In iOS 10, your iPhone can now announce the name of whoever is calling you with the new “announce calls” feature. It works really well. Let’s discuss how it works!
While including a huge number of all-new features, Apple has also fixed many annoyances in iOS 10. I have to say it is by far my favorite iOS release yet. It is such a huge upgrade! I love especially how it also increases performance. Good stuff, Apple!
One particular annoyance on iOS 9 and earlier was how there was no way to find out who is calling you without checking your iPhone’s screen. It worked only on Bluetooth, which most people don’t even use.
Now, in iOS 10, you can set an option to have Siri announce the name of whoever is calling you. This is useful when, say, you are exercising, or running, or doing anything that makes it difficult to pick up your phone.
Also check out: Clear all notifications at once with iPhone in iOS 10
Set up announce calls feature in iOS 10
It is really simple. Just launch the iPhone Settings app, and go to Phone > Announce Calls. From here, you can choose the following four options:
- Always announce calls
- Announce calls when using headphones or connected via USB or Bluetooth
- Announce calls when using headphones only
- Never announce calls (default)
The “announce calls” feature was one of the first I activated when I upgraded to iOS 10.
I would say I spend around 20-30 hours every week using my iPhone with the headphones connected, or connected with my car stereo using either Lightning USB connection, or Bluetooth.
This new iOS 10 feature makes things easier. Now, I don’t have to pick up my iPhone to know who is calling. Siri will do that job for me!
Keep in mind that this will only work when your phone is not on Silent or Vibrate mode. Moreover, Siri will announce the name of the incoming caller only when the number is saved in your contacts. Otherwise, it will just say that an unknown number is calling you. That itself is still useful information.
Stay tuned to Windows Clan, folks. I’m taking a deep dive into iOS 10, so I’ll be sure to report back any new and useful features.