Help
Questions families ask.
Callyou should explain itself. If it doesn't, the answer is probably here. If it isn't, write to us.
Does my child need a phone or a phone number?
No. Callyou works on a tablet, a laptop, or a computer you already have, over Wi-Fi or any other internet connection. There is no SIM card and no phone number.
Can strangers call my kids?
No. Only devices you paired can ring each other. To pair, one device scans the other's code or opens its link, and the other has to accept, after checking that both show the same mino. A call from any other device is turned down before it rings.
Does my phone ring when it's locked or asleep?
Yes. Calls ring on the lock screen, with their own ringtone. On Android, Callyou needs permission to show calls on the full screen; Settings in the app has a check that tells you whether your phone can ring, and what to change if it can't.
A computer rings while Callyou runs in its menu bar or tray. In a browser, Callyou shows a notification instead, because a browser can't ring.
Do the devices need to be on the same Wi-Fi?
No. Callyou works wherever there is internet: at home, at work, or on mobile data. When two networks don't let the devices reach each other directly, a relay passes the call along, still encrypted.
Can the kids call their grandparents too?
Yes, if the grandparents have Callyou on their phone or tablet and you pair it with the device at home. You don't have to be in the same room: send them a link to your device, and they send a request from it.
What is a mino?
Every device has a mino of its own, drawn from the device's own key. The same device always shows the same mino, and you can't pick or change it. Children recognize who they are calling by their mino, and when you pair two devices, you check that both screens show the same one.
I have a new phone. What now?
Install Callyou on it and pair it with your other devices again. The new phone gets a mino of its own. A phone's secret key never leaves it, not even in a backup, so a new or restored phone always starts with a new one.
Can I use Callyou as a baby monitor?
Yes. Wall-E, our open source baby monitor, turns a Raspberry Pi with a night vision camera into a device you call to see and hear the nursery. In the app, you can also let a device answer calls from one chosen device by itself.
Which devices does it run on?
iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch; Android phones, tablets, and Wear OS watches; Linux computers and the Raspberry Pi; and any modern browser, which covers Windows and Chromebooks. See Get Callyou.
What do your servers know about us?
Very little: device keys, push addresses, and internet addresses, and never a name or a call. Our privacy page lists all of it.
Still stuck?
Write to us, and tell us which devices you use. We read every message.