Phone calls are usually annoying and most people try not to answer, rather than picking up a random caller. With iMessage and many social networks, why would someone try to reach you with a call? With that in mind, a designer created a concept to improve a renegade feature in our everyday life.

Dan Mall, CEO of Super Friendly, posted his concept on Twitter (via iMore). According to him, his wife wanted a feature on her iPhone that “people have to let you know WHY they’re calling you.” And, although he just “sketch it out for fun,” this could be a solid feature for the upcoming iOS 16.

In his concept, Dan imagines that could be a “new interim screen before the call starts that prompts you to add a subject for the call.” In his case, he’s calling someone about “Visiting Westview this weekend.” Not only is it a pretty cool idea, but would also save us time when someone calls you about “that talk.”

On the receiving end, Dan notes, the person can preview the subject of the call to decide whether or not they want to take the call right now.

To make this feature useful – and more annoying for those who love making a phone call – you could require every caller to have to enter a call subject, otherwise, it’d automatically go to voicemail (another nightmare, if I say so myself).

This feature, of course, wouldn’t be limited to your iPhone, as it could also appear in your Apple Watch, and, of course, in all your other Apple devices. In this case, Dan gives a glimpse into what it could look like on the Watch.

You can read his full concept here. What do you think about having the ability to know why someone is calling you before answering? Vote in the poll and share your thoughts in the comment section below.

For example, you could tell a voice assistant to call with a certain subject. And if you leave it out, it could be prompted for. That kind of interaction has slightly less friction than a keyboard might, and both outgoing and incoming calls send and receive more context.

  • Concept Part 1: What we’d like to see next year in iOS 16, and why we’re talking about it now
  • Concept Part 2: How iOS 16 should improve apps like Photos, Music, Watch, Clock, Calculator, and more