Offline Bluetooth Calling between smartphones: Activation, pros, Cons

A growing number of smartphones these days come with direct Bluetooth-enabled voice calling, aka offline communication. It refers to a technology where a phone can establish a voice call without a mobile network, satellite, or WiFi internet connection. Xiaomi, Honor, OPPO, etc. have launched such phones with different names. Such a feature aka Bluetooth peer to peer (P2P) or Bluetooth walkie talkie Android could be remarkably useful when a user is without cellular or WiFi services and other user is nearby. In this post, we guide you through the offline voice calling on smartphones, how it works, which phones support this feature, etc. Let’s learn more.

What is Direct Bluetooth voice calling between smartphones?

Direct Bluetooth voice calling, or simply local Bluetooth calling, or P2P calling is a growing feature in smartphones that leverages the power of Bluetooth to allow voice calls between users nearby. The technology leverages Bluetooth’s capability and range to make calls possible over short distances.

So far, we have seen Voice over internet protocol, VoWiFi which provides call in absence of mobile signal. However, this latest feature to call locally over Bluetooth between nearby phones is gaining momentum right now.

Also read: 10 best tips to get better mobile signal on your phone

Features of Direct/Local/P2P Bluetooth calling

The features of Direct/local/offline/P2P Bluetooth calling are:

• No Network or Internet required
• Connection via Bluetooth
• Supported on Native Android Dialer or separate app
• Local communication in LOS but Xiaomi claims of working over 1.3 km distance in unobstructed environment

How does Direct Bluetooth Calling work?

Direct Bluetooth Calling or Bluetooth P2P calling works by digitizing users’ voices into small data packets. These data packets are then transmitted over Bluetooth to the other end device, which decodes them and plays the voice in real time.

Advantages

• Convenience: Bluetooth calling lets you easily call another user over Bluetooth. It doesn’t take mighty efforts and cost. It’s cool too.
• No SIM card or internet needed: As it works over Bluetooth, there’s no need for a SIM card, mobile tower signal, or even WiFi connection.
• No tariff: Since there is no mobile or WiFi network required, it’s not a carrier service. Therefore, there’s no call tariff involved in such calls. Offline communication is a great alternative for making calls when there’s a network outage.

Disadvantages

• Limited coverage: Bluetooth calling’s worst limitation is its coverage. A call can be established at around 10-30 meters or in some cases up to 2 km with optimum quality. But on a positive note, the technology is not made to replace regular voice services either.
• No cross-brand calling: This technology won’t allow calls between phones from different brands. For e.g., it will work between only Xiaomi to Xiaomi, OPPO to OPPO, Huawei to Huawei, etc. That’s because each brand has their separate protocols for this feature.
• Impact by physical structures: Bluetooth call coverage can be weakened by walls, trees, glass, and other physical structures. This may also result in a poor and distorted voice. So, Bluetooth calling works best in open spaces and outdoors.

Which phones have offline calling or local Bluetooth calling feature?

Xiaomi 15T series, OPPO Reno 13 Pro, and OnePlus 13 Series have offline/local/direct Bluetooth Calling feature. But brands have given it their own naming. For e.g., Xiaomi calls it Astral Communication while OPPO calls it BeaconLink. More phone vendors like Samsung, Realme, Motorola could be testing and bringing the local offline bluetooth calling soon. So far only Android phones have supported this feature, with no support on Apple iPhones so far.

It’s almost a certainty that more in the future, including more flagship phones, will include it as their key selling point.

This Peer-to-Peer (P2P) calling or offline communication locally is certainly a game changer for frequent travelers, hikers who are mostly offline. Do read: How to stay connected efficiently while traveling?

How to activate offline Bluetooth calling on smartphones?

You can activate Offline Bluetooth calling on smartphones by going to Settings > Connectivity/Network & Internet. There’s no one way to do this, but the steps are somewhat similar across all Android models where this feature is available. Once activated, you can see other compatible phones on your phone that support offline calls. You can tap on the phone you want to call, and the call will initiate.

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If your phone supports offline or local Bluetooth voice calling but you don’t see the option to use it, then you may need to update your phone to the latest OS version. Because some Android OEMs only enable the feature after a particular OS rollout.

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