Every feature, in detail
What's This Mail is the most complete mail-safety app for older adults — combining on-device AI explanation, multilingual scam detection, one-tap family help, and full read-aloud accessibility, with nothing ever leaving the phone. Here is everything it does.
Turn any letter into a plain-English answer
Photograph a letter and the app reads it and explains it — entirely on your device.
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On-device OCR
Apple Vision on iPhone and ML Kit on Android extract the text with per-block confidence — no photo or text is ever uploaded.
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On-device AI explanation
Qwen 2.5 on iPhone and the built-in Gemini Nano on supported Android phones explain the letter in calm, simple language. A deterministic rules engine is the always-available backup.
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16 mail types recognized
Bills, insurance, healthcare/Medicare, bank, tax & property, legal, debt collection, utility, government-style notices, subscriptions, marketing, suspicious mail, personal letters, and more.
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Three clear risk levels
Every result is sorted into Normal, Caution, or High Risk so you always know how worried to be.
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Bill details extracted
It pulls out the amount due and the deadline, then lays out numbered, jargon-free next steps.
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Pre-scan quality check
If a photo is too dark, blurry, or cut off, it tells you exactly how to retake it before wasting your time.
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Works offline
No internet required — on a plane, in a basement, anywhere.
Catch the scams that target older adults
Purpose-built to recognize elder-fraud tactics and point you to real help.
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80+ scam patterns
Gift-card and wire-transfer demands, fake IRS / Social Security / FBI letters, prize & lottery fraud, tech-support and QR-code phishing, romance and overpayment scams, and more.
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Multilingual detection
Scam phrases are caught in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Tagalog, and Arabic — not just English.
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Verified-sender check
Confirms known-legitimate organizations (IRS, SSA, Medicare, USPS, VA, FTC) and shows their real, official phone numbers.
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Unusual-amount warnings
Flags a bill whose amount looks far off from that sender’s history — a common sign of fraud or error.
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Scam-cluster alert
If several suspicious letters arrive in a short window, it warns that you may be a target.
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One-tap fraud report
File with the FTC in one tap and copy ready-to-send complaint text.
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“I already responded” recovery
Step-by-step recovery for common situations (sent gift cards, wired money, gave SSN or bank details, clicked a link) with the exact agencies to call.
Help is one tap away
Connect a trusted relative so no one has to decide alone.
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Call or text in one tap
Reach a trusted family member directly from any result — no dialing, no typing.
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Automatic high-risk alerts
Optionally text your trusted contact automatically when a High Risk letter is found.
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Scam hotlines built in
Locale-aware fraud hotlines (US, UK, Australia, Canada, Vietnam, Philippines, MENA) and national elder-fraud lines, shown when no contact is set.
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Made for caregivers
Adult children can set things up once and help their parents from anywhere.
Designed senior-first, not retrofitted
Large, clear, and readable — by voice or by eye.
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Read aloud
Hears the whole result spoken out loud, with adjustable speed (normal, slow, very slow) — also when re-opening a saved letter.
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Large & extra-large text
Font-size presets plus a high-contrast mode for easy reading.
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VoiceOver & TalkBack
Full screen-reader support with coherent, combined labels — not a wall of noise.
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Reduced motion & haptics
Respects reduced-motion settings; gentle haptic cues differ by risk level.
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Plain-language glossary
30+ legal and financial terms explained in everyday words.
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Optional app lock
Face ID / Touch ID keeps saved mail private on a shared device.
Speaks the languages families use
For households where English isn’t the only language at the kitchen table.
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App in 5 languages
English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Tagalog, and Arabic interface.
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Reads 10+ languages
OCR supports English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Arabic, French, German, Portuguese, Italian, and more.
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Answers in your language
The on-device AI responds in the language you choose; the device locale auto-selects on first launch.
Never lose track of a bill or a deadline
A private, searchable record of every letter — and reminders so nothing slips.
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Searchable archive
Every scan is saved and full-text searchable, grouped by urgency (Needs Attention / Review / Safe) or by date.
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Bill calendar & reminders
See upcoming bills, due-date and overdue badges, and reminders 3 days before and on the due date.
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Weekly safety digest
A Sunday summary of unpaid bills due this week and anything risky that arrived.
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Notes, flags & checkboxes
Add a note, flag a letter for follow-up, and tick off the steps you’ve completed.
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Ask about a letter
On-device Q&A answers questions about any saved letter in your language.
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Print & export
AirPrint a summary, add a due date to your calendar, or export to PDF, CSV, or JSON. Share a result as plain text.
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Home & lock-screen widgets
See how many high-risk letters need attention and call family from a tap; Siri shortcuts on iPhone.
Private by design — not by promise
The strongest privacy posture in its category, because nothing leaves the phone.
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100% on-device
OCR, AI analysis, and storage all happen locally. No mail content, text, or images are ever sent to a server.
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No account to start
Open the app and scan — the free tier needs no sign-up.
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Encrypted storage
Saved letters are encrypted on the device.
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You control retention
Choose how long data is kept (forever, 1 year, 90 days, 30 days) with automatic deletion, or wipe everything with one tap.
iPhone & Android, side by side
Feature parity for the things that matter most to seniors and their families.
| Capability | iOS | Android |
|---|---|---|
| Take a photo / import / paste text | ✓ | ✓ |
| On-device OCR | Apple Vision | ML Kit |
| On-device generative AI | Qwen 2.5 (MLX) | Gemini Nano (AICore)* |
| Deterministic safe fallback | ✓ | ✓ |
| Read aloud, large text, high contrast | ✓ | ✓ |
| One-tap call / text family | ✓ | ✓ |
| Searchable archive & bill reminders | ✓ | ✓ |
| Home-screen widget | ✓ | ✓ |
| Siri shortcuts & Spotlight | ✓ | — |
| Minimum OS | iOS 17 | Android 12 |
*Gemini Nano runs on AICore-capable Android phones (e.g. Pixel 8 and newer, Galaxy S24 and newer). Other phones use the private on-device rules engine — still fully private, just without generative phrasing.
See it on your own mail
Free to start. No account. Your data stays on your device.