: Unlike text, where a "K" can be interpreted in ten different ways, real-time dialogue reduces misunderstandings and social anxiety.

If you have , you no longer have to watch the clock. Here are some ways to turn a standard check-in into an "event" call:

This is the ultimate power move. You and your friend stay on the line, but you don't talk for 20 minutes. You read your respective books. Every few minutes, you tap the phone or whisper "Hmm." It replicates the feeling of hanging out in a living room. It is intimate, weird, and profoundly relaxing.

What exactly makes a call "fun"? It is the unplanned detours. It starts with a serious discussion about weekend plans, but because the meter isn’t running, it devolves into an argument about whether a hot dog is a sandwich. It includes the twenty minutes spent trying to remember the name of that actor from that one movie, which leads to a shared Google session, which leads to watching that actor’s worst clip on YouTube together while still on the phone. It is the sound of the other person laughing so hard they choke on their water. It is the ability to say, "Hold on, let me rant about this for a second," without feeling guilty about wasting their time or your data.

Unlimited minutes have resurrected this cultural staple.