This is one of those posts that I’m writing for myself… kind of. It’s the article I wish had existed when I tried to figure out why I couldn’t use WiFi calling on my Google Pixel 8 here in South Africa.

Let’s set the scene.

So I recently moved to a new house. The house is great, but it has one problem: the cell network is terrible. Apparently it has to do with the shape of the mountain I live next to being a tricky place for cell signals to reach (seriously!).

Anyway—after doing a bit of research I learned about this awesome thing I had never heard of before called WiFi calling. And it’s exactly what it sounds like—you turn it on and people can call you on your normal cell number but using WiFi! It was exactly what I needed to use my phone at home.

Except there was a small problem. When I went to go turn it on for my phone by following the instructions the option was just… not there.

After digging around in various support forums and other dark places, I learned that it was a setting controlled by my cell network—in this case Vodacom. And basically, if the network doesn’t recognize that you’re on a supported device, the option doesn’t show up. This is specifically a problem when you import an unlocked phone from another country—just like my Pixel.

At first it sounded like the only solution was going to be to contact Vodacom and have them send me a magic SMS that turns it on—which I tried, unsuccessfully, to do several times (remember I don’t have cell service at home, so this wasn’t particularly fun or easy).

But, finally, I found my way to some posts which pointed to a simpler solution. Apparently you can fake this yourself using Android’s debug tools!

Basically, you install an app called Shizuku which provides a way for apps to access system APIs on your phone—including the telcos use to enable WiFi calling. Then you install an app called Pixel IMS—which uses Shizuku to turn WiFi calling on and off for the SIM card. The apps use the Android debugging APIs, but you can now do that directly on your phone via WiFi debugging! So no laptop or root or anything else required.

Five minutes later, I had WiFi calling working and I can now use my phone at home again!