Idea Cellular on Tuesday announced the rollout of its VoLTE (Voice over LTE) service to the general public in India. The services start on May 2, and will is available across six major circles. The telco had unveiled its VoLTE services for its employees in four circles back in March this year. Meanwhile, the services are expected to be released to other circles in the coming months. Notably, Idea is offering 10GB of data for free to VoLTE subscribers when they make their first VoLTE call.
With the launch, Idea has become the fourth telecom operator in India to offer VoLTE services. Jio had kicked things off in 2016, while Airtel and Vodafone followed 2017 and 2018. The VoLTE service provides HD quality voice services over a 4G/ LTE network. It also eliminates background noise. Idea also promises faster call connection and better battery utilisation. Idea VoLTE allows subscribers to use 4G data while being on a voice call. Notably, users get automatically routed to 3G/ 2G when they move out of a 4G network using Single Radio Voice Call Continuity (SRVCC).
During the first phase of launch, Idea Cellular will open the VoLTE services in Maharashtra & Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh & Telangana and Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh.
As mentioned above, Idea is offering 10GB of data for free on making the first VoLTE call. Do note, Idea customers will get 10GB data within 48 hours of making the first VoLTE call. Also, calls on VoLTE will be charged as per the customer's existing voice tariff.
Sashi Shankar, Chief Marketing Officer, Idea Cellular said, "The launch of Idea VoLTE is testimony to our commitment to digitally connect customers, and a major milestone in Idea's mobility journey. We aim to provide a better and richer call quality experience to our customers through this revolutionary new technology."
Also, Idea is partnering with several handset manufacturers to ensure availability of Idea VoLTE capable devices in the market. Idea VoLTE will be accessible on 4G handsets powered by Idea 4G SIM. Existing Idea customers with compatible 4G handsets will automatically be upgraded to Idea VoLTE service.
Notably, Idea VoLTE will be available on smartphones such as Honor 5C, Honor 6X, Honor 7X, Honor View10, Honor 9 lite, and Honor 9i. Also, Xiaomi Redmi 4, Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro/ Galaxy J7 Pro A5/ Galaxy J7 Pro A7, OnePlus 5/ OnePlus 5T, Nokia 3/ Nokia 5, and Vivo V7 Plus will start releasing Over the Air (OTA) updates to enable Idea users to experience VoLTE service, soon. The compatibility of handsets can be checked on Idea's site.
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