If you're not a fan of voicemails or missed calls then Prevoo might be for you.
Prevoo is a small, D.C.-based startup that has developed a sort of smart messenger application that aims to make phone conversations more efficient and less tiresome. The product is currently trending on ProductHunt, where Prevoo's founders are showcasing the app to new users and getting feedback from them.
For those unfamiliar with ProductHunt: it is a tech product review website that offers early glimpses at new technology products like software, apps, games and podcasts directly from founders. The website is set up to function much like Reddit, where a public forum of up-voting and down-voting will prioritize a post higher or lower on the homepage. On ProductHunt, founders can post videos, demos and other information to explain their product.
"[Prevoo is an] app that let's you get in touch with family and close friends more easily and quickly. It shows you the automatically-updated status of someone based on how they're using their phone so you have more context before you call or text them... like if they are on a call, away from their phone, out of battery, don't have reception, etc," co-founder Arti Anand describes on ProductHunt.
Based on status updates and GPS-enabled location tracking information, users of Prevoo can schedule the best time to reach a contact or loved one based on their conditions—whether they are between flights or just have a busy day at work ahead.
If, for example, a mother sees her daughter is Unreachable (maybe she's on a flight and has no reception) the mother can set up a "Notify Me" request that trigger a pop-up when her daughter is using her phone again, letting her know when a good time is to reach out or just passively reassuring her that the flight must have landed.
"Prevoo is phone-centric, not app-centric - so you'll know how reachable they are even when they're not actively using the app in the foreground. If they aren't around, you can be notified when they are back," the company's website reads.
Interestingly, Prevoo isn't exactly a messenger platform. Instead, it can be better understood as a central dashboard that integrates other messaging services like Facebook, Whatsapp and Viber to better coordinate communications. Status updates appear to be the key tool that is central to Prevoo's use. Aside from text messaging, video and phone calls can also be activated. Prevoo statuses include: around, away, low battery, on a call, unreachable and no battery.
Prevoo was co-founded by Taymoor Arshi, who previously founded eSentiMeter, and Arti Anand, formerly a senior consultant at Deloitte. The Prevoo app is currently operating in an open beta mode and can be downloaded for free in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
Anand explained to DC Inno why she created Prevoo: "my entire team has close friends and family dispersed throughout the world—India, Iran, Germany, UK, Kenya, Ghana and Canada to name a few (whew!) ... We bonded over the pain of trying to get in touch with folks when we've needed a quick response, or reassurance in emergency situations. My co-founder, Taymoor Arshi, is a technology veteran from Intel who worked on early versions of video conferencing and the cloud. He used his tech prowess to build the tech and I shaped it into a product."
She added, "we've had a few hundred downloads, mostly spurred from the extended networks of the team. The app is only useful when you invite and add others, and we're benefiting from those built-in network effects."
