What is Wi-Fi Calling?
Wi-Fi calling (Also known as VoWi-Fi) is a way to make talk and text using any normal internet connection. Why do I say "Normal?" It is because ports 500 and 4500 need to be open, if the admin blocked from using those ports on their internet - your calls will not be routed through Wi-Fi Calling.
Wi-Fi calling can also be a substantial amount of ideas, making calls back to Canada in an international location for free, poor service at your location? It will allow you to get through to loved ones without freezing, cutting out, or ending calls, but beware - Wi-Fi calling only works when you are connected to a network and your phone has "Wi-Fi" after your carrier name (EX: TELUS Wi-Fi, Koodo Wi-Fi, Virgin Wi-Fi instead of TELUS, Koodo, VIRGIN.)
But no - the endless abilities don't end there... Apple has a feature for Wi-Fi calling for other devices. It will use Wi-Fi calling on your hooked up Apple devices even when your phone is not nearby (So you can receive important texts while your phone is repaired) though none of the carriers in Canada have Done this feature yet... T-Mobile has it for their customers.
Also on some carriers, on the iPhones Wi-Fi calling settings, there is a feature for "Prefer Wi-Fi calling while roaming" to not incur roaming fees.
Note: Bell, TELUS, Koodo, Virgin, PC Mobile do not allow for international roaming.
But note: 911 operators cannot know your location when calling 911. That is why there is a setting on your phone called "Update emergency address" which can give 911 operators an address to relay when calling 911 with Wi-Fi calling.
Here is the support for Wi-Fi calling on carriers:
| Category | TELUS Mobility | Bell Mobility | Rogers Wireless | Koodo Mobile | Virgin Plus | Fido Solutions | Public Mobile | Lucky Mobile | Chatr Wireless |
| Wi-Fi Calling? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| Wi-Fi Calling while roaming? | No | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | No | No |
Here is some other carriers:
| Category | No Name Mobile | PC Mobile | Fizz Mobile | Freedom Mobile | Videotron | SaskTel | EastLink |
| Wi-Fi Calling? | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Wi-Fi Calling while roaming? | No | No | No | Yes | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
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What is VoLTE?
VoLTE (Voice over Long Term Evolution (4G)) is a high definition calling standard that will make your calls go through LTE instead of 3G. 3G can make your calls a little cloudy while you can perfectly hear people on LTE.
VoLTE has been adopted worldwide - with many carriers slicing off 3G as LTE takes the lead. Even the United States has no 3G fallback calling anymore, so now all devices who owners want to make calls have to get a VoLTE enabled device that is supported with their carrier.
Almost all Canadian carriers have VoLTE, although your device may not support it. Please contact your carrier if your device is compatible with their restrictions on VoLTE. One way to see is if your phone falls back to 3G when making a call, then when you end the call, it goes back up to LTE or 5G.
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What is roaming?
Roaming is when you are outside your carriers coverage range and are allowed to go on a partners network. You know how you can get cell service in the USA, right? It is just that way, but your carrier doesn't operate towers in the USA.
Imagine you go to the USA and buy something, your Credit Card Company doesn't have currency in your account for USD, only CAD. So it will "Convert" your money to USD with a small fee (Like what carriers have for roaming) and give you the money.
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What is 5G?
5G (Often known as New Radio) is a new generation of cellular technology that people use for their own internet nowadays. Anything is basically possible with 5G.
There are a couple different types of 5G, but here is what we have in Canada:
- 5G NSA (Uses 4G LTE as deployment)
- 5G SA 3500 MHz & 3800 MHz (Uses 4G LTE for voice)
Here is all of the standards of 5G:
- 5G NSA (Uses 4G LTE as deployment)
- 5G SA 3500 MHz & 3800 MHz (Uses 4G LTE sometimes for voice.)
- 5G mmWave 35 GHz, 38 Ghz range
Here are all of the max speeds of each individual standard:
| Category | 4G LTE | 5G NSA (Uses 4G LTE as deployment) | 5G SA 3500 MHz & 3800 MHz (Uses 4G LTE sometimes for voice.) | 5G mmWave 35 GHz, 38 Ghz range |
| Max Speeds | 500mbps | 1000mbps | 2gbps | 10gbps |
| Theoretical speeds | 50-250mbps | 75-400mbps | 250 - 500mbps | 2-6gbps |
