What you need to know
- Google is testing a new feature in Chrome beta v78 that lets users right click on a number and call it from their phone.
- When clicking on a hyperlinked phone number, users will be able to choose which device they want to call the number from.
- In addition to Android 10, the feature works with devices running Android 9 Pie as well.
Google rolled out Chrome 77 for all supported platforms last month, adding the ability to share a webpage across multiple devices. As reported by the folks over at Android Police, the company is now working on another similar feature that will make it possible for users to click a hyperlinked phone number or highlight it on desktop and call it from their smartphone.
The feature, which is currently available in Chrome beta 78, opens a prompt whenever users click on a hyperlinked phone number, asking them which device they want to use to call the number from. In addition to hyperlinked phone numbers, users can also highlight and right-click on any phone number to send it to their phone.
Once users choose their device, the number is copied into the dialer app on their Android smartphone. To actually make a call, however, you will need to click on the notification that will appear on your phone. If you are running Chrome 78 beta and don't see the feature yet, you will need to copy and paste chrome://flags/#click-to-call-context-menu-selected-text to the address bar.
Next, activate the flag "Enable click to call feature on desktop when a phone number is selected." Once you restart Chrome, you should be able to use the feature. The feature appears to be supported on devices running Android 10 as well as Android 9 Pie.
