The next step in Voice over IP telephony - AWAAZ was recently launched by independent developer Anuj Jain and it enables Android users to call each other using their phones for free as all calls get routed over the Internet automatically.
With an aim to make regular paid calls superfluous when phones automatically start routing calls through Awaaz or similar apps, Anuj Jain, Founder of Awaaz, said, “The idea behind this creation was to give a parallel to telephony the same magic that WhatsApp has fashioned in messaging. I am extremely overwhelmed at the response that the app has received from its users.”
Run more like a "plugin" than an application on the phone, the user need not run the app except for the first time after installation or an upgrade. There is no dialer within Awaaz to make a call from either. A user makes a call using the regular phone dialer, and the app automatically takes over the call if both phones have it installed and are connected to the Internet. If one so chooses, he can see which of his contacts are currently online on the app, but that is strictly optional. There is no user signup for Awaaz. Like WhatsApp, the phone number is the identity and the app asks for no other details. Whenever a contact starts using the app, calls to them will automatically start getting routed over the Internet.
To keep privacy and security intact, Awaaz deploys industrial strength encryption to keep calls private. All voice data is encrypted using a 256-bit AES key exchanged using 2048-bit RSA, with new keys generated for every call which are never shared with anyone, including the Awaaz server, ensuring that no one is listening to the user’s conversation. The server maintains no call logs, and knows nothing about you except your phone number.
Launched recently to the enthusiast community, this revolutionary innovation today has more than 5,500 users mainly from US, Europe and Australia. Currently, the app is available only for the Android platform (Gingerbread and newer). A variant for iOS is proposed, which will be less seamless than its Android counterpart.
