The circular icon with a line through it, located at the top of your notifications bar, indicates that Do Not Disturb Mode is active on your Android device. This icon typically features a horizontal line, ideally in the center, dividing the circle.
How does this mode activate? Your volume control, along with its button, offers three options: “All,” “None,” and “Priority” calls. These options translate to the following:
- All: All calls are permitted to ring through your phone.
- None: Calls from your contact list are restricted from ringing through your phone.
- Priority: Only calls listed as priority are allowed to ring through your phone.
If you have the ‘None’ calls option selected on your volume control, the icon with a line through it will appear at the top of your phone.
What does this icon do? It prevents all callers from reaching and ringing on your device, directing calls straight to voicemail.
How can you resolve this? Simply navigate to your volume control and disable the ‘None’ calls option. This action will enable all calls to ring on your device. If you prefer to allow only specific contacts to ring through, you can select priority contacts in the Contact app.
Why does your phone go straight to Voicemail – Reasons and Fixes
Here are a few reasons why your phone keeps going to voicemail and how you can fix them:
1. Do Not Disturb is turned on:
- Slide down from the top of the screen.
- Swipe down after touching the icons at the top.
- Continue swiping to the right until you find “DO NOT INVESTIGATE.”
- Disable Do Not Disturb (DND) if it is currently enabled.
2. Bluetooth is confused:
If all incoming calls are diverting to voicemail, disable your Bluetooth connection. Your phone might mistakenly assume it’s connected to a Bluetooth device (like your car or an earpiece), even if the device is not actively communicating with the phone. Consequently, you may not hear the phone ring, thinking that calls are going directly to voicemail.
To access the status/notifications screen, swipe down from the top. To deactivate Bluetooth, tap on the BLUETOOTH symbol.
3. Voice LTE is on:
- Swipe down from the top of the screen.
- Click on the three-dot icon located in the top right corner of the screen.
- Navigate to SETTINGS.
- Access CONNECTIONS.
- Select MOBILE NETWORKS.
- To deactivate VoLTE, proceed to this location.
4. Call Blocking is turned on:
- Choose the phone app, typically represented by a green phone icon.
- Take note of the three dots located in the upper right corner.
- Access SETTINGS.
- Click on CALLERS WHO WERE BLOCKED.
- If activated, disable Call Blocking.
5. SIM Card has shifted:
To view the status/notifications screen, swipe down from the top. Ensure that your cellular provider’s name is visible at the bottom right of the screen. If you see “NO SERVICE,” it signifies a lack of service, indicating a potential issue with your provider’s account (Telus, AT&T, Orange…) or your SIM card. If your account is in good standing but issues persist, try removing and reinserting the SIM card:
- Power off the phone.
- Remove the SIM card.
- Insert the SIM card.
- Power on the device. Swipe down from the top to access the status/notifications screen again. Within a minute or so, your cellular provider’s name should reappear at the bottom of the notifications screen on your phone. If “NO SERVICE” persists, you might have a defective SIM card and should return it to the store for inspection.
