How to Prevent Pocket Dialing or Butt Dialing in Android

Many times it happens to me when my phone is in the pocket and automatically dials to someone. It happens to me countless times and I am sure you may have also faced the same. This is called Pocket calling and is also referred to as butt dialing. The recipient of the call just listens to random noise when answering the call and the caller remains unaware. In the above cane, the unaware caller is me.

You must know that Pocket dialing is not a small issue and millions of people usually face the same. This is the reason, the Oxford English Dictionary added the phrase “pocket dial” in August 2015.

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As per reports, as many as 30% of emergency calls may be accidental calls. 911 and 999, report receiving many false alarms due to pocket dialing. This can also be the reason for a few embarrassing moments. This may create serious issues. So, you must take care of this and think of doing something to prevent it. If after many attempts, you have failed to prevent this, I have some tips for you.

Prevent Accidental Pocket Dialing or Butt Dialing

Here are a few things you can do to prevent pocket dialing or butt dialing. you can either follow all or any of these things and I am sure you will not face pocket dialing issue anymore.

1. Go home after finishing a phone call

Get into the habit of switching to the home screen soon after finishing the phone call. If you keep the phone on the call log screen, you may accidentally tap on some number resulting in butt dialing. If your phone got the Home button, tap or use on-screen navigation keys to switch to the home screen. Keep on doing this regularly and it will be in your habit after a few days. Initially, you may forget it many times, but it will be in your habit in a few days for sure.

2. Lock your phone before putting in pocket or bag

This is another important thing you need to take care of. You need to lock your phone and make sure it is locked before you keep it in the pocket. Pressing the power button will lock the phone instantly. If you usually forget to lock the phone, you can set the auto-lock the phone after a certain amount of time. You can set the time to 1 or 3 minutes.

3. Use Pocket Mode

Few smartphone brands offer the “Pocket Mode” in their custom UI. OnePlus, Honor, Xiaomi and few other brands offer Pocket mode. If you enable it, your phone will not respond to accidental touch or fingerprint operations when the phone is in your pocket or bag. If your phone got the pocket mode, you must enable this. It will help you to prevent pocket mode. If your phone does not get any such option, you can go with the next option I am adding after this.

4. Use a Call Confirm App

If you failed to follow the above options, you can download and install the Call Confirm app. Call Confirm will ask you to confirm “Do you really want to call?” Before placing a call to a person. This will surely prevent the bull calling and pocket dialing.

This app comes with different options to set your preferences. It lets you set call confirmation only for necessary numbers if you want. You can also set the exceptions list to specify numbers that do not require call confirmation.

The app also has a pro version that allows you to add a password confirmation before placing the call. In this way, you can prevent calling to paid services accidentally.

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5. Avoid putting direct-dial shortcuts on the home screen

If you have the habit of using the direct-dial shortcuts for making one tap calls, you need to stop using that. Most of the time, it leads to accidental dialing or pocket dialing if you keep the phone in your pocket without locking it. In case you cannot remove direct-dial options, you can arrange all into a folder. It will help for sure.

Do butt dials happen?

Yes, there are lots of people who report the same. Even I personally faced this problem before I started taking the ways I added in this article. Well, I didn’t get a chance to use the Call Confirm. I only tested that to see if it really works. My phone has pocket mode and does quite well when the phone is in the pocket. And to prevent accidental dialing when the phone is in my palm, I lock the phone instantly after using it.

Final Words

Now you know what to do if you face accidental call dials, pocket dial or butt dial. You just need to follow these options and I am sure you will see improvements. You will not face butt dialing or pocket dialing in the future. It will surely save you from several embarrassing moments.

I hope this article helps. If you like this, you can share this with your friends to let them know how they can prevent pocket dial or butt dial. If you have anything to say or suggest, you can always leave a comment to use the contact details given on the contact page. I always respond to emails and comments if relevant. Do not make any personal requests as these things will be ignored.

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