Until you have used the Apple Walkie Talkie feature a few times, it can be a little confusing on just how to use this fantastic little communication system with your family and friends. The great thing about Apple’s Walkie Talkie is that it can be used directly from your wrist and require just a single tap to activate it, perfect for those quick voice communications and saves the need to make a phone call.
Quick Links :
- How to use Apple Watch Walkie Talkie
- Add contacts to your Walkie Talkie address book
- Walkie Talkie invitations
- Disable and turn off Walkie Talkie
- Troubleshooting
Another great thing about Apple’s Walkie Talkie features is that you don’t need the latest Apple Watches to use it. As long as you and your family member or friend have an Apple Watch Series 1 or later loaded with watchOS 5.3 or later, you can start communicating. It’s also worth mentioning that the Walkie Talkie app hasn’t yet been released by Apple in all countries or regions, although its current availability is very extensive even so. For more information on which regions worldwide are currently supported jump over to the official Apple website for a full list.
Apple has also added a handy address book to the Walkie-Talkie app enabling you to quickly communicate with your closest friends and family.
How to use Apple Watch Walkie Talkie
1. Make sure your Apple Watch is running watchOS 5 or later, and your iPhone has iOS 12 or later. Both devices must be connected to Wi-Fi or cellular and within range of each other.
2. Open the Walkie-Talkie app on your Apple Watch by pressing the Digital Crown to access the app screen and tapping the Walkie-Talkie icon (yellow with a walkie-talkie image).
3. Select the contact that you would like to communicate with. If this is your first time using the app, you’ll need to invite friends to use Walkie-Talkie. Tap the “+” button and select a contact from your list. They must also have an Apple Watch running watchOS 5 or later for the communication system to work.
4. Once you send an invitation the recipient must accept the invitation to use Walkie-Talkie with you. Once they’ve accepted, their name will appear in your Walkie-Talkie contacts list with a yellow dot indicating they’re available.
5. To start a conversation, tap on the person’s name from the contacts list in the Walkie-Talkie app.
6. Press and hold the “Talk” button while speaking into the Apple Watch’s microphone. Release the button when you’re finished speaking, allowing the other person to hear your message and respond.
7. When your friend speaks, their message will play automatically on your Apple Watch. You can adjust the volume using the Digital Crown.
8. To end the conversation, swipe left on the contact’s name and tap the red “X” button.
Add contacts to your Walkie Talkie address book
To add contacts to your Walkie Talkie address book, simply open the application on your Apple Watch and then tap the “Add Friends” button to add family members or friends to your quick call list. Once you have invited someone they will need to accept your invitation. Apple shows this as faded member in your contacts until they have accepted. Once accepted their contact details will turn yellow and you and your friends will be able to talk instantly using the Walkie Talkie system.
If you would like to remove a contact from the address book simply swipe left on the contact details and select the X delete button. This can also be accomplished on the Apple Watch application on your iPhone by going to Walkie Talkie and then Edit and using the remove option to the contact you would like to remove.
Walkie Talkie invitations
To add contacts to your Walkie-Talkie address book you need to send invitations which need to be accepted by your chosen contact. These to work correctly you need to make sure that you signed in with your Apple ID and that FaceTime is enabled and working correctly.
Disable and turn off Walkie Talkie
If you would like to disable or turn off the Walkie Talkie feature on your Apple Watch or iPhone simply open the official application on your Watch and disable it by sliding the Walkie Talkie option to off. Now is someone tries to call you while you are available a notification will appear asking if you would like to talk. You can also control the Walkie Talkie feature from the Control Center if preferred.
Troubleshooting
If you are experiencing issues trying to add contacts or use the Walkie-Talkie system is worth remembering that your Apple devices require FaceTime for the communication system to work correctly. If you have deleted it you will need to download and reinstall FaceTime on your iPhone and Watch. Then make sure that you have FaceTime turned on by going to the Settings on your iPhone selecting FaceTime and making sure the option is enabled. You can quickly test this by making a FaceTime to one of your friends. Once you have reinstalled the FaceTime app, simply restart both your iPhone and Apple Watch.
If you are still experiencing issues trying to get the Apple Walkie Talkie communication system working on your Apple Watch or iPhone, it might be worthwhile talking to an Apple support representative or booking an appointment to visit your nearest Genius bar. For more information jump over to the official Apple support website.
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