If some of the users have a warm memory of using Nokia’s T9 predictive text on their old phones, they will enjoy a new bonus in the latest iOS 18 beta update from Apple. The second public beta for iOS 18 that is available since July 29 restores T9 dialing on iPhones and introduces many other peculiarities. Apple declared iOS 18 in June at its Worldwide Developers Conference and the beta versions are out to developers and guests willing to ride the cutting edge.

What Is T9 Dialing?

T9, an abbreviation for Text on 9 keys, was one of the pre-smartphone developments in the texting world that introduced a predictive text input method with the assistance of which individuals could type with the help of fewer keys. A few years back, mobile phones were items that had simple 12-key pads and every single key used to represent more than one letter. For instance, if the key “H” is represented by “4” and “E” by “3” then to write “Hello”, one simply punches in 4-3-5-5-6. T9 technology made this process more efficient by predicting words based on fewer key presses, thus making texting faster and easier.

How T9 Dialing Works In iOS 18

With the release of the iOS 18 beta, the Phone app supports the T 9 dialing feature; thus enabling the users to directly call the contacts by typing the name in the T9 manner. Here’s how to use it:

1. Open the Phone App: Open the Phone app on iPhone.
2. Access the Keypad: Click at the bottom of the interface on the “Keypad” button.
3. Type the Contact’s Name: Tap the ‘Keypad’ button on the screen to access the button pad for T9 input and type the name of the person you want to call. For instance, to dial a “Dad,” what you have to do is to type in 3-2-3. While you are typing, the name of the contact you are in conversation with will appear at the top section of the write.
4. Make the Call: When the right contact comes up, his or her particulars pop up automatically, including the phone number; simply click ‘call’ on the green icon to make the call.

Benefits Of T9 Dialing

T 9 dialing is an efficient way of dialing contacts without using much effort and time meaning that it is a way of efficiently identifying the contacts that you want to call out of the large list of contact that one may be harboring. It’s particularly useful for those who are familiar with the T9 system from earlier cell phones and prefer the tactile satisfaction of keypad input.

Considerations For Beta Users

It is good to know that there is the new T 9 dialing feature as we recall that the iOS 18 is still in its beta version. Users are advised to avoid installing the beta on their primary device as it will be a testing version, thus will have bugs and drain battery. Again, we recommend installing the beta on the second machine to prevent possible problems.

Additional Features In iOS 18 Beta

In addition to T9 dialing, iOS 18 brings several enhancements to iPhones, including: 

• Customizable Home and Lock Screens: Of wider choices to customize designs of your home and lock screens.
• Control Center Updates: Enhancements in usability for instances it was faster for using them and get to the settings and other aspects with easier interface.
• Enhanced RCS Messaging Support: More attention to what is now known as Rich Communication Services to make messaging more effective.

Conclusion:

The inclusion of T9 dialing in the new iOS 18 version takes me back to the era of the cute, clumsy sounding predictive text. Although this feels rather outdated now, the T 9 dialing is not an unusable function as it helps to get to the desired contact immediately without going through the list.

In my point of view, one of the best examples which prove that Apple solves problems by basing itself on the innovations of the past is a return of T 9 dialing. It also expresses the company’s craftsmanship and its focus with the users and their needs.

Nonetheless, the key point resulting from the use of any beta version is that it’s always wise to proceed carefully and be aware of the drawbacks that can be inevitably present having a negative effect on the performance of a device.

Are you looking forward to using T 9 dialing in the next iOS, you know, iOS 18? Ok, so does that make sense to do that now, do you think it is a good idea or just a relic of the past kind of thing? This is your opportunity to give your opinion and let’s come up with some comments.