How to Call Someone and Put Them on Speaker Without Picking up Your iPhone

Saturday November 24, 2018 7:55 AM PST by Tim Hardwick
Next time you find yourself with your hands full and you want to make a call on your iPhone – or even if you're in bed and your phone's just out of reach – don't forget that you can get Siri to start a speakerphone call for you, handsfree.


All you need to do beforehand is make sure that your iPhone is set up to listen for the "Hey Siri" voice command. You can check this by following the steps below:

Enable the "Hey Siri" Command on Your iPhone

  1. Launch the Settings app on your iPhone.

  2. Tap Siri & Search in the list.

  3. At the top of the screen, check that the Listen for "Hey Siri" slider is toggled to the green ON position.
With that done, you don't even have to pick up your iPhone to speak to someone on speakerphone. Simply say "Hey Siri, call [name] on speaker," and you'll be chatting in no time.


What if the person you want to call isn't in your contacts list? No problem – just dictate the number to Siri instead: "Hey Siri, call [number] on speaker."

Remember this quick tip the next time you want to make a call and you might just save yourself some bother.

Related Roundup: iOS 12
Tag: Siri Guide
32 comments


Top Rated Comments

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jlc1978
8 months ago

The idea is great, wasn’t it for Siri too often not understanding what I say

And really, do you want me to tell Siri the number, like 555-3462168???
I don’t even “remember “ or know my own wife’s number by heart anymore, let alone other people’s numbers.


"Hey Siri, Call wife on speaker"
"I can't find Wifon Speakerr. Did you mean John Speaks? I've found 6 of them near you..."

My general Siri experience. God help me if I try to use it when watching TV or a movie...

It's even worse if you are trying to call someone whose name is prounounced differently than it is spelt; for example an X in Portuguese so Xuxa is prononunces Shoo Sha. So unless you remember the Siri way with hard X's you can't call them and need to give them some other keyword in the contact.
Rating: 10 Votes
Avatar
Bigskygangsta
8 months ago

"Hey Siri, Call wife on speaker"
"I can't find Wifon Speakerr. Did you mean John Speaks? I've found 6 of them near you..."

My general Siri experience. God help me if I try to use it when watching TV or a movie...

It's even worse if you are trying to call someone whose name is prounounced differently than it is spelt; for example an X in Portuguese so Xuxa is prononunces Shoo Sha. So unless you remember the Siri way with hard X's you can't call them and need to give them some other keyword in the contact.

[doublepost=1543068471][/doublepost]Simple solution to odd name pronunciations. Tell Siri to learn how to pronounce “xyz” contact and she’ll ask you how it’s pronounced and fix it. This has been available for years.
Rating: 4 Votes
Avatar
Relentless Power
8 months ago
I use my speakerphone for almost all my calls (The stereo speakers are outstanding on the newer iPhones) and I didn’t even think to ask Siri to invoke the speaker hands free. Good article.
Rating: 4 Votes
Avatar
Michael Scrip
8 months ago

The idea is great, wasn’t it for Siri too often not understanding what I say

And really, do you want me to tell Siri the number, like 555-3462168??? I don’t even “remember “ or know my own wife’s number by heart anymore, let alone other people’s numbers.


The article explains two ways to call.

You could dictate each digit like you described. You're right... you might not remember their number.

Or you can call someone from your contact list by simply saying:

"Hey Siri, call [WIFE] on speaker"

:p
Rating: 3 Votes
Avatar
840quadra
8 months ago
I use this quite often, especially from iPad or HomePod.

Siri does far more, far better than many give it credit for.
Rating: 3 Votes
Avatar
mattopotamus
8 months ago
I thought this was actually going to show you how to answer on speaker. I usually use my Apple Watch and then handoff when my hands are free.
Rating: 2 Votes
Avatar
Sasparilla
8 months ago
Nice article. I love these helpful tips articles, set up the entire over 40 guest list over Thanksgiving with the magnifying glass shortcut...they all loved it.
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
szw-mapple fan
8 months ago

"Hey Siri, Call wife on speaker"
"I can't find Wifon Speakerr. Did you mean John Speaks? I've found 6 of them near you..."

My general Siri experience. God help me if I try to use it when watching TV or a movie...

It's even worse if you are trying to call someone whose name is prounounced differently than it is spelt; for example an X in Portuguese so Xuxa is prononunces Shoo Sha. So unless you remember the Siri way with hard X's you can't call them and need to give them some other keyword in the contact.


You can tell Siri to pronounce a name differently. Siri will let you record a pronouciation and return choices on which you’d like to use.
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
jayducharme
8 months ago
Is it possible to have Siri answer a call on speaker? That's a more useful tip for me. I know you can have all incoming calls go to speakerphone

http://osxdaily.com/2015/01/19/speaker-phone-default-iphone-calls/

but is there a way to direct Siri to answer individual calls on speakerphone?
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
ShawnNaples
8 months ago
Bummer they didnt think of this option before the kid that died in his van earlier this year. He was able to call 911 twice, but since it wasnt on speaker he couldn't hear the 911 operator. I wonder if this is a fix to prevent to reduce the risk of someone dying in the future simply because they couldnt reach their phone.
Rating: 1 Votes
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