Is there a way to dial a contact by just typing its name in the keypad....as one can do in all the blackberry and android dialers...it is quite a job first to find the contact and then dial..

People - you critisize something you've no idea about! Smart dialing (also called T9) is NOT about text input for God's sake...it's about dialing a contact in a really quick and simple way just by clicking on one of 10 dial buttons (much bigger and easier to be tapped btw especially on the move) and the phone finds all the contacts matching typed combination

For example I want to dial contact MLADD - I then tap on 6,5,2,3,3 and the phone searches for contacts matching all the combinations hidden on these numbers.

Another example: see Apple's website containing contact line number specified in 2 ways: (800) MY-IPHONE (800-694-7466)

Do you get my point now?

I've used at least 6 different phones in my life so far and went through most of well known platforms including Symbian, Blackberry, Android, Windows Phone and now iOS. I'm very sure there is no better and faster way to quickly and easily dial somebody but by using a smart dial. Dialing somebody this way takes 2 seconds while dialing using tapping on contacts field, then typing a word using keyboard (assuming you click on a right button when on the move) takes a while longer and is frustrating.

It's just a matter of a wider perspective when looking at this problem. If you would use it at least once - you would demand it as well.

For people liking tapping everywhere to perform basic actions - let it be as it is, but why not to improve something by adding an additional option in setting and enable SmartDial?

I know this is an old thread but the lack of this feature was the only thing I hated about my iphone after switching from Android. I agree, the smart dialing is the ONLY way to go to dial a contact. I was just searching the internet hoping that it had been incorporated by now, but sadly doesn't seem like it has been. I wonder if its a patent issue or something of the sort. Love my iphone and wouldnt trade it for the world, but every time i dial by searching a name my eye starts twitching.

Just make the calls by starting in the Contacts App (or go to the Contacts from the Phone App). Use the search capability of Contacts to find the phone number and touch the phone icon to call.

or just use Siri.

Call Bob at work

bubblyjava wrote:

I know this is an old thread but the lack of this feature was the only thing I hated about my iphone after switching from Android. I agree, the smart dialing is the ONLY way to go to dial a contact.

So how do you get to the keypad to dia?

Tap the Phone icon then tap Contacts and start typing a name or a number or a city or whatever.

When you see what you want, tap it.

Or press and hold the Home button say Call Bob at work or Call Mary at home.

You're totally on the money, btw. I was an BB then Android user and am overall happy with my iPhone 6+. But the whole T9 dialing is a huge issue.

For those who say, why not just go to contacts and click on your contact, it is about expediency. That's the whole point. That, and the technology actually exists and has existed on other phones for years and years. This is not a new concept. When I go into my contacts, first, it is a slight challenge to scroll through the alphabet to get to the right letter, and then hopefully I've selected the correct person in the S category. It's a much longer process to go this way, when I could simply type S-T-E on my keypad and it would bring up all my names that start with those three letters and I can quickly choose.

For those who say, why not just use Siri??? Well, yes, Siri is great. But you can't always speak to your phone, or maybe you have a need for privacy and don't want the world to know you're calling Steve or Stephanie.

Apple is great. I love my Apple products. But Android and other technologies are equally good, and even excel in certain areas. Apple is very selective in what it offers us, and it doesn't always benefit us. But there's always hope... I mean, look...after many years, NOW we can actually use Swiftkey on our keyboards now. That took time, but finally they allowed the 3rd party app that gave us SO much better functionality and speed options for typing/swyping on our phone and iPad keyboards.

Voice dialing

BHSLC wrote:

For those who say, why not just go to contacts and click on your contact, it is about expediency. That's the whole point. That, and the technology actually exists and has existed on other phones for years and years. This is not a new concept. When I go into my contacts, first, it is a slight challenge to scroll through the alphabet to get to the right letter, and then hopefully I've selected the correct person in the S category. It's a much longer process to go this way, when I could simply type S-T-E on my keypad and it would bring up all my names that start with those three letters and I can quickly choose.

If I had to guess, I'd say Apple is well aware that the technology exists and has chosen not to use it. Apple does many things differently than other companies. They have often removed features that some people consider essential (floppy drives, SCSI ports, optical drives). Sometimes people adjust, sometimes they don't. And, sometimes, Apple changes their mind.

Submit your feedback to Apple requesting such a feature here:

http://www.apple.com/feedback

Wow, yes this is the one feature I absolutely miss from my Android (and Blackberry, that seemed like ages ago). It was so nice to just pull open the dialer and start typing a name and then hit send and the call would start. It's such a simple thing that really made dialing a pleasure and it's definitely the very first thing I do every time Apple does an update...jump to the dialer and start typing someones name.

Definitely going to take the advice of Apple feedback.

why not use voice dialing. much faster than unlocking the phone, launching the phone app and start pressing buttons

You know...for me it's not really about "what's easier" or "fewer steps" it's a feature that just feels nice. I've never been a fan of voice dialing, I've used it a couple of times and just never really like how it felt. And I know that seems to be everyone's response on here "just use the voice dial" or "have Siri do it" or "just use the voice dial" or "have Siri do it" or...you get the point. Some people like A and some people like B. And apparently everyone who has commented on here about the same thing all seem to agree that's it's not about being easier or whatever, we all seem to say the same thing: it's just a nice feature and we realize there is voice dial but it's just not the same and not everyone likes using voice dial.

You can use spotlight search so you don't even need to open the dialer. Swipe down from any screen and start typing the person's name. You will see options to text, call, or FaceTime them if available. This is even one step faster than Blackberry or Android since you don't need to open the dialer first.

anypats wrote:

You can use spotlight search so you don't even need to open the dialer. Swipe down from any screen and start typing the person's name.

or with iOS 8, the Recents & Favorites contacts are at the top of App switcher (swipe down on Home screen) so you may not even need to type anything.

I have an app called Quick-Tap that lets me put on touch dial buttons (and other things) in the Today screens.

I agree on this. I miss Smart Type also...