All About Interwebz: X finally brings video and voice calls to Android users

Video and voice calls will now be available to Android users on X (formerly Twitter), however, they will require either a Premium or Premium Plus tier subscription.

iOS users gained this function in October 2023, and now Android has finally caught up. Only Twitter users willing to pay for the aforementioned subscription tiers will be able to active call other users, but there's still some call functionality for non-premium users.

Any X user can receive video or voice calls and they can control who they can receive calls from in the direct messages settings. Users can receive calls from accounts they follow or have in their address book by default. However, if they want to call another user they will need to have received a direct message from said person at least once before. Users will also need to have push notifications enabled so they won’t miss when they are being called.

Audio and video calls can be found in the DM settings tab. Call preferences can then be managed in the settings page allowing users to choose from contacts, verified users, and followed accounts. Additional details on audio and video calls can be found in the X Help Center.

How much will it cost?

A screenshot of calling options on Android — (Image credit: Future / James Ide)

Premium tier membership to X starts at $8.00 / £8.00 / AUS$10 per month or $84.00 / £84 / AUS$105 per year and will give users access to video and voice calls as well as other features like editing, longer posts, and the infamous blue checkmark.

The Android app of X is currently sitting at a 3.6 rating on the Google Play Store with some recent reviews criticizing the stability of the app. Some users are questioning adding these features when WhatsApp, Discord, and (i)Message offer something like this already.

Their inclusion could be part of Elon Musk’s strategy to make X a “a single application that encompasses everything,”, and to evolve it into a single multi-functional app like Facebook.

While an interesting option, it is unclear if it will tempt more users to purchase the Premium subscriptions but it would only really be useful to connect with strangers and those you don’t already have contact information for.