Latest news with #CallingCards
Android Authority
2 days ago
- Android Authority
I love Google's new Calling Cards feature. Here's how to use it on your Android phone
Joe Maring / Android Authority In late July, Android Authority reported that Google was working on a new 'Calling Cards' feature for its Contacts app. Yesterday, it began rolling out widely for everyone to use. When you receive a call on your Android phone, you see a standard incoming call screen with that person's name, number, and profile picture. Calling Cards let you spruce this up a bit, allowing you to select a full-screen picture and stylized text to display for each of your contacts. It's basically Google's version of the iPhone's Contact Posters feature, so while not the most original feature, it's a fun one nonetheless. With Calling Cards now available for everyone, here's a quick guide showing you where to find the feature and how to use it. Ready? Let's get to it. Do you like Google's Calling Cards? 0 votes Yes! I think they look great. NaN % They're fine. NaN % I don't like them. NaN % Other (let us know in the comments). NaN % What you need to access Google's Calling Cards Joe Maring / Android Authority Before showing you how to use Calling Cards, a couple of quick housekeeping notes. Calling Cards first began rolling out on August 15, and in typical Google fashion, it may take a little while before the feature is live on your phone. Calling Cards are tied to the Google Contacts and Google Phone apps. Calling Cards are live on my Google Pixel 9a with version 4.61.28.792249534 of the Contacts app, as well as version 188.0.793710089 of the Phone app. A couple of members on the Android Authority team reported needing to be in the Google Phone beta program before Calling Cards appeared. If you have the latest versions of both apps and still aren't seeing Calling Cards, you can join the Google Phone beta here to see if that prompts them to show up. It's worth noting that Calling Cards should soon be available in the non-beta version of the Google Phone app. You can stay on the stable version and wait for Calling Cards to show up there, or join the beta to use Calling Cards now. Either way, here's how to use Calling Cards once they're on your phone. How to use and edit Calling Cards Joe Maring / Android Authority You can create Calling Cards in the Phone and Contacts app, though I've found it easier to access them in the latter. Just how easy? Open the Google Contacts app on your phone. Select a contact. Tap Try adding a calling card. Add a photo for your calling card. You can use the camera app, select a picture from your on-device gallery, or pick something from Google Photos. Customize your calling card! You can use one finger to move your photo around and use two fingers to pinch and zoom to crop it. You can also choose the font style and color of the text. Tap your calling card to preview it, then tap Done in the upper-right when you're finished. Tap Skip to only use the picture for your contact's calling card, or tap Confirm and crop to use that same photo for your contact's profile picture. Finally, tap Save in the upper-right corner to save your work. And that's all there is to it! If the 'Try adding a calling card' prompt doesn't appear on a contact's page, you can also tap the pencil icon at the top of your screen to create a Calling Card that way. Now, when you receive a call from that contact, you'll see their personalized Calling Card instead of the usual (and boring) incoming call screen. There's not much else to explain for this one. Calling Cards may not be the most revolutionary feature we've ever seen from Google, but I think it's a fun and charming one. It's a cute way to spruce up your phone when you get a call from a friend or family member, and it's the little touches like this that I sometimes enjoy the most. Follow
Android Authority
4 days ago
- Android Authority
Google's Calling Cards are rolling out now, and this is our first proper look!
TL;DR Google has started to roll out the Calling Cards feature in the Contacts and Phone apps. This feature lets you create a stylish profile for your contacts. This differs from Apple's Contact Posters, which only lets you create a poster for yourself. We've been tracking a Calling Card feature in Google's Contacts app for weeks now. We haven't actually seen this in action, but all signs point to Android's take on Apple's Contact Posters feature. Now, we've got our first look at this feature as it's rolling out to some users. We downloaded the latest version of the Google Contacts app (version 4.61.28.792249534) and discovered that the Calling Cards feature is now available. We didn't have to do any tinkering to view this feature. Furthermore, some users on Telegram report that they have this feature too. You can view our screenshots below and our video above. Perhaps the most notable thing about the Calling Card feature is that it works differently compared to Apple's Contact Posters. Apple allows you to customize your own picture and profile, letting you change how others see you, but you can't change other people's posters. Google's take, however, is the exact opposite. You have full control over how other people's Calling Cards will look, but you can't customize your own card. When viewing a contact in the Google Contacts app, you'll see a prompt to add a Calling Card for them. However, you can also add a Calling Card when adding or editing a contact. So there's no shortage of ways to add this card. Once you've decided to add a card, you can grab an image from your camera, gallery, or Google Photos. From here, you can choose a font style and color for your contact. Once you've chosen the font and name color, you'll be asked if you want to also use the Calling Card as a contact picture. But you can skip this step. Either way, your Calling Card will be synced to your Google account, so it'll show up on other devices. Don't want to miss the best from Android Authority? Set us as a preferred source in Google Search to support us and make sure you never miss our latest exclusive reports, expert analysis, and much more. We can also see the Calling Card pop-up in the Google Phone app (version 188.0.793710089-publicbeta-pixel2024), prompting you to 'get started.' The app also features a Calling Card field in settings. Tapping this field will reveal which contacts have a Calling Card. You can view these screens below. In any event, the feature seems to be rolling out to some beta users right now. We hope this feature comes to stable users in the coming days, as it's a rather nifty way to spruce up calls. Follow
Android Authority
25-07-2025
- Android Authority
Google Contacts Calling Cards sound more and more like iOS Contact Posters (APK teardown)
Adamya Sharma / Android Authority TL;DR Google Contacts has been working on a new 'Calling Cards' feature for a few versions now. Earlier analysis has suggested that this could function very similarly to iOS Contact Posters. New text strings and a promo image add further support to that interpretation. What is it they say about mobile operating systems? Good platforms copy, but great platforms steal? Android and iOS have definitely traded ideas more than a few times over the years, and just last month we were looking at what felt like Android's latest attempt to crib off Apple's notes. Google's Contacts app appeared to be working on its own version iOS Contact Posters, with 'Calling Cards' teasing custom pictures and a stylized rendering of your name to announce callers. At least, that's what it felt like Google was up to, but we still weren't sure exactly how this was going to work. Authority Insights story on Android Authority. Discover You're reading anstory on Android Authority. Discover Authority Insights for more exclusive reports, app teardowns, leaks, and in-depth tech coverage you won't find anywhere else. An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release. We still don't quite have the full picture, but as were analyzing the changes in version 4.60.30.783994635 of Contacts, we spotted some further hints towards what to expect from Calling Cards: Code Copy Text Try adding a calling card Customize how %s appears during calls All contacts Dismiss this suggestion for all contacts or only this contact? This contact We knew from last time around that Calling Cards would let you choose a custom font, presumably for the display of your name, and that second string above feels like it adds some support to that interpretation, confirming that Calling Card custom content is explicitly intended to show up during calls. What we'd love at this point is to actually show you a Calling Card as they'd appear in Contacts, but the app's not quite ready to let us get that far right now. But while we'll have to keep digging to make any headway there, we do have maybe the next best thing, having unearthed an illustration it looks like Contacts could be planning to use when it finally introduces this tool to users: AssembleDebug / Android Authority That sure seems to add credence to the idea that Calling Cards will utilize a full-screen picture of your contact. Sadly, though, it doesn't do anything to add to our understanding of how text will factor in to these Cards, leaving us to keep looking at iOS Contact Posters and wondering it we might really get a 1:1 copy. Hopefully we get a chance to see this in action soon, and can finally put the last of this speculation to rest.
