One of the beautiful things about the Apple Watch, one of the best smartwatches you can buy, is that it can function as a phone on your wrist, too. There are versions with cellular connectivity for which you can sign up for a separate plan, leaving your phone at home while still being able to make and accept calls (think while you’re at the gym, out for a morning run, or at the beach). But even if you don’t have the cellular-enabled model, you can still use the Apple Watch to make and answer calls, provided your iPhone is nearby. There are several ways to accomplish this.

How to manage phone calls on the Apple Watch

  1. The easiest method is to use Siri. Say “Hey Siri” or press and hold the Digital Crown to activate the Siri listen bubble.
  2. Say “Call XYZ” and voilà! A call will be initiated.
  3. Alternatively, go to the Phone app on the Apple Watch.
  4. There, you will see Favorites, Recents, Contacts, Keypad, and Call Voicemail. Choose among these options to call someone. (You may not be able to access Voicemail without a cellular plan for the Watch, but you can make other outgoing calls)
  5. If you want to punch in the number, type it into the Keypad and tap the Phone receiver icon on the bottom right.
  6. If you have a call coming in, press the green Answer button.
  7. Speak into the Watch, and you’ll hear the person through the speaker while they will hear you through the Watch’s built-in mic.
  8. If you need to Mute the call at any time, press the Mute button on the bottom right.
  9. Turn the Digital Crown up and down to adjust the volume of the call.
  10. When the call is done, press the red Disconnect button to end it.
  11. If you have an incoming call and aren’t able to answer, Apple Watch has a neat feature whereby you can let the person know you aren’t available and will call them back later using one of several pre-defined text message replies. Tap the “…” button on the bottom, right.
  12. Select from the predefined text message replies. These include commonly used ones like “Sorry, I can’t talk right now,” “I’m on my way,” and “Can I call you later?” The message will automatically be sent to the caller.

There are plenty of reasons why the ability to make or answer calls from an Apple Watch can come in handy. If you’re multitasking, like doing chores, going for a walk, working in your office, or driving, you can accept a call from the Watch and chat while you continue to move about. You don’t have to worry about finding a pair of earbuds, holding your phone to your ear, or putting your iPhone on speaker. For those who own the Apple Watch Ultra and are often out on athletic adventures, this feature is even more pleasing.

Another potential scenario might be when your phone is a few feet away being charged, but you want to pick up a quick call and answer without grabbing it. Of course, there are also those who opt for the cellular edition of the watch, which now offers international data roaming. You can use the Watch just like a tiny phone on your wrist, and your actual phone doesn’t even have to be anywhere in sight.

Let’s not forget the sheer cool factor of making calls from your wrist, which will bring you back to the days of Dick Tracy and forward to the times of 21st Century James Bond and exciting spy tech. Talking on your wrist is just plain cool.

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