Google Pixel users in India might soon enjoy a new feature called the call screening. The feature helps in keeping scammers and unwanted calls at bay. This cool feature, exclusive to Google Pixel phones, automatically screens incoming calls, saving your time and keeping spammers away. While currently available in only a few countries outside the US, there's a possibility that more countries, including India, might soon get this feature.
A Reddit user shared how they got call screening working in India by tweaking settings on their OnePlus 7 and their friend's modified Redmi Note 8. Even though the method to activate it isn't crucial, what's exciting is the potential expansion of this feature to new regions and languages. He said, “I was able to get it to work perfectly after rooting my OnePlus 7 device which runs AOSPA 14 Custom ROM and using GappsMod magisk module available on GitHub to enable call screening flags and downloading the Hindi lang packages.”
If you are wondering how he did it, he modded applications or tweaks that emulate or enable those features on their OnePlus device after gaining root access. These modifications might involve using custom software, modules, or settings tweaks not officially supported by OnePlus but designed to bring certain Pixel-like features to other devices through modifications made possible by rooting.
The screenshots shared by the user reveal that Call Screen seems to support Hindi and transcribe what the caller is saying. Google Assistant then provides a list of suggestions based on the conversation for you to respond accordingly.
According to the screenshots, Google might extend Call Screening to different languages in various countries, such as German in Belgium, Austria, and Switzerland, Spanish in the USA, French in Belgium and Switzerland, Italian in Switzerland and Italy, and Portuguese in Brazil, alongside English and Hindi in India.
Presently, automatic Call Screening is only available in the US, while in other areas, calls must be manually screened. However, with Google potentially including Hindi in Call Screening for India, it could lead to wider adoption of this feature, unlike Samsung's Bixby Text Call in India, which lacks Hindi support.
Apart from this, the Pixel Feature Drop is expected in March 2024, and it's possible that Google might announce the expansion of Call Screen with that update. This feature should work across various Pixel phone models, from the Pixel 5 to the Pixel 8.\
While the Call Screen feature is limited to the US for the Pixel Watch, there's a chance Google might extend automatic Call Screening to more countries with the next Feature Drop.
If you receive many spam or unwanted calls on your Android device, Call Screen could be a significant time-saver. Until Google officially confirms the expansion of Call Screen to India and other countries, users can refer to guides on how to block spam calls and texts on their Pixel phones.
