"Sorry, can you say that again? It's a bit loud there." For conversations where you might hear a phrase like this, Apple has a new feature that can help.
Recent iPhones now have a setting to make your voice clearer and background noises less obtrusive during calls.
The feature is called Voice Isolation and it's available from iOS version 15 for Facetime calls and from iOS 16.4 for phone calls. Some third-party apps are also already compatible.
How to turn on Voice Isolation:
- During the call, open the Control Centre by swiping down from the top right-hand edge of the screen.
- Then tap on Mic Mode and select Voice Isolation.
Ambient noise is now suppressed and your own voice is prioritised.
However, ambient noise isn't something you always want blocked out, especially if people are joining the conversation from the other side of the room or if you want someone to hear your baby babbling in the background.
That's why Apple has also added a Broad Spectrum mode, which switches off filters for ambient sounds more likely to be wanted.
Only newer iPhones from the iPhone XR/XS and upwards are capable of offering the Voice Isolation feature. Older models are not able to do this, despite having the corresponding software.