In conjunction with iOS 9.1's release, Sprint, an American telecommunications service company, announced that its customers who are using an iPhone will be able to utilize the improved Wi-Fi calling feature from Apple. This will allow users to receive and make calls on multiple Mac OS X and iOS devices, be it through Wi-Fi or network carrier connections.
With the enhanced feature, Sprint subscribers can unify their Apple devices, such as the iPad, iPod Touch, Apple Watch and Mac, under a single number. Thus, calls to the iPhone can be answered on any of the listed devices as long as they are connected.
"Customers already enjoy seamlessly responding to texts and email from a variety of great Apple devices," said Sprint's senior vice president for Product Development, David Owens. "They can bring that flexibility to the primary phone number their friends, family and colleagues know best."
Owens adds that through the feature's flexibility, the company is empowering its clientele by letting them choose the device they want. Moreover, calls and text messages sent using the enhanced Wi-Fi feature will be free. They will not be deducted from the consumed data and minutes allotted for the customer's postpaid or prepaid plans nor will any additional charges be incurred.
Through the readily available Wi-Fi networks that most public places offer, the feature secures the users can be reached even when network conditions are less than optimal.
Users who want to unify their iOS and Mac devices under one number first need to update to the latest iOS and Mac OS X version — iOS 9.1 and Mac OS X 10.11.1. The primary device, which can be anything in between the iPhone 5c and iPhone 6s Plus, and the secondary ones that will be unified under it need to be registered under the same Apple ID number and logged in to iCloud.
The Wi-Fi calling feature must then be enabled by going to Settings, then Phone and finally, Wi-Fi Calling. The final step would be to manually set up each of the secondary devices. This can be done by going to Settings, then FaceTime. Calls from iPhone should appear once FaceTime is selected.
