Latest news with #HoldAssist
Phone Arena
2 hours ago
- Phone Arena
WWDC shows that the myth about Apple and Android features is true
There is a long-standing myth about Apple that says the company takes a feature that has been used on Android for a few years, adds it to the iPhone, gives it a new name, and acts as though it has come up with the greatest thing since sliced bread. If you watched today's WWDC 25 Keynote, or read our coverage of it, you'll know that this is no myth. Three features that I wanted on the iPhone, Hold Assist, Live Translation, and Call Screening were taken from Google AI and Galaxy AI found on Pixel and Samsung handsets respectively. When Google introduced the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro in 2021, it revealed a new feature that was sure to be handy for users called Hold for Me. When activated, Google Assistant monitors the phone line while you are placed on hold. With Google Assistant on the job, you can turn your attention to something else without having to keep listening for someone on the other end of the call to return to the conversation. As soon as a live person is ready to help you, Google Assistant alerts you audibly. The Hold Assist feature has the iPhone monitor your call if you're put on hold and alert you when the other party returns to the line. | Image credit-PhoneArena This is a great feature and one that I missed greatly when I switched back to the iPhone. Today, during the WWDC Keynote, Apple announced its version of Hold for Me which it calls Hold Assist. Let's say that you need to call an airline to ask a question about a reservation you made. When you're placed on hold, you can have your iPhone sit through the silence while you go back to your work. When an agent is ready to help you, you will be notified so you can return your attention to the call. When on a call, tap on the More button on the screen showing the dial pad. It is the button with a three-dot icon. Pressing that button gives you several options with the last one being Hold Assist. Press on Hold Assist and you'll see in the Dynamic Island that the feature has been enabled, the call is on hold, and that you will receive notification when a live person is on the line. Live Translation allows you to have real-time communications with someone who doesn't speak your language. | Image credit-Apple Another new feature coming to the iOS Phone app is called Live Translation. This is another useful feature and is one that Samsung offers with its Galaxy AI suite of features and it carries the similar name of Live Translate. I was hoping that Apple would add this to iPhone and it is coming in iOS 26. Integrated into Phone, Face Time, and Messages, Live Translation uses on-device AI to translate what a caller is saying to you in a foreign language via audio or text. This translation is done in real-time, on the fly. Apple's new Live Translation feature is similar to Samsung's Live Translate. | Image credit-PhoneArena Keeping the technology on-device allows spoken or written conversations to stay private. Your response is translated in real-time into the other party's language allowing for a seamless two-way conversation. Lastly, a feature on Pixel models called the Google Call Screen uses AI and asks a caller to reveal his name and the reason for calling before connecting the call. Apple now has a similar feature that it calls Call Screening. The idea is to find out enough information from the caller to allow AI to decide whether to block the call or let it through. Call Screener asks callers questions to see if their call should get through. | Image-Apple As with Hold Assist, iPhone users will find Live Translation and Call Screening to be extremely useful features. I'm happy to see them available on iOS. As for that myth, how can anyone not see that this is a thing. It does show you the difference between Google and Apple when it comes to their operating systems. Android is tweaked in order to improve the user experience. Apple waits before it adds these useful new features and then comes up with a somewhat similar name. Still, having said that, I'm happy to see Apple add these features to iOS and I'm looking forward to using them.
Stuff.tv
5 hours ago
- Stuff.tv
What is Hold Assist? Apple's AI hold and call screening features explained
For a while now, Google's had the edge on clever AI phone features. It's been able to make bookings for you or sit on hold for a good few years now. But Apple is finally catching up in iOS 26. The latest iPhone update includes a clever new feature called Hold Assist. Hold Assist takes the existing Live Voicemail concept and pushes it further. When you're placed on hold during a call, instead of sitting through an endless loop of muzak or the same robotic voice telling you how important your call is, Hold Assist steps in. The iPhone stays on the line, listens for when a real human finally picks up, and then lets you know it's time to return to the call. But how exactly does this AI-powered feature work? Here's everything you need to know. How does Hold Assist work? When you're put on hold during a call, this iOS 26 feature kicks in automatically if it detects that you're stuck in a wait-loop. Using on-device intelligence, it monitors the call and listens for the tell-tale signs that a real agent has joined the line. Once it detects someone has picked up, you receive a discreet notification that it's time to engage. You can carry on using your phone, make yourself a cup of tea, or scream into a pillow about your broadband provider, while Hold Assist does the drudgery. Importantly, it's all done on-device. Your privacy isn't being pawned off to a cloud service, which means all the monitoring and detection happens securely on your iPhone. And if you're thinking this would be particularly handy with businesses that use overly complex automated menus or hold systems from the 90s, you're spot on. Hold Assist will be available later this year as part of iOS 26, and it's coming to supported devices including iPhone 16 models, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max. You'll also find it in iPadOS 26 and watchOS 26, as long as the device is paired with a supported iPhone. The feature supports several languages including English, French, German, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish, Japanese, and Mandarin Chinese – with more coming soon. iOS 26 gets Call Screening as well! Call Screening in iOS 26 will also let you know who's calling. When a call comes in from someone not in your contacts, your iPhone can answers the call on your behalf using Apple Intelligence. It then prompts the caller to state their name and reason for calling. While this is happening, you're kept out of the awkward exchange entirely. Once the caller responds, their message is transcribed in real time and displayed on your screen. You can then decide to answer the call, ignore it, or ask for more information with a quick tap – all without saying a word. It's particularly handy for weeding out spam, sales pitches, or cryptic 'urgent' calls that usually turn out to be anything but. Importantly, all this is handled on-device, so your calls aren't being routed through a cloud server. And unlike basic caller ID, Call Screening gets you an actual reason for the call before you decide whether it's worth your time. What about the Messages app? iOS 26 introduces a new feature for screening texts in the Messages app. Messages from unknown senders are now automatically sorted into a separate folder, keeping them out of your main conversation list. You'll have the option to review these messages, mark the sender as known, ask for more information, or simply delete them. Until you choose to engage, these messages stay silenced, so they don't bother you with notifications. It's essentially spam filtering for texts, now built right into the Messages app. As someone who struggles with sorting through emails, it would have been super helpful to see this feature baked into the stock Mail app. The fact that it isn't feels like a huge miss, as spam emails constantly slip their way into my inbox.
CNET
7 hours ago
- CNET
iPhone's Phone App Is Getting a Major Upgrade, Including a Smarter Way to Wait on Hold
Apple's Phone app is finally getting a major glow-up. If you've ever been stuck on hold with customer service, you'll appreciate one of the biggest changes coming with iOS 26. At its WWDC 2025 keynote event, Apple unveiled a sweeping redesign of the Phone app aimed at making one of the iPhone's most-used features feel more intelligent, streamlined and helpful. The centerpiece is a new Hold Assist feature that uses on-device intelligence to recognize when you're stuck listening to hold music and offers to wait in line for you. In essence, you will no need to keep the phone to your ear while the minutes tick by. When the call finally reaches a real human, you'll get an alert letting you know it's time to pick up. Hold Assist is just the beginning, though. The refreshed Phone app also brings a unified design that folds together your recent calls, voicemails and favorites into a single scrollable view, reducing the need to bounce between tabs. The Phone app will now be a unified hub that keeps your favorites pinned at the top, while recents and voicemails fold into one scroll. Apple/Screenshot by Joe Maldonado/CNET Apple is also introducing Call Screening, a feature that leverages Siri and Apple Intelligence to silently answer unknown calls on your behalf. Instead of sending suspicious numbers straight to voicemail, the system will answer quietly in the background, gather information and display a summary so you can decide if the call's worth taking. Essentially, it's a smarter evolution of call filtering, with no extra apps or silencing tricks needed. Voicemails are also getting a glow-up thanks to Apple Intelligence. The Phone app will now offer AI-generated summaries of both voicemails and voice notes, so you can quickly catch up on missed calls without having to listen to every second of the recording. The Phone app redesign marks one of the biggest updates to the iPhone's Phone app in years. It's also a clear sign that Apple is continuing to doubledown on integrating AI across its core apps in ways that attempt to solve everyday annoyances. The new Phone app experience will roll out with iOS 19 later this year.
The Sun
7 hours ago
- The Sun
Millions of phone owners getting ‘Hold' robot that waits for human helper FOR you – saving you hours of misery
APPLE is giving iPhone owners their very own personal robot assistant that will wait in phone call queues for you. The tool will go on hold so you don't have to. For example, when you call a business and you're put on hold, you can get Apple's new Hold Assist tool to wait in line for you. It will then notify you when the human support rep is ready to speak with you. Google has a similar tool, called Hold For Me, for Android phone owners. Apple fans have been calling for the feature for months. "I'd love to basically have a "hold for me" feature, like the Google Pixels have had for a while now," one Apple user wrote on Reddit earlier this year. "Basically, the phone detects when you are on hold, and can mute the call and notify you when there's finally a person on the other line." But that's not all. At this year's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple also unveiled a new Call Screening feature. It aims to tackle unwanted calls, helping you gauge whether a phone call is important or another pesky telemarketer. The tool automatically answers calls from unknown numbers in the background - so you won't even realise it's happening. After the caller gives their name and reason for calling, the phone rings and offers you a transcription of what they said. This way, you can either pick up the phone or ignore it. 2
