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What is Live Voicemail in iOS 17: New iPhone call feature explained

Apple has revealed a Live Voicemail feature as part of iOS 17 during the WWDC keynote on June 5.

The helpful feature automatically transcribes the voice message, as it is being spoken by the caller, and shows the text on the incoming call screen, if you’ve chosen to send a call direct to voicemail.

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This is designed to help users decide whether they actually would like to answer the call. It would be an excellent option if you see a call from an unknown number and are worried it might be a spam call.

That way, you can hit ‘accept’ and dive into the phone call, or continue to read as the voicemail comes in. This should save a little bit of time when usually you have to wait for the voicemail to be completed before receiving the notifications.

It should also help people remain in their work flow without being too distracted by picking up their phone and listening to the voice mail.

The feature was announced as part of a raft of new features for the Phone, FaceTime and Messages app in the forthcoming iOS 17 release.

A standout feature is the FaceTime video message you can leave for people if they’re unable to answer your call. There are also new live stickers for messages and attractive cover photos for your contacts that’ll run from the incoming call screen to the contact card itself.

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