It was not until 17 years later that the iPhone began to support call recording.

Yesterday, Apple released iOS 18.1 developer beta 1 to registered iPhone 15 Pro users, giving them an early look at some of Apple’s upcoming Intelligence features. With newly introduced AI products stealing the spotlight, a much-anticipated feature has quietly slipped through. The latest version of iOS 18 finally brings call recording and transcription to the iPhone.

After updating to iOS 18.1, iPhone users will find a new audio recording option in the upper left corner of the call screen. When tapped, iOS will audibly announce that the call is being recorded to notify others. Once the call ends, the recording is automatically saved to the built-in Notes app, along with an automatically generated transcript.

It is worth noting that call recording in iOS 18.1 beta 1 does not require Apple Intelligence to work. We were able to use the feature normally before the new AI features were enabled. The tool also works offline, as it uses the Neural Engine on the device. So, personal data is not processed in Apple or third-party clouds. However, the generated recording requires Apple Intelligence to be active, as it is not part of the core functionality.

iOS 18.1 with call recording support is currently limited to iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max users enrolled in Apple’s developer program. Public testers can expect the corresponding beta to become available in the coming weeks. Otherwise, those who prefer to wait for the stable version can expect the final version of iOS 18.1 to debut in October.