VoLTE: what is it in a phone or smartphone. What is VoLTE in a Smartphone? There is a new icon on android vo lte

VoLTE Beeline has not yet gained popularity, since the mentioned service appeared relatively recently, and therefore is not yet available in most regions of the country. But the telephone company is gradually empowering customers by providing them with better communication conditions. This also applies to updated voice calls, which improve call quality and connection reliability. Consequently, in 2020, a fresh function will become available to residents of those regions of Russia that could not be connected to a modern network immediately. Therefore, you should not be surprised if one day the usual calls are replaced by an Internet connection.

If you describe the technology in simple, understandable language, Voice over LTE or VoLTE Beeline is a special function that allows you to make calls over the Internet.

That is, instead of the usual communication channels, a 4g connection is used, which allows:

reduce network load;
improve the quality of calls (the change in sounds is especially noticeable);
reduce battery consumption on smartphones;
make conversations more economical.

The latter is especially important for owners of tariffs with unlimited traffic or a large number of gigabytes, since the new connection does not require the usual payment, and the only source of expenses is the payment of the spent megabytes. By the way, the traffic consumption is also minimal.

VoLTE in Russia

It has already been mentioned above about the novelty of technologies and their weak distribution in the country.

The fresh service is available only in those cities and regions where people are able to connect to a high-speed LTE network.

Residents of other districts will have to wait until a high-quality Internet connection becomes available to them. Until then, it remains to use traditional, familiar communication methods that are available throughout the state. By the way, it is allowed to use the usual calls in the regions where the latest technologies have become part of the daily norm.

VoLTE from Beeline

The above applies to the proposal from VimpelCom. The telephone company provides customers with a description of the service in some of the most developed areas (for example, the Moscow region), where 4g Internet has existed for a long time. In other regions, you will not be able to make calls using an LTE connection.

You can clarify the exact coverage area of \u200b\u200ba high-speed network on the official portal of the operator, indicating the necessary parameters of the required information.

To do this, it is enough to uncheck the 3g and 2g boxes to remove unnecessary selection from the map and get accurate data. Additionally, you can contact support, but this is inconvenient.

Pros and cons

The main positive features of the introduction of new technologies are listed above:

the ability to simultaneously transfer data of different types;
high quality voice during calls;
reducing the load on the operator's network and the emergence of an opportunity to increase the number of subscribers without reducing the quality of service;
reducing the cost of calls.

Of the negative aspects, it should be highlighted:

a limited number of smartphones that support the function;
poor distribution of the service.

No other obvious flaws were found.

How to connect VoLTE Beeline?

To enable VoLTE Beeline, it is enough to activate this type of communication on a smartphone. For this you will need:

open the settings menu;
select the "connections" section;
open "mobile networks";
find a suitable item;
start internet calls.

Owners of iPhones will have to use a similar method, but will have to go to the "cellular" section and the "parameters" subsection. Here, it will be necessary to move the item with the mention of LTE into an active state. Users do not have to do anything additional, the rest will happen automatically.

What to do if VoLTE Beeline does not work?

When faced with a lack of function or problems making voice calls, the first step is to make sure that:

there is an LTE network at the person's location;
the smartphone supports high-speed data transfer;
option activated.

The next step will be to reboot the phone, which will restore the operation of the device after a possible failure. If the restart does not help, it remains to contact the operators of the contact center. The support staff will understand what is happening and advise you on what to do to restore the function.

How do I disable VoLTE on my phone?

To disable VoLTE in the phone, users will have to use the same instructions that were offered to activate the service. The only difference will be the position of the switch, which will now have to be turned off.

It is important to emphasize that in the absence of an opportunity to connect to the 4g network, subscribers do not need to deactivate the service. The choice of the optimal communication parameters will happen automatically, and customers will not have to choose a commercially profitable network for them.

High quality of data exchange, including voice, in wireless networks implies, first of all, stability and high speed of information transfer. Work on improving the quality of mobile networks is ongoing and it should be noted that over the past few years, many successes have been achieved in this area. More and more advanced communication standards are becoming available, for example, Long Term Evolution or LTE for short. This standard is also known as 4G.

According to the specification, the maximum speed that 3G networks can provide is 42 Mb / s, but in reality it rarely exceeds 2-3 Mb / s, while the fourth generation network already allows data transfer at a speed of about 20 Mb / s, a vivid example what is the Moscow LTE network Megafon. LTE / 4G is also good because it is fully compatible with 3G based on UMTS / HSPA and CDMA, which allows its implementation without significant infrastructure reconstruction. But LTE also has its drawbacks, of which the main one is the lack of support for telephone voice communication.

VoLTE - what it is and how it works

To make calls, the user can switch to 3G, but this is not an option. Instead of returning to obsolete standards, it is better to use a new technology called VoLTE. But what exactly is VoLTE? If we draw the closest analogy to this new standard, then such is Skype. In VoLTE, as in Skype, voice is transmitted not over switch channels, but over the Internet. In short, VoLTE is a voice over LTE technology that allows you to make calls at high speed while taking advantage of the benefits of a 4G network.

But that's not all. Previously, when making a voice call, the operator switched the subscriber from LTE to 2G or 3G using the widely used Circuit-Switched Fallback (CSFB) technology.

When the user ended the call, their phone would automatically switch to LTE. This time-tested method has, however, a number of disadvantages. In particular, the use of CSFB created an unnecessary load on the mobile network, and also increased the connection time between the user and the subscriber, although neither the caller nor the receiving call, as a rule, noticed this. With LTE, everything is much faster and easier, because now calls are made within the network itself.

Advantages and disadvantages of the standard

Although VoLTE technology is still in the development stage at the moment, its advantages are quite obvious. These include:

Higher connection speed achieved due to the absence of the need to switch the mobile device to GSM or 3G when making a call.
Higher voice quality. The data transfer rate in 2G and 3G networks is limited, which does not allow the transmission of the constituent voice modulations in full. LTE throughput is much higher, more voice data is transmitted through such a network, and the use of HD Voice codecs adds volume to the sound and reduces the amount of noise.
With VoLTE, simultaneous transmission of voice and other data is possible. In 2G and 3G networks, when making calls, the transmission of Internet traffic was usually temporarily suspended. This is due to the fact that with the simultaneous transmission of voice and other data, the quality of communication dropped sharply, while the load on the network, on the contrary, increased. VoLTE does not have these restrictions.
Increasing the capacity of cellular networks. The use of VoLTE technology makes it possible to increase the number of concurrent subscribers in comparison with 3G up to three times without significantly increasing the load on the network.
Free calls. Since voice when using VoLTE is transmitted in batch mode, only Internet traffic is consumed. If the user is connected to an unlimited tariff, all calls made by him can be considered as practically free.
Saves battery power. The VoLTE standard provides for a special DRX mode that provides base station signal reception with short interruptions. During such interruptions, the radio receiver of the device turns off, therefore, the consumption of battery power decreases.

These were the main advantages of VoLTE. On the other hand, it has its own number of disadvantages, due to which users often abandon the new technology. At the moment, the main disadvantages are:

Increased demands on the hardware resources of the mobile phone. The VoLTE algorithm should be implemented at the processor level; if the requirements do not meet, the load on the mobile device may increase.
Limited number of phone models supporting VoLTE. Only the latest mobile devices support the new technology.
VoLTE must be used by both the caller and the receiving call to achieve the declared sound quality.
Difficulties in the transition to a new standard by mobile operators. It will be possible to take advantage of VoLTE only after all operators decide to make the standard the main one.
VoLTE is not supported by all operators and not in all regions due to the lack of appropriate equipment on the towers.
Vulnerabilities in VoLTE technology.
The standard may not be available in intranet and international roaming.

How to enable VoLTE on your phone

The use of the new standard is possible if two basic conditions are met. First, your operator must support it, and secondly, the standard must be supported by the mobile device itself. With the operator, everything is more or less clear, to find out whether he supports the new standard or not, just call the support service. Now let's see what VoLTE is in a phone. This is an option that can be turned on manually or automatically in the mobile settings. If your phone does not have this option, then the VoLTE standard is not supported by either the firmware or the device.

VoLTE is currently supported by over thirty smartphone models from leading manufacturers. Among them are iPhone, LG, Vertex Saturn, Samsung Galaxy, Sony Xperia and ZTE. How to enable / disable VoLTE? It all depends on the device model. For iPhone, for example, the VoLTE standard is enabled in the settings Cellular - Data Options - Enable LTE - Voice & Data.

To enable the option in Samsung Galaxy, you need to follow the chain Settings - Connections - Mobile networks - VoLTE calls... In LG smartphones, you need to go to Settings, and then follow the path Networks - Advanced - Mobile networks - VoLTE... VoLTE is disabled in the same place where it was enabled.

Development prospects

Despite the many difficulties and obstacles that have to be faced on the way to the implementation of VoLTE, the future of the new technology looks very promising, especially when you consider that the emergence of 5G networks is just around the corner. The main obstacle to the development of the standard - the lack of an appropriate legal framework in Russian legislation - has already been successfully eliminated, now the case is behind the leading mobile operators, as well as the users themselves.

However, one should not wait for the rapid spread of VoLTE, especially in the regions. There are still too few devices on the hands of subscribers of cellular networks that can work with this technology, and secondly, there is still no complete and final agreement between the operators regarding the transition to a single standard. VoLTE can only be expected to win if the common principles are created and accepted by all operators, and also provided that the standard can compete with OTT voice services.

In May 2014, Singapore-based SingTel introduced the world's first commercial VoLTE service operating in Singapore. Interestingly, initially it worked with only one smartphone - Samsung Galaxy Note 3. Later the technology was developed in other countries - Russia was no exception.

Users often ask the question - what is this very VoLTE? The term VoLTE itself was formed from several words: Voice over LTE, which can be translated as “voice over LTE”. Yes, it is indeed a voice transmission technology, which in turn is based on IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) technology.

What does VoLTE give? This technology allows you to provide voice services and deliver them as a data stream over LTE, has several times more data capacity and voice capacity than 3G networks, and even more so 2G. VoLTE also frees up bandwidth.

But all this is lyrics. It is much more important for the user to know what the advantages and disadvantages of this technology. We will tell you about them.

VoLTE advantages

First and foremost - now there is no need to waste time to make a call. Didn't understand anything? Let's explain: before, in order to make a call, the system automatically switched the device from 4G mode to 3G mode, which could take about 2 seconds. Now you do not need to switch anything, the device makes a call immediately.

The second advantage, and not less important, is that the quality of the transmitted sound has improved, in some cases - at times.

Third: when making a call, you can transfer data in the 4G network. This was not possible before, because, as mentioned above, the device switched to 3G mode.

The fourth advantage will not be noticed by the majority of users: the number of subscribers that can maintain simultaneous communication with one base station increases.

Disadvantages of VoLTE

There may be such a problem: when you leave a city where there are no LTE towers, the connection may be lost. You need to switch to 3G mode yourself.

The second is a higher load on the device itself, that is, it can discharge faster. True, the load is small, so there is no need to worry about the fact that the smartphone suddenly starts to discharge quickly.

Addition

On smartphones, VoLTE is turned on by default, while a corresponding icon appears in the status bar, which may have the name VoLTE or, for example, HD, as in our example:

You can disable this function at any time, or, conversely, enable it. We don't see the point of disconnecting, but if you want to do this, then here's a simple instruction for you.

Open the Settings app from the desktop icon.

Click on the "More" button.

Select "Mobile network".

If you have a different layout of subsections in the "Settings" section, it does not matter - use the search by the phrases "mobile network" or "mobile networks" (without quotes).

Find the line "VoLTE calls" and enable or disable the specified functionality.

Not that hard, is it?

If you are the owner of a modern smartphone, then you have probably heard, and maybe even actively use a new high-speed wireless communication standard called LTE, or as it is commonly called 4G. LTE is being actively implemented by all major mobile operators almost all over the world, so every day it becomes more and more relevant. In Russia, for example, 4G coverage has already exceeded 50% of the territory's coverage and continues to grow rapidly. As of early 2020, the coverage area of \u200b\u200b4G and VoLTE with LTE is 78%.

Nevertheless, few users think about exactly how LTE works, what this technology can do, what advantages and limitations it has. And there are indeed limitations, and the most significant of them, in our opinion, is the inability to make ordinary phone calls. Yes, that's right, you heard right. The fact is that LTE was originally developed only for high-speed data transmission and voice transmission in these networks is simply not provided.

However, such a problem could not remain unresolved for a long time, and such a function as VoLTE began to appear in new smartphones. Today the technology is still quite young, but some of the possibilities of communication that are familiar to us, such as dual VoLTE, that is, working with two SIM cards at the same time, as well as VoLTE roaming, are available now. Our today's article will tell you what VoLTE is and what advantages it has.

VoLTE development history

As you may have noticed, VoLTE is not a proper name, in fact, it is an abbreviation for the words Voice over LTE, which can be translated into Russian as “Voice over LTE”. Actually, the name of the technology is its main purpose. Since the original fourth-generation networks were not designed to carry voice messages in the traditional way, to realize this possibility it is necessary to introduce additional technology capable of transmitting voice as a data stream.

VoLTE technology not only allows calls over 4G, it also takes full advantage of the next generation network, which allows you to get three times the voice capacity of the previous generation and six times the capacity of the second generation networks. The closest analogue of VoLTE according to the principle of operation is the famous Skype, where voice transmission is carried out not through switch channels, but through the Internet.

For the first time VoLTE technology was applied on a commercial basis by the Singapore mobile operator SingTel in May 2014. It is noteworthy that then the service was compatible with only one smartphone, namely the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, and was also available only in Singapore. However, in June of the same year, South Korean operator KT and its Chinese partner China Mobile organized the world's first cross-border VoLTE roaming, which significantly contributed to the development of the technology. From that moment, the popularity of VoLTE began to grow like a snowball, and soon the voice services in the 4G network began to be introduced by large mobile operators almost all over the world.

It is logical to ask the question, which Russian operators support VoLTE? Perhaps many will be surprised, but the new standard came to us almost immediately, as soon as it appeared, namely in August 2015. It was then that the mobile operator Beeline first launched voice services via 4G in Moscow. Further, the initiative was taken up by other large companies and thus a similar service was organized by MegaFon in September 2016, followed by Tele2 in April 2017. For a long time, a significant drawback of this service was that it was available only on the territory of Moscow and nearby settlements. However, since March 2018, a large mobile operator MTS has launched a campaign to promote VoLTE not only in the capital and major cities, but throughout Russia. At the moment, the service is already available in ten areas and coverage continues to grow.

VoLTE also received significant support from mobile phone manufacturers. If a few years ago, only Samsung Galaxy Note 3 could offer such an option, today more than eighteen manufacturers support voice transmission via LTE. And if you consider that each of the companies provides at least several compatible models, then the number of smartphones with VoLTE already exceeds several dozen devices. It is also worth noting that progress does not stand still and gradually models equipped with dual VoLTE appear on sale. In particular, one of the first such devices was the brand new Samsung Galaxy S9.

If your current smartphone does not support VoLTE, then there is no need to rush to the store and buy a new one. The technology is quite young and it will take a long time before its widespread adoption. Nevertheless, if you are somehow going to buy a new smartphone in the near future, then make sure that it supports voice communication via 4G, it will obviously be quite useful.

Why is VoLTE needed?

Users very often ask a question that sounds like: "VoLTE, what is this in a phone?" Above, we have already partially answered what VoLTE is in itself, but it will not be superfluous to explain how it all works and why it is actually needed.

And so, we have already noted several times that LTE networks themselves transmit only data, but do not transmit the usual voice calls. However, many will disagree, because we use LTE every day, but at the same time we receive and make calls without any problems. So everything works like that? Not really. With an outgoing or incoming call, 4G is turned off and the smartphone is switched to 3G or 2G mode, and already in these networks, a connection is established with your subscriber. In other words, during a telephone conversation, you stop receiving any Internet traffic. Packet data from services does not come, messages from instant messengers and social networks do not come to your phone, and so on. Even the very fact of switching between 4G and 3G causes many negative effects, such as, for example, an additional load on the operator's network and a much longer connection setup between subscribers, while in some cases it can even reach 20 seconds.

The VoLTE function in a smartphone avoids all the unwanted effects described above, since the call is made directly via LTE. This means that Internet traffic continues to flow and it now takes a few seconds to connect between subscribers. Also, this technology allows you to solve several problems less obvious to the user. Thanks to the three times higher network capacity, the load on one relay tower is greatly reduced, which in turn allows it to be used by a much larger number of subscribers. In addition, in the new generation networks, sound transmission is significantly improved, which makes the voice of your interlocutor deeper and clearer, and all extraneous annoying noises disappear.

Today, 4G calls within the network of one operator are very easy and fast. However, you may still have problems with VoLTE roaming. Therefore, you will be able to get the maximum effect from the new generation communication only if all your friends and colleagues use the services of one operator.

Benefits

Each new technology necessarily carries a number of advantages and disadvantages. VoLTE is no exception in this regard, and therefore we are obliged to draw your attention to this issue. Throughout the article, we have already mentioned some of the features of the new communication standard, but now it is time to highlight the main ones and talk about them in more detail. Traditionally, we will first of all touch upon the advantages of the new technology, especially since there is something to tell about here.

High connection speed. With no need to switch to 3G and 2G networks, VoLTE calls are made in just a few seconds. In addition, the new generation network in principle establishes a connection faster than the previous generation networks, since the connection is direct.
Simultaneous voice and data transmission. The second significant advantage of this technology is the ability to simultaneously transmit voice calls and traffic. Without VoLTE, the transmission of other data along with voice greatly reduced the quality of communication, and the load on the network increased significantly. Thus, during voice calls, data transmission was stopped.
High quality sound for calls. Even the best smartphones could not provide ideal call quality on 3G, as the speed limit for voice transmission in 3G networks was limited to 16 kilobits per second. The use of VoLTE allows you to significantly improve the sound quality of the interlocutor's voice, add depth to it, and also remove all extraneous noise.
Increasing the bandwidth of cellular networks. Since the new communication standard provides three times the data capacity, this allows more subscribers to use a single cell base station without having to switch to adjacent towers.
Battery saving. When constantly switching between networks, the smartphone was using additional energy from its battery. When the synchronization with VoLTE is enabled, it allows you not to waste the charge on additional actions.

disadvantages

The technology also has certain drawbacks that have not yet been eliminated. Compared to the advantages, they are not so significant, nevertheless, they can significantly affect the user, so it is better to be aware of their presence.

Increased system requirements. The VoLTE algorithm is implemented at the smartphone processor level, therefore, for optimal operation of this function, VoLTE-enabled smartphones must have a relatively powerful central processing unit.
Limited number of compatible smartphones. To date, not all mobile devices support the new voice communication standard. Thus, only owners of certain brands of phones will be able to use VoLTE.
Subscriber compatibility. To ensure high quality sound, the VoLTE function should be used not only by you, but also by your interlocutor.
Difficulties of the transition. To date, not all operators are ready to provide voice communication services over 4G, and not throughout the country.
Roaming problems. Today the new standard is still quite poorly working in intranet and international roaming, and it will take some time to fully implement this feature.

Like any other new VoLTE technology, it has a number of disadvantages. However, progress cannot be stopped and there is absolutely no point in abandoning the use of the new standard. Switching to VoLTE now means getting all the benefits today that others will receive only tomorrow.

Outcome

Today the technology of voice transmission in 4G networks is still quite young and it will take quite a long time to implement it. Thus, if you do not have VoLTE in your phone, then you should not worry too much about this for now. Although, if you live in Moscow or not far from the capital, then today you will be able to feel all the advantages of the new standard, in addition, sooner or later, conversations on LTE will become as familiar to us as conversations on 3G networks. Therefore, if you are going to buy yourself a new phone, then be sure to ask which smartphones support the VoLTE function. Already now dual VoLTE and VoLTE roaming are available to us, which means buying a new device today without VoLTE is to limit our own capabilities in the near future.

How to enable VoLTE on Xiaomi smartphone?

Today, almost all new Xiaomi models are VoLTE compatible and this is, in fact, one of the few manufacturers that supports the new communication standard to such an extent. However, many Xiaomi smartphone owners do not know how to enable VoLTE on their devices. In fact, enabling and syncing VoLTE on Xiaomi phones is done in just a few simple steps.

We go to the smartphone settings.
Select the section " SIM cards and mobile networks».
In the menu that opens, select " Enable VoLTE"And switch the slider to the" Disabled».