10 Things I Love About You: The New Voys App is Pure Class
Alex Sudheim
We are exceptionally proud to announce the arrival of the new, vastly improved Voys App. After months of beta-testing and many more months of intensive redesign by our developers, it is finally here. First rolled out on Android, the brand new version for iOS is now also ready for use.
As with Android, the new app for iOS is being released incrementally by going live for groups of new users every day. The percentage of users is steadily increasing and we expect the rollout to reach 100% by the end of May.
Discover which 10 features and upgrades make the new Voys App such a significant improvement upon the old one.
1. Improved Architecture = Better Performance
‘Simplicity is complexity resolved’ was the lifelong dictum of Romanian modernist sculptor Constantin Brâncuși. Following this wisdom, we have rebuilt the Voys App from the ground up on a new architecture which is as simple as it is slick and sophisticated. This has provided the app with a huge performance boost whilst enabling us to make much faster updates and developments in the future.
Important Note:
The iOS operating system always makes the Voys App ring once for any incoming call, even if that call is no longer available. For example, if you are in a call group and one of your colleagues has already answered, your app will still ring once.
This is a universal issue common to all VoIP apps (e.g. Bria, Zoiper, etc) operating in combination with iOS. Our developers do everything possible to ensure optimal functionality of the Voys App within the limits of iOS.
2. Fresh Design
We have undertaken a full structural redesign of the app which makes it quieter and greatly enhances user experience. The fresh, modern look features vastly improved contrast on the screen for incoming calls which increases functionality for the visually impaired and colour-blind.
3. Default Encryption
All VoIP calls through the Voys App are now encrypted by default. This ensures your calls will always be safe and protected, even if the WiFi network you are on is not.
4. Improved Audio Quality
Although a strong internet connection remains a prerequisite for optimal audio quality, our developers have designed the new app to adapt to the local conditions of the network you’re on. So, even if you experience bandwidth or delay issues, the app now adjusts to the situation by correlating call quality with available bandwidth in order to always provide the best possible audio .
5. Calling Through
If the internet connection you’re on is weak but you still want to make calls with the Voys App, you can now make use of the ‘call through’ function. This function becomes automatically available when you disable ‘calling via VoIP’.
6. More Incoming Calls
Due to the unavoidable restrictions imposed by iOS and Android, the Voys App is limited to running in the background. Therefore, when an incoming call comes through, a message must first be sent to ‘wake up’ the app. If the app wakes up and reports in time, we forward the conversation to the app.
These messages are processed by a newly designed middleware building block which ensures that incoming calls come in more reliably. However it must be noted that certain settings are device-specific. Generally speaking, in Android, you can turn on the ‘always run in the background’ setting of the app which will result in the quickest possible response to the notification with minimal power consumption.
During the first installation of the app, you will now also be asked if you wish to turn off battery optimisation for the Voys App. This is recommended on most devices as incoming calls will activate the app far sooner.
Important Note:
Due to trade restrictions, Huawei phones do not support Google Push Notifications. Therefore, incoming calls to the Voys App will not work on Huawei devices.
7. New Notification Colours
When using the Voys App on an Android Device, the notification colours for ‘accept’ or ‘decline’ are now green and red. This makes quick decisions easy. Whether your phone supports this functionality depends on the device itself and the version of the software it is running.
8. Switching Accessibility
Based on feedback from beta testing, setting your accessibility is now at the very top of the settings menu. This allows you to quickly switch your accessibility status. Bear in mind the difference between ‘DND’ (do not disturb) and ‘unavailable’.
In the first case, you will no longer be called on your app. In the second case, you are unreachable but your device remains accessible. For example, a colleague can reach you on your extension number in case of an emergency. How this works is determined by how you have configured your calling plan.
9. Better Contacts List & Recent Conversations List
Many significant improvements have been made to the contact list and recent conversation list. The contact list no longer shows duplicate numbers while contacts without a phone number are no longer shown. In addition, the correlation between your recent calls and your phone book has also been enhanced. We’ve also given the visual display of the recent conversations list a vibrant design tweak.
The new Voys App either indicates which conversations the organisation has received or missed or which calls a user has received or missed. The list shows your recent calls and missed calls, including whether or not they were answered by someone else.
In order to provide insight into all the conversations of your organisation, you can use the ‘Conversations’ button under ‘Settings’. If your system administrator has granted you the necessary permissions, you will be able to see all of your company’s conversations that have gone through the Voys App.
10. Feedback
In order to improve our ability to quickly track down problems, you can now give direct feedback in the app itself as well as immediately send your logs. At this point in time we cannot respond directly to the feedback you provide, which might make it feel a bit like talking to a wall.
However, we most definitely receive it and pay close attention: this is a vitally important channel for us in terms of further development of the app. All the feedback we received in the past formed the foundation upon which the new Voys App has been built. It is through this process we ever more closely approach perfect alignment with the users’ needs.
The Voys App as the Main Device
Many customers are curious: can you use the Voys App as your main device? At the risk of sounding evasive, the honest answer is: almost. The biggest issue here is that we do not have complete sovereignty over the technological terrain: the functionality of the app depends to an inevitable extent upon iOS, Android and the network you are calling from.
This introduces a number of unpredictable variables in the equation. The safest bet to ensure you are always available is to set your mobile number as a backup for incoming calls. You can also ensure colleagues can take over one another’s availability. In such a situation, the Voys App can be your main device.
Ultimately, we still recommend our webphone as the most reliable solution for frequent callers. If using a laptop via a network cable, you will notice bad connections far more quickly. Also, with the webphone operating systems iOS and Android, the connection is more reliable.
Of course, both the deskphone and cordless phone remain excellent options.
What’s Next?
Nothing ever quite reaches perfection but still we strive to attain it. What is still on our wish-list for the Voys App?
1. Recent Calls List
Our first wish is the previously-mentioned ability to view all calls and missed calls across the organisation. Although this is currently possible (under ‘settings’ and then ‘conversations’), we still want to see if we can process this more smartly in the recent conversations list.
In the old app we solved this with a lot of cumbersome code in the app. However we now want to solve this at the platform level so that we can offer this as an API for the app.
2. Colleagues and Extensions
We are also extensively investigating ways to integrate colleagues and their extensions into the contact list. This, too, would require an API at the platform level in order for such a functionality to be implemented.
3. Switching Networks
Third on our wish-list is the seamless preservation of the conversation when switching between WiFi and mobile data or vice versa. However the logistics of this lie so deep at the core of both the network and the call-handling code – not to mention the combination of the two – that we still have much research to conduct before devising a solution.
Need Help?
If you’re itching to use the Voys App but you can’t quite figure it out, check out our handy guide. For any other questions regarding customer success or tech support, call us on 021 012 5000 or email info@voys.co.za
This article was originally published by Voys Netherlands.
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