Locally built iPhone app allows data calls

The Research and Development arm of Swiss headquartered TelFree Communications, under the auspices of its Global Head of R&D, Rapelang Rabana based in South Africa, has developed the world’s first unified telecommunications hub which is now available on the Apple iPhone and the Apple iPod Touch.

Released through iTunes earlier this week, the TelFree application, with its slick and unique user interface, is taking intelligent contact to the next level. This South African developed technology allows Apple iPhone, iPod Touch and selected smart phone users to access easier and cheaper communication over the internet which in SA, has been further bolstered by the recent reduction in broadband costs.

Through these exciting advancements in mobile and Internet applications, both online and offline telecommunications have been unified into one seamless world. This means you can be in contact anytime, anywhere – with no long-term messy contracts. You make and receive calls on your iPhone using both Wi-Fi and 3G, since Apple is finally permitted voice data over 3G.

The Telfree iPhone application is also the first and currently the only application in the entire iTunes world that allows you to receive calls even when you are not logged into the Telfree application, using Telfree’s Push Call technology. This is a significant breakthrough for the South African development house, as on the iPhone you can only have one application running at a time, and to able to receive calls when the application is not ‚on’, gives the application an edge that is hard to beat. Not forgetting the other great features on the application – threaded SMS: instant messaging and chat on social networks.

And, there is no more need for costly national calls or exorbitant international roaming fees from mobile network providers either. TelFree provides one global flat rate to fixed lines and mobile phones.

But what does that all mean?

With TelFree, it is now possible to call Aunt Peggy in London for the same cost of calling your boss in the next room. Or, if you are already in London visiting Aunt Peggy and can’t make it back in time for that meeting at home, you can phone the boss and make his day, for the same price.

With TelFree you will also get a unique 087 number that’s fully integrated yet portable, so there is no need to change your existing GSM cell phone number.

TelFree has also optimised TelFree Mobile which uses only half the usual required Internet data and therefore saves data costs and uses six times less battery power when the phone is idle. This means your phone will get through an entire day without needing a recharge.

Getting connected with TelFree is easy: simply download the 30 day free trial ‚TelFree Mobile’ application from the www.telfree.com website to your mobile smart-phone, or send an SMS with the word ‚telfree‚ to 39642 (SA only). Then, connect your smart-phone to the Internet over Wi-Fi or 3G and away you go.

Unlike other Internet or VoIP companies that use the open public uncontrolled Internet to deliver the call from one end to the other, TelFree only makes use of the public Internet from your mobile phone or laptop to connect you to the TelFree system within your resident country or city. Thereafter, TelFree controls and manages the call in much the same way traditional operators or carriers do.