Reflecting on past writings, I realize I’ve never dedicated a post to the Phone app. Two articles on the topic I’m most proud of are Announce Calls and Recent Calls, but neither really captures the glory of the predestined app.
Previously, Phone was only available on iPhone and Apple Watch. The FaceTime app showed recent calls on Mac and iPad, but the design was confusing.
Now, Apple has unified Phone across its devices, with a consistent app experience. As a result, it’s much easier to make and receive calls, review call logs and voicemail, and more using any device.
Client Notes
Over the past weeks, I helped Estella get reacquainted with her Mac and learn such basics as scrolling to reveal the scrollbar, how to access Control Center and Do Not Disturb, and how to multi-select.
I also discussed with Nancy and Adrianne about “drives” and where to find and organize files. Plus, I strengthened Bruce’s Wi-Fi using his existing equipment that wasn’t configured properly.
Phone on iPhone
For nearly two decades, the iPhone’s Phone app has delivered a user experience with five sections: Favorites, Recents, Contacts, Keypad, and Voicemail. From iPhoneOS 1.0 to iOS 18, Phone was nothing but consistent.
iOS 26 is the first version to offer a new, more consolidated approach to managing calls. The new “unified” view merges Favorites, Recents, and Voicemail into the Calls view. Favorites appear as tiles at the top and Calls, Missed, and Voicemail are listed in chronological order below. Tap the magnifying glass at the bottom for search.
To see only missed calls or voicemail, tap 
(filter) top-right and choose the list you want. The Manage Filtering option jumps to the Call Filtering section of Phone settings with additional options.
You might notice that the filter also reveals one more toggle. Because of the continuity of Phone design over 18 years, you might prefer or simply be used to the classic layout. Feel free to choose a view as you wish and the app will instantly switch to the specified design.
In Classic view, as in prior versions, tapping a recent call listing instantly initiates a call. However, in Unified view, tapping a recent call listing shows the call details along with contact information, if known. To make the call, tap 
in the listing or in the details pane.
Phone settings offers an additional toggle that’s only visible when Unified is active: Tap Recents to Call. With this enabled, Recents reverts to the prior approach where tapping a listing makes the call and tapping 
reveals the details.
Hold the Phone
New to OS 26, Phone can now detect when you are placed on hold and notify you when it’s time to pick up again.
Additionally, it can screen unknown callers (those whose numbers you haven’t saved). Their introductions are routed to voicemail, which you can see transcribed live, and you can answer the call immediately or block the caller indefinitely, depending on your preference.
Shifting From FaceTime
On Mac and iPad, FaceTime previously handled making and receiving calls routed through an iPhone. This feature arrived in 2014 as part of iOS 8 and macOS 10.10. However, it was never easy to initiate an iPhone call using FaceTime, especially since there wasn’t a keypad for entering unsaved numbers.
I mentioned this capability in Cardhop: A Better Contacts App because this third-party app has made it easy for me to call someone and has handled routing the call through FaceTime. Now that the Phone app exists on other devices, Cardhop sends outgoing calls there instead.
Or, you can make the call in Phone just the same. Click a favorite or the call button next to a recent call entry. Or, click the call button for anyone with a phone number in Contacts. Choose a number if they have more than one.
You might notice along the way that the Contacts editor on Mac is the same as before but the details pane gets a visual overall to match that of other applications and devices.
Notably, as Phone has not previously existed on Mac and iPad, there’s nothing representing the Classic view offered on iPhone. So, if that’s your preference, you may be displeased that your chosen layout isn’t unified across devices.
Phone on Apple Watch
Where screen real estate comes at the greatest premium, Apple Watch unifies the experience even further. The keypad button is top-right for entering numbers on the fly. In the other corner, the Filter menu offers Calls, Missed, Voicemail, Spam, and Deleted. Wait a minute… Spam? I don’t remember seeing that on iPhone.
Perhaps spam filtering on iPhone requires a carrier or third-party app enabled to handle the filtering. I just discovered mine was disabled in Visible but activating it doesn’t help in this case.
Or maybe there’s just a naming inconsistency. I reviewed the voicemails that Apple Watch shows me in the Spam section and discovered I can find them in Blocked Voicemails at the very bottom of iPhone’s Voicemail list. I’ll send feedback to Apple.
I know making and receiving phone calls on a Mac is not for everyone. However, because I easily switch among my Apple devices for common applications like Messages, Mail, and more, it’s a no-brainer for me to use any of them for phone calls, too.
Reply or comment on this