices without using a cell phone service. You can use FaceTime audio on your iPhone, iPad, Mac computer, Apple Watch and iPod Touch.

You can make FaceTime audio calls from an Apple device while you’re connected to the Internet, either over Wi-Fi or using your cellular data.

[note] You can also make FaceTime video calls if you want to see the person you’re talking to (and be seen by them). [/note]

Why to Use FaceTime Audio

FaceTime audio is a free service to make voice calls between Apple products. You may want to use FaceTime audio instead of making a phone call because you:

• are not near your phone
• are making an international call
• only have someone’s email address and not their phone number
• have a weak (or no) cell phone signal
• have limited voice minutes for your cell phone plan

Some people think the calls on FaceTime audio are better quality than a cell phone call. You can test out FaceTime audio to see if you agree.

Have an Android phone? Check out FaceTime alternatives at Joy of Android, FaceTime for Android: Bitter Truth & 5 Alternate Options.

How to Make a FaceTime Audio Call

You can only make FaceTime calls to people who have Apple devices.

You can’t make FaceTime calls from an iPhone to an Android phone, for example. You can make FaceTime calls from an iPhone to a Mac computer though.

You must have an Apple ID to use FaceTime.

Enabling FaceTime on Your iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch

To use FaceTime on your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch, go to:

Settings => FaceTime and slide the switch for FaceTime => On.

Tap Use your Apple ID for FaceTime, and sign in to be able to use FaceTime with your email address.

Your iPhone will automatically detect your phone number to use with FaceTime.

You don’t need to turn on FaceTime for your Mac computer or Apple Watch.

Making a FaceTime Audio Call from Your iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch

You can make a FaceTime audio call from your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch three ways:

• FaceTime App (this comes with the device, you don’t need to download it from the iTunes App Store)
• Contacts App
• Siri

Of the three, the Contacts app is my favorite way of making a FaceTime call. When you look up someone in your Contacts app, you can see right away if they have FaceTime enabled.

Tap the phone icon next to FaceTime to start your audio call.

If someone isn’t in your Contacts list, you can either add them or use the FaceTime app.

Making a FaceTime Audio Call from Your Mac Computer

You have two choices for making a FaceTime call from your computer:

• FaceTime App
• Contacts App

By using the Contacts app you can see which of your contacts can receive FaceTime calls.

Making a FaceTime Audio Call from Your Apple Watch

You can make a FaceTime audio call from your Apple Watch three ways:

• Favorite People
• Siri
• Messages

Favorite People – press the rectangular button on the side of your Apple Watch to show your favorite people. Rotate the Digital Crown (the round button) to your contact. Tap the phone icon. Choose FaceTime Audio.

Siri – press and hold the Digital Crown and ask Siri to make a FaceTime call to one of your contacts.

Messages – open the Messages app on your Watch and choose a message from the person you want to call. Press and hold the screen until you see three options. Tap Details => tap the call button and choose FaceTime Audio.

Mind Your Data

While you can use FaceTime on both Wi-Fi and cellular data, you may want to use it only on Wi-Fi if you’re on a limited monthly data plan and run low on data each month.

You can check how much data each FaceTime call used by opening the FaceTime app. You’ll see a list of the FaceTime calls you’ve made and received, for both video and audio.

Tap the information icon (i in a circle) to see information about the call, including the length of the call and the amount of data used.

FaceTime Audio vs. Video

You can also use FaceTime to make video calls, Why use FaceTime audio when you could use video?

Maybe:

• You’re not looking your best
• Your home/office isn’t looking its best
• The person you’re calling isn’t looking their best, or their best isn’t what you want to see
• You’re not connected to Wi-Fi and you don’t want to use your entire month’s data on one video call
• Your Wi-Fi connection is weak
• You’re making the call from your Apple Watch

Your Thoughts

Have you used FaceTime audio yet? What is your favorite way to use FaceTime audio? When would you find it handy to make a FaceTime audio call?

Share your thoughts in the Comments section below!

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