[i.h]

Wifi calling via other iCloud-connected devices, without being on the same WiFi network as the iPhone. It’s listed in the features list I shared earlier, but for EE only (not BT).

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I’m slightly surprised by the way they’ve gone about EE TV. My assumption, based upon earlier leaks about a new EE TV product using Apple TV, was that they were looking to abandon Youview (and with it the need to develop their own software, and need to work with hardware partners on custom hardware) and simply go for an Apple TV with EE branded remote and EE TV app as the new product going forward. Meanwhile, I expected them to probably rebrand BT TV Box Pro to EE TV as well and run this in parallel for around 5 years as a legacy product. The aim being to attract new customers to the Apple TV proposition alongside enticing existing customers over to it. This would have the benefit of no longer requiring any development budget for Youview (which BT were known to want to move away from).

However, what they have actually done appears to be move forward with a deliberately dual-platform approach and keep Youview, even for new customers, alongside their Apple TV product. Quite why they are bothering with this, I have absolutely no idea.

I’m not sure an iCloud feature is really “full” wifi calling, but I think it’s moot - my BT SIM is in an iPhone and “calls on other devices” is in the settings and is enabled. I notice that in iOS 17, the carrier profile has changed from BT to EE, so maybe there are a few bells and whistles for those who still use BT mobile? (no visual voicemail though - confusingly I see a button to call 1571 as well as the visual voicemails from my other iPhone on full fat EE)

As for TV - my uneducated guess is that Apple TV doesn’t support multicast streaming, and that’s a core part of the (former) BT TV solution. That or there’s a boatload of Pro boxes in a warehouse that could be put to use first. Apple TV probably costs them more per unit - I doubt Apple gives that much of a bulk discount..