How to Improve Call Quality
Poor voice call quality can be extremely frustrating, especially if you need to make an important call. Inconsistent indoor signal strength in the UK means that many homes and businesses might struggle with poor cellular connectivity indoors, affecting audio quality and leading to missed or dropped calls. So, how can you improve voice call quality?
There are a few steps you can take to improve phone audio quality, including changing your phone settings, cleaning your phone microphone, reconnecting Bluetooth earphones and checking your WiFi calling settings. You can also use a high-quality wired headset and minimise background noise. If these don’t improve call quality, you’ll need to invest in a signal booster if you want to enhance communication.
Keep reading to learn more about why your phone quality is so poor and 7 top tips for improving phone audio quality.
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Why Is My Call Quality So Bad?
If you’re struggling with poor phone call quality, the most likely reason for this is a weak cellular signal. 4G signal now reaches outside more than 99% of UK premises, according to the 2024 Connected Nations Report, but signal strength is often significantly worse indoors. A weak cellular signal can result in dropped or missed calls, muffled audio and static – not great for communicating with friends and family or important work calls.
However, other issues can also lead to poor call quality, including faulty, unclean or incorrectly configured equipment, phone settings and interference. Below we cover 7 steps you can take to improve your phone call quality and communication.
How to Improve Phone Call Quality: 7 Top Tips
Poor phone call quality can be incredibly frustrating, here are 7 top tips for improving call quality from our mobile connectivity experts.
1. Tweak Your Phone Settings
If you’re consistently experiencing poor voice call quality, taking a look at your phone settings is a great place to start. Below we cover some of the features on iPhone and Android that can help improve voice call quality in just a few seconds.
iPhone
If you have iOS 16.4 or later, you can benefit from Apple’s voice isolation feature for phone calls. This new feature prioritises your voice and automatically blocks out ambient noises to improve audio quality. You can activate this feature by swiping down from the top right corner of the screen to open the Control Center and then clicking Mic Mode and Voice Isolation.
Android
Android also offers a similar feature to Apple’s Voice Isolation, called Clear Calling, but this is currently only available on the Pixel 7 or later. Clear Calling minimises ambient noise on both ends of the call, for a better voice calling experience. To turn on this feature, click Settings, followed by Sound & Vibration, and then Clear Calling.
Samsung Galaxy users can also benefit from two useful features: Dolby Atmos, which optimises voice audio, and Adapt Sound, which tunes out sounds from the phone based on your hearing capabilities.
2. Clean your Phone’s Microphone
If you’ve noticed a decline in voice call quality, this could be down to a dirty or clogged-up phone microphone. Cleaning your microphone regularly is the best way to ensure consistently good call quality. You can use a soft-bristled toothbrush to gently clean the microphone to remove any dirt that has accumulated there. You can also use a damp (but not wet) cloth to remove any stubborn dirt or electronics cleaning putty.
Once the microphone has been cleaned, the sound coming out of it should improve along with your call quality.
3. Reconnect Bluetooth Accessories
If you usually use Bluetooth earphones for phone calls and the audio quality has decreased, you should try reconnecting your earbuds to your phone. This can solve any connectivity issues that might be affecting your call quality. To do this, access your phone’s Bluetooth menu and ‘forget’ your earphones.
Once you’ve done this, you’ll need to repair your earphones with your phone again, following the manufacturer’s instructions. This should have fixed any connectivity issues, and your audio should improve.
4. Use a High-Quality Wired Headset
Although wireless Bluetooth earphones might be more convenient, a good quality wired headset can significantly improve audio quality. This is because wired headsets can transmit uncompressed audio data with limited interference or signal loss. Here are some of the key benefits of opting for a wired headset when it comes to voice call quality:
- Less interference and a higher quality audio transmission due to their physical connection and higher bandwidth.
- No audio compression, so no data is lost during the transmission, resulting in clearer and cleaner voice calls.
- Minimal latency, so the sound is transmitted almost instantaneously, helping calls sound more natural.
5. Check your WiFi Calling Settings
If you’re in an area with poor or unreliable cellular signal, WiFi calling can improve call quality as it relies on broadband rather than mobile signals. However, if your broadband connection is not strong enough or there are issues with network congestion, WiFi calling can actually result in worse phone call quality. An unstable WiFi connection can cause dropped calls or lead to your voice breaking up.
You can configure your phone’s WiFi Calling setting by clicking Settings, Cellular and then WiFi Calling. If you’re experiencing poor call quality try turning WiFi on or off and see if that improves audio quality.
6. Minimise Background Noise
Background noise and interference can affect voice call quality and it can make it much more difficult for the other person to understand what you are saying. If you’re trying to place a call, especially an important one, it’s best to find a quiet location to ensure good call quality. It’s also a good idea to avoid speakerphone unless it’s necessary or you’re in a very quiet environment, as this can result in muffled or distorted audio and echoes.
7. Invest in a Signal Booster
Ongoing problems with your voice call quality can be extremely frustrating, especially as a business. If you’ve tried all the above steps and you’re still struggling with poor audio, it’s likely due to a lack of network coverage. Indoor signal quality can be a real issue in many homes and businesses across the UK, but the good news is that there is a legal and effective way to boost your mobile phone signal and improve call quality – install a high-quality signal booster.
Signal boosters work by picking up your desired network (such as EE, O2, Vodafone, Three and many others) and amplifying this signal in the places where you need it the most. This means a consistent and high-quality mobile signal across your workplace and significantly better phone call quality, so you can make and take important business calls without worrying about audio problems.
High-Performance Signal Boosters from NetCov
If your business is struggling with poor call quality as a result of poor indoor mobile signal, our signal boosters are a reliable and high-performance solution.
At NetCov, we only design and install high-quality Ofcom-approved signal-boosting systems. This means your business will be fully compliant with all UK legislation and you can legally benefit from increased signal strength and call quality. We offer signal boosters for all the most popular UK networks, including EE, O2, Vodafone and Three, and install signal-boosting solutions throughout the UK.
For more information on how NetCov can help your business improve your phone call quality, contact our team today or get started with a free initial consultation.
Call Quality FAQs
5G doesn’t directly improve the quality of cellular phone calls. However, 5G’s faster speeds and lower latency mean higher-quality VoIP calls. 5G enables HD voice+ which uses the 3GPP standardized Enhanced Voice Services (EVS). This provides a much higher voice quality experience than HD Voice which is used in 4G networks.
Yes, WiFi calling can affect voice call quality because it depends on the strength and stability of your broadband connection. If your WiFi connection is unstable then WiFi calling will result in poor audio quality and potentially dropped voice calls. If your phone has WiFi calling enabled and you’re experiencing poor call quality, it might be worth turning off WiFi calling to see if your audio quality improves.
4G calls typically offer significantly higher voice call quality 2G calls. This is because 4G networks use VoLTE (Voice over Long-Term Evolution) which is the process of making voice calls over a 4G network rather than over older packet-switched services (such as 2G). VoLTE offers superior voice quality due to higher-quality codecs and its ability to utilise wider bandwidth. There is also no calling delay resulting in a faster call setup compared to calling on a 2G network.
Yes, a damaged or faulty SIM card can significantly affect call quality, resulting in poor audio, dropped calls or muffled speech. These voice call quality issues might be consistent or intermittent depending on the damage. If you suspect there is an issue with your SIM card which is causing problems with your call quality, you should carefully remove your SIM card and check for physical damage. You’ll need to contact your mobile carrier for assistance or a SIM card replacement.