The Google Pixel Watch and the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 and Watch 5 are the most popular Android smartwatches on the market. Besides packing plenty of health-focused features, these wearables also allow you to directly make or receive calls. This way, you won’t have to reach for your phone when a call comes in. Check out the guide below on how to make calls on the Google Pixel Watch, Samsung Galaxy Watch 5, and Watch 4 series.
How to make calls using the Google Pixel Watch
To call one of your contacts or someone who isn’t in your phone book, follow these steps:
- Press the Pixel Watch’s crown to open the app drawer.
- Open the Phone app.
- Select Recent or Favorites if you want to call a recent contact or one marked as a favorite.
- Select the contact to make the call.
- Tap the call icon beside their number.
- To call a number, select Dialpad from the Phone app.
- Enter the number you want to call.
- Press the call icon to initiate the call.
- Tap the red call end icon to terminate the call on your Pixel Watch. There’s also the option to mute the call.
Accept the incoming call using the smartwatch if you want to have a conversation directly on the Pixel Watch without picking up your phone.
You can make calls through your Google Pixel Watch even if you have a non-LTE Pixel variant if you’re close to your smartphone. The LTE model allows you to make and receive calls when the watch is not connected to the paired smartphone.
How to make calls on the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 or Watch 5
The process of making a phone call is the same on the Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 5, irrespective of whether the watch is paired with a Samsung or a non-Galaxy smartphone and if it is the Bluetooth or LTE variant.
- Swipe up on your Galaxy smartwatch’s watch face to open the app drawer.
- Open the Phone app. Your recent incoming, outgoing, and missed calls are displayed. This data is pulled from your phone’s call log.
- Tap the Contacts icon at the top to dial a number stored in your phone book. The list of your favorite contacts displays, followed by your entire phone book.
- Select the contact you want to call, followed by the call icon. Select Message if you want to drop a text to the contact instead of calling them.
- To dial a number, select the dialer icon at the top of the screen in the phone app.
- Enter the number you want to call.
- Tap the green call button to initiate the call.
The speaker on most smartwatches is not loud enough. So you could have issues listening to the other party in a noisy environment. Make sure to increase the watch’s speaker volume to full to make it as loud as possible.
On non-LTE Galaxy Watch variants, the smartwatch must be connected to the paired phone for the call to go through.
You can switch between your phone and smartwatch while on a call. On your smartwatch, tap the three-dot button and select the Switch to phone option. Similarly, choose the Galaxy Watch as the output source from the ongoing call screen on your phone.
How to make calls on your smartwatch with Google Assistant
The fastest way to make calls from your Pixel Watch or Galaxy Watch is to use Google Assistant. If “Hey, Google” detection is enabled, say the hotword to bring up the assistant. Follow up with the command “Call <contact’s name>.”
Wait a few seconds for Google Assistant to call the contact you mentioned. Using Assistant on the smartwatch, you can have the conversation on your wearable without using your phone.
You cannot make VoIP calls through WhatsApp or Telegram from your smartwatch. You also can’t accept incoming VoIP calls from the Pixel Watch or Galaxy Watch. However, your watch can vibrate to notify you of any incoming calls through them.
Get an LTE-capable smartwatch to make your life better
If you make or receive a lot of calls using your smartwatch, consider getting the Pixel Watch or Galaxy Watch with LTE connectivity. This way, you can make or receive calls when the smartwatch is not connected to your phone. If you just got a new Pixel Watch, Galaxy Watch 4, or Watch 5, check out our collection of the best Wear OS tips and tricks to get the most out of your smartwatch.
