How to Record Calls on your iPhone 8, 8 Plus or iPhone X

Apple is smart enough not to include a call-recording feature on its devices, due to privacy purposes. Yet when necessity meets creativity, that’s where you draw the line. In this guide, we’ll show you how to make the impossible, possible — The Recomhub way!

Are you one of the iPhone users who want to record your calls on your phone? Maybe it’s a customer service call, or message from a loved one, or some interview for work. Be it, we shall help you get through that. In the Android platform, there are little restrictions (and a lot of the tips below shall work for Android smartphones). Now when using an Apple device for recording a call, things sometimes get tricky.

If you think that there’d be an app available at the App store for that, we’re here to prove that Apple doesn’t enable third-party applications to access the microphone and your Phone app instantly. Though, there are tricks within some applications and services to get around that restriction that can transform you into being a mobile wire-tapping expert.

Now before proceeding to the steps, we advise you to tell the recipient of the call that you’re recording your conversation; depending on your location, you may be breaking a law if you don’t. Some US states — like New York and even states near it — solely requires one-party consent — which is of course you. However, in California, all parties should agree to the fact that the conversation is being recorded. So in general, play it safe: if the recipient of the call is not with you, have them permit the act.

Utilize Google Voice

If you haven’t utilized that free Google Voice account for some time, examine it out. It caters a free phone number, free voicemail, and of course, your prospect conversation recording. In order for that to run, “Incoming call options” must be enabled in the Google Voice settings, which you can arrive via the hamburger option () in the mobile app or by going to voice.google.com on your desktop.

When you answer calls done to your Google Voice number, press 4 on the Phone app’s number pad. Both parties shall overhear a robot voice stating that recording has started—this is Google’s way of having you legal, as Alphabet Inc. desires no part of a lawsuit. To end recording, press 4 again or hang up. You can press the 4 key as oftentimes as you want in a talk to start and stop taping.

How it Works

As Google Voice forwards calls to your mobile number, you’re not generally utilizing the application to do the taping. It’s all arranged on Google’s servers, which is managing the Voice over IP (VoIP) connection. While it’s likely to begin a call utilizing the Google Voice application on your iPhone 8, 8 Plus or iPhone X, taping is restricted to incoming calls.

The recordings are sent to you on your email and surface on Google Voice’s list of voicemail tapings. You can technically spot the distinction between recorded conversations and voice mail messages coz the following are possibly of a extended duration and state “Transcription not available.”

Have we also mention above that the Google Voice is free? You heard that right. All you got to do is create a Google account and be a wire-tapping master in an instant!

Buy an Application

In the Android platform, a wide selection of application can record a call immediately, except when the phone manufacturer hinders it. On iPhone, taping phone calls are obstructed, end of discussion. The applications that do breathe to tape a call—and there are actually a few—which can really work, but it will require you some cash. So without further ado, here are some of them.

If you happen to be on a call, outgoing or incoming, the application shall promote a 3-way conference call. The third “caller” obtained is a recording line, implemented by a service from the app’s developer. Clearly, 3-way calling is a needed feature of your iPhone for this to run, so double check whether your carrier supports it. In the United States, the big four allows it, but some infamous carriers like Virgin Mobile and Simple-Talk don’t have —at least not in a form these apps assists.

Applications with this type of feature include TapeACall Lite and Call Recorder Lite. As the “lite” indicates, these are cripple-ware/trial—they’re free to try and shall tape calls as explained— yet for only 60 seconds. Best is to buy the Pro versions to be able to record longer.

Limitations

TapeACall Pro is $9.99 yearly—users get credited again every year, but call taping duration is unlimited. Call Recorder Pro is $9.99 just for a single payment but caters only 300 minutes of calling credits; purchasers have to do an in-app buying in order to tape after that—and the credits are 10¢ per minute. Recordings are restricted to 2 hours only.

In addition, a great downside prior to the cost is the extra steps needed to start taping a call—it’s not as easy as just pressing a key on the number pad. But they can be initiated in the midst of any phone conversation; following, you get smooth access to tapings in the app and can play, download, share or export them as wanted. (TapeACall is also accessible for the Android Platform).

Utilize Your Personal Voice Mail—Perhaps

If your iPhone has aided (via your carrier provider) for Visual voicemail and 3-way calling, then you have an option for the lowest cost method of all.

When you are in a middle of a call, wait for the Add Call button to lit up, so you can append a third caller via 3-way calling. Let the other person know he has to wait, press the button, and call yourself. You stay on the line and overhear your own voicemail greeting, then for the tone that symbolizes you’re taping. Press the Merge Calls. All three calls are united—and the third one is just taping the first two to your own voicemail.

Afterward, you can obtain the taping like you would any other voice mail message. As of iOS 9, you can transport voicemail messages as audio files.

Limitations

However, this isn’t going to operate for all carriers. For the carrier AT&T, calling your own number will drop you into the audio voicemail menu and won’t record. You could perpetually attempt calling the person on the other end—you’ll go instantly to their voicemail, absolutely.

They just have to be prepared to transfer you the recorded “voice mail” conversation later. And that’s not something most interview subjects desire to be involved with. Furthermore, carriers may have a restriction on how long they’ll let you tape a voicemail. Check it with a friend and your phone before you attempt this method.

If by chance your own voicemail fails you, you could attempt to use the Slydial serviced (dial 267-SLYDIAL), which enables you to bypass greetings to go instantly to voicemail on almost any smartphones. However, the free version plays ads whenever you leave messages.

Third-party Voicemail System

A greater choice is a third-party voicemail system like Recordator or Google Voice. For the former, create an account and add your phone number to your contacts. Then, proceed with the steps above to join Recordator into the call, carry on with the conversation, and once you’re finished with it, MP3s of the conversation will be accessible on their website. Recordator is not reasonable, with a beginner plan of 67 minutes for $10, then 15¢ per minute afterward.

Some Hardware Options

It seems absurd to purchase more hardware to tape from your iPhone 8, 8 Plus or iPhone X —which is certainly the most advanced hardware in your pocket. Yet the chance lives.

The simplest, lowest-tech choice—exceeding running a recorder while you speak over the iPhone 8, 8 Plus or iPhone X’s microphone —is a wire, the $17 Olympus TP-8 Telephone Recording Device. It doesn’t generally record your iPhone straight. Rather, it has a mike mounted on an earpiece. Sync the other end into a recorder. Afterwards, place the iPhone up to your ear to speak ordinarily. The TP-8 records both ends of the conference from what’s to appear on the iPhone’s ear speaker, yet you can still listen to the conversation.

Using a Digital Recorder

If you lack a recorder, obtain a digital recorder that can take data via 3.5mm microphone jack. One versatile, reliable, and inexpensive choice: the Olympus Digital Voice Recorder WS-852. For a price less than $60, it runs on 2 AAA batteries, can store around 1,400 hours of audio, and has 3.5mm jacks for both a headset and a microphone. The best thing is, it has a USB connector concealed on its upper part, so you can sync it into a PC and download all the MP3 audio files, or transfer files to a Micro SD card in the slot on the side of it.

A digital recorder is nice and all, but if you just plug the phone into a recorder, you’re not going to hear the call—using the headphone jack cuts off the speakers. Get the Recap-C, a $99 adapter that plugs into an iPhone’s 3.5mm jack, with output to a headset as well as to a recorder. The secondary recorder—connected via a 3.5mm male-to-male auxiliary audio cable—can be your recorder of choice. It could even be another iOS device (or Android or PC, but probably stick with the digital recorder for simplicity).

Recording Via Bluetooth

A far greater choice with lesser wires would be the Esonic PR200 for $109. It tapes your conversation via Bluetooth — you place it above your head then speak and listen as if you’re using your iPhone. The call button in the center of the device can answer calls on the Bluetooth-connected phone.

It also caters a USB end, in order for you to quickly transfer the tapings to your PC. Esonic can also store about 144 hours of conversation before it loads up its 4GB of storage. It also tapes like any digital recorder sans smartphone, with the fact that it has an external microphone with a pin-hole.

Esonic also manufactured the U2 recorder, a $90 device that syncs undeviatingly into a smartphone’s 3.5mm phone jack, over heading your earbuds with an external microphone. It should front forward, so you can speak and listen to it when taping. It’s rechargeable via USB—that syncing is also how you obtain the tapings on the PC, either Mac or Windows. It can also store 144 hours of conversation.

Conclusion

Call recording is an out-of-the-box necessity for an individual, yet you may never know when do you necessarily need it, so it’s better to enable this feature on your iPhone 8, 8 Plus or iPhone X. We know that some of the tips we catered above are far easier than expected, and some can’t be mastered via one try.

So with that, we advised you to perform each step precisely, and if you have any confusions or concerns in regards to the guide, don’t hesitate to message us and we would love to hear out your thoughts!