About
How KeyUp works
KeyUp is a push-to-talk walkie-talkie for Android phones, Wear OS watches and web browsers. You press or turn to talk, and everyone in the room hears you right away.
Room audio plays like music
On a phone, KeyUp plays the room the same way your headphones play music, not as a phone call. That setting is Music quality, and it is the default.
- Your headphones stay in full sound, and your music keeps playing.
- Headphones with no call mode and no working mic can still play the room. Check your model.
- The headphones’ mic isn’t used. You talk into your watch or phone.
- If your headset has a good mic, you can choose Hands-free instead. It uses that mic like a phone call, only while people are talking. See Bluetooth audio.
Talk on one device, listen on another
You choose separately where you talk and where you listen. With Talk on watch, listen on phone, your phone stays in your pocket, the room plays in your headphones and you talk into your watch. A watch can also work on its own over Wi-Fi or LTE.
If your headphones disconnect
KeyUp pauses room audio on that device instead of playing it out loud, and tells you. It stays paused until those headphones come back, other headphones connect or you choose to play it there, even if the app restarts. A car or a speaker connecting does not end the pause.
It runs over the internet
Your voice goes from your device to KeyUp’s server in the United States and on to the other people in the room, over Wi-Fi or mobile data. Rooms, messages and regular calls are encrypted in transit. They are not end-to-end encrypted. Only private 1-to-1 calls are.
Live voice isn’t saved as recordings unless a room has Replay on and you agreed. A talk someone missed while their connection dropped can be held in server memory, never on disk, for a few minutes to deliver it. The details are on How KeyUp protects your conversations and in the Privacy Policy.
What KeyUp is not
KeyUp needs an internet connection. It is not an offline radio, and it is not an emergency or safety device. In an emergency, call your local emergency number.
How KeyUp makes money
From plans. KeyUp is free for 3 people, and bigger Spaces pay a monthly or yearly price, shown on Pricing. There are no ads on any plan, and we never sell your data.
How changes are tested
- Changes are reviewed and tested before they ship, on real phones and watches as well as in automated tests, and security fixes come first.
- We read every report and log people send from the app.
- Found a security problem? Please tell us first: see Report a security issue.
What testers say
“It’s amazing that this robust of an app can be so available to use at any moment on the watch and still not kill the battery.”
“I can’t believe you already have the log, and you’ve already checked it out. That’s amazing.”
Who runs KeyUp
KeyUp is a sole proprietorship in Pennsylvania, USA. The business details are on the Legal contacts page.
Contact
Email [email protected], or join the KeyUp community on Reddit. Feature ideas go on Suggest a feature.