Walkie-Talkies were a hugely popular toy, and gadget, back in the 90s. If you aren’t of a certain age, these handheld devices allowed kids (and adults with taste) to talk over radio waves.
So long as you weren’t too far away, a simple press and hold of a button could let you gossip with your friends. However, while they still exist, the advent of smartphone tech has left Walkie Talkies in the dust.
If anyone is feeling nostalgic over the Walkie Talkie, luckily the Apple Watch has a solution. Not just because you can use the smartwatch to access your contacts list but because of the lesser-known Walkie-Talkie app.
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The Apple Watch app allows you to instantly talk to other Apple Watch-owning friends. Just like the real thing, you have to press and hold a button in order to kick-start the conversation.
Although it sounds good on paper, the Walkie-Talkie app has been infamous among Apple fans. Those who’ve tried to take a trip down memory lane have all shared the same single complaint – that it rarely works.
Since its release in 2018, the Walkie-Talkie app has been plagued with issues. In theory, the feature, which allows you to chat instantly with other Apple Watch users, sounds ideal. Especially if you have a watch-wielding family at your disposal.
Yet bad networking settings, corrupt data, and its reliance on FaceTime have all got in the way of the app working as Apple intended.
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You only have to look at Reddit to see how unreliable the 6-year-old app can be. When one r/AppleWatch user asked who uses the 'walkie-talkie function', the comments were almost all the same, they would if they could.
One Reddit user stated, 'Used it once when it worked. Tried it again randomly and constantly failed. Gave up on it.'
This sentiment was shared by other fellow r/AppleWatch users, who commented, 'When it works it is super nice. Too bad it doesn’t really work all the time.'
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Other Apple Watch users referenced the apps 'unreliability' which resulted in them simply switching back to messaging apps, or phone calls in frustration. While not everyone went into detail about its problems, according to some users, the app simply fails to connect on the regular.
Other users stated the app had 'big delay cuts' which would interrupt any attempt at talking.
Most notably, one user stated that the app’s friend list doesn’t carry over to new watches. With many Apple fans regularly updating their devices to the latest, and fanciest gadget, that’s a glaring omission.
Luckily, it’s not all doom and gloom. It seems the Walkie-Talkie app is still used by at least some Apple Watch owners. A good deal of r/AppleWatch Reddit users sang its praises for using with kids, or even with loved ones with mobility restrictions.
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One user even hilariously stated that they use the app to 'send farts to my friends every once and awhile. Truly remarkable invention.'
However, with so many Apple fans staying clear of the app, and some not even knowing of its existence, who knows how long it'll continue to be officially supported.