Summary
Your Apple Watch is loaded with features, and you probably dont use most of them.
It doesnt work like a real walkie-talkie via radio waves and local communications, but rather using the internet.
Walkie-Talkie is powered by Apples FaceTime VoIP service.
Tim Brookes / How-To Geek
The feature effectively emulates one-way radio communication using a Push to Talk interface.
it’s possible for you to either listen or speak, not both.
Youll also need to enable and set up FaceTime under tweaks > FaceTime on your iPhone.
Tim Brookes / How-To Geek
The feature must first establish a line of communication in the form ofa FaceTime callin the background.
Once this step is complete, communication is conducted almost in real-time depending on the speed of your connection.
The icon is bright yellow with a black outline of a handheld radio on it.
Tap on it to launch it, and youll see your availability and any friends you have added.
Do this and your Watch will bring up a list of iPhone contacts.
If you want to use Walkie-Talkie with anyone, youd better double-check theyre a regular iPhone contact first.
Tim Brookes / How-To Geek
It should go without saying that theyll also need to be an Apple Watch user.
Once the big Push to Talk button turns yellow, youre ready to start chatting.
Press and hold the button and speak into your Apple Watch, then release and wait for a response.
Walkie-Talkie will be audible, whether or not your Apple Watch is in silent mode or not.
Even if your Watch is silent, the message will be audible.
While the icon is lit up yellow, you will be contactable via Walkie-Talkie.
The availability toggle is also accessible in the Walkie-Talkie app.
Upgrading to theSeries 8didnt help, but Apples 2023 software upgrade did.
If youre having problems we have aWalkie-Talkie troubleshooting guideyou can follow.
This mostly involves double-checking permissions, restarting devices, and fiddling with controls.
Im just crossing my fingers that future watchOS updates dont break the feature all over again.
Why Use Walkie-Talkie?
Walkie-Talkie is a fun Apple Watch feature.
Its a method of communication that Inspector Gadget would be proud of, but its also pretty useful.
Its a lot harder to miss a message if your wrist is screaming at you.
People cant talk over you due to the one-way nature of this method of communication.
Its great if someone is in another room and you dont want to shout across the house.
Theres also an element of fun to it.
Its still a novelty, all these years later.
you might absolutely embarrass your partner in the supermarket from several aisles away.
Just dont do it while theyre at work.
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