How to dial a rotary phone
Lift the handset, turn the dial to the stop, and hear it click back.
How to dial a rotary phone
- 1Lift the handset and listen for the dial tone, a steady hum.
- 2Put a finger in the hole over the first digit.
- 3Turn the dial clockwise until your finger hits the metal finger stop.
- 4Let go. The dial spins back by itself and clicks once per number (0 clicks ten times).
- 5Wait until it stops, then dial the next digit. Hang up when you're done.
Drag a digit round to the stop, or tap it.
Each click briefly breaks the line, and the exchange counts the breaks. So 0, at ten clicks, was the slowest digit, and the biggest cities got area codes that were quick to dial: 212 for New York, 213 for Los Angeles, 312 for Chicago. Touch-tone keypads replaced dials from the 1960s on.
Safety
- This is a practice dial and places no calls. In an emergency, use a real phone and call 911 or your local emergency number.
General information, not professional advice: your manual and local rules come first. You use this at your own risk; see our Terms.
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