App of the Week for IOS / Android: WideProtect and Mr. Number
There are tons of apps you can use to manage all of the annoying phone calls you receive on a regular basis – scam calls, robots, surveys, and anything else that doesn’t fall into the category of “calls from real people about the things I care about.” However, sometimes you need to detonate a nuclear bomb.For iOS, this is WideProtect ($ 2).
The beauty of WideProtect is that it allows iOS to do what it normally can’t: block all phone calls from certain area codes. If you need to, you can even more accurately specify the numbers in the area code, but I find this application most useful for eliminating any calls from places where I know I should never have a reason to call me.
I used WideProtect to block entire area codes for a number of places where I used to live – for example, my college city, my hometown, or the city that my phone number’s area code actually comes from (not where I currently live) ) – whenever I am I start to feel like I am getting too many spam calls from a certain area code.
While this app doesn’t stop spam calls from leaving you voicemail, it can at least prevent your iPhone from ringing or beeping three times per hour. It’s not perfect and it might be a little weird, which I usually fix by disabling and re-enabling the app’s call blocking features under Settings> Phone> Call Blocking and Identification (required if you want this the application worked). However, this is probably the best $ 2 I have ever spent on the App Store. I feel much more relaxed.
What about Android users?
Don’t worry, Android owners. Useful app Mr. Number is free! – also allows you to block any phone numbers starting with a specific prefix. If that’s a little extreme, it also comes with its own spam detection services in case you want to reduce annoying calls without dumping people into your voicemail.
Do you have an iOS or Android app that you really like? Tell us about it: [email protected] .