The VanceTel mobile app is a native iOS and Android client for the business phone — calls, SMS, MMS, voicemail, BLF presence, contacts, and the Shared inbox. iOS ships with native CallKit and PushKit so calls behave like real phone calls. Works on every device a user signs into, online or off.
What ships in the box
Native iOS CallKit + PushKit
VoIP push wakes the app from killed state on iOS so incoming business calls show the real iOS call screen — including CarPlay, AirPods, and Apple Watch. Outbound calls show as VanceTel calls in the iOS recents list, separate from personal call history.
Native Android with FCM push
Firebase Cloud Messaging delivers reliable inbound call and message push on Android with a native full-screen incoming-call screen. The app handles Doze and battery-optimization edge cases so the phone rings even when the device has been idle on the desk for hours.
Offline-first with WatermelonDB
Contacts, conversations, call logs, and templates store locally in WatermelonDB (SQLite). Field staff keep working on cellular dropouts; reconciliation happens automatically on reconnect via delta sync with no duplicate messages or lost drafts. 90-day message retention, 30-day media, both extendable per conversation.
BYOD — business number, personal device, separate identity
Your business number rings the app on a personal phone without ever exposing the personal cell number. Outbound calls and SMS go out under the business number; personal contacts, iMessage, and the native phone app stay completely separate and VanceTel cannot read them.
Multi-device simultaneous ring with per-device DND
Desk phone, desktop softphone, mobile app all ring at once on an inbound call; whichever device the user answers wins. Per-device DND schedules let an on-call engineer mute the mobile app on weekends while keeping the desk phone live during business hours.
The Shared inbox in your pocket
Inbound business SMS lands in the same Shared inbox the desktop and web apps see. Assign, tag, change status, send a template, attach a photo from the mobile camera — all without switching apps. Works on every device a user signs into.
Native iOS with CallKit, native Android with FCM
The VanceTel mobile app uses Apple CallKit and PushKit on iOS so incoming business calls show on the lock screen exactly like a regular phone call, including CarPlay, AirPods, and Apple Watch support. Android uses Firebase Cloud Messaging for reliable push and a native incoming-call screen. The app is offline-first on both platforms.
A web-only or PWA softphone on a personal phone misses the call when the screen is locked or when the OS suspends the browser. VanceTel ships native iOS and Android apps built on React Native with platform-specific calling primitives — Apple CallKit and PushKit on iOS so VoIP push wakes the app from killed state and the lock-screen call UI is the real iOS call UI; Android Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM) with a native incoming-call screen. CarPlay, AirPods, and Apple Watch all answer VanceTel calls the same way they answer regular calls. Works on every device a user signs into — pair the mobile app with the [desktop app](/products/desktop-app) so the office and the field stay on the same extension.
Offline-first so field staff never lose context
The app stores contacts, conversation history, call logs, and message templates locally in WatermelonDB (SQLite) on both iOS and Android. A plumber driving between job sites can still pull up the last text thread with the office on a cellular dropout, type a draft, and the delta sync reconciles automatically when the connection returns — no duplicate messages, no lost drafts. Local cleanup keeps the device tidy (90-day messages, 30-day media by default) and the user can extend retention per conversation if a thread needs to live longer.
A business number that does not expose the personal cell
The same business number that rings the desk phone rings the mobile app. Outbound calls and SMS from the app go out under the business number — personal contacts, iMessage, and the native phone app stay separate and VanceTel cannot read them. Multi-device simultaneous ring means the desk phone, desktop softphone, and the mobile app all light up at once and whichever device the user answers wins. Per-device do-not-disturb (DND) schedules let an after-hours engineer mute the mobile app on weekends while keeping the desk phone live.
The Shared inbox in your pocket
Inbound SMS to the business number lands in the same Shared inbox the desk and desktop apps see. Assign a conversation, tag it, change status, send a template, attach a photo — all from the mobile app. Conversation assignment routes only the right reps' devices for the next reply so the whole team is not paged on every customer message. See the [business messaging product](/products/business-messaging) for the messaging deep dive.
How Mobile App compares
Factual, defensible criteria — sourced from public pricing and published feature pages on the comparison date.
| Feature | VanceTel | RingCentral | Dialpad | Zoom Phone |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Native iOS CallKit + PushKit | ||||
| Native Android with FCM push | ||||
| Offline-first messaging with local SQLite (WatermelonDB) | ||||
| Multi-device simultaneous ring across desk + mobile + desktop | ||||
| Per-device do-not-disturb schedules | ||||
| Shared inbox for inbound SMS on mobile | ||||
| 9-character verbal setup codes for self-provisioning |
Frequently asked questions
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Written quote with install timeline, hardware, and recurring price. Usually same business day.