Linphone vs UNIVERGE ST500
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Linphone
This open-source app provides free audio/video calls and text messaging over the internet. It allows users to be reachable at any time via WiFi or mobile data, offering secure communication and file sharing. Advanced users can customize various settings for SIP-compatible VoIP services.
- High definition audio/video calls
- Audio conference calls
- Picture and file sharing
- Always reachable with push notifications
- Secure communication options
- SIP-compatible VoIP integration
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Linphone is an open source internet SIP phone or Voice Over IP phone (VoIP). Linphone is an open source app offering free audio/video calls and text messaging. With Linphone, you can be reachable at any time, even if the app is closed, with a WiFi or 3G/4G internet connection. Linphone key features: * high definition audio and video calls * audio conference calls with various participants * pictures and file sharing * Linphone accounts reachable at any time, even if the app is closed (thanks to push notifications) * secure communication (encryption options) * compliant with a large number of SIP-compatible VoIP service providers allowing to reach everyone that has a "classic" phone line. Linphone is available on the main mobile and desktop operating systems and offers various specific features for advanced users (codecs, transport standard, encryption options, DTMF...). For more information, see Linphone project website: www.linphone.org Note for developers and professionals: Linphone can be rebranded and customized to meet specific needs. Contact Belledonne Communications www.belledonne-communications.com for any specific development query.
UNIVERGE ST500
This app allows users to make and receive business calls from their mobile devices as if they were at their desk. It integrates with iOS contacts and offers various call management features, simplifying business communications and potentially reducing mobile call costs.
- Make and receive business calls from mobile
- Integrates with iOS phone contacts
- Call history grouped by contact
- Hands-free and Bluetooth headset support
- Video call capabilities
- Security and encryption via TLS and SRTP
- Voicemail access and message waiting indicator
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Today’s competitive and fast past business environment means that employees are no longer bound to a desk - you need to be mobile and be able to work where your work takes you. NEC’s UNIVERGE ST500 softphones for iPhone allow you to make and receive calls from virtually anywhere, as if you were at your desk. While in the office connect to the Wi-Fi to handle your calls. While outside the office you can use your mobile data (3G / 4G) to handle you calls, and you can reduce incurring mobile call costs (See Notes below). Deploying a ST softphone can save your company money by no longer having employees call-forward their desk phones to their mobile. Staff will also be able to make free internal calls and inexpensive local calls from the softphone rather than all calls being made directly from their mobile phone. By only giving out your desk phone number (not your mobile number), you will always be contactable and you will only have a single call history and work voicemail to check. The ST500 simplifies your communications. [Application features] ・Integration to iOS phone contacts ・Call history (Missed / Incoming / Outgoing) grouped by contact ・Custom star code dial panel for quick dialling ・Hands-free mode ・Bluetooth Headset ・Video call(H.264/AVC) ・Voice codecs: Opus, G.722.1, G.711A/μlaw, G.722, G.729a ・Dial plan ・iOS CallKit support ・iOS PushKit support [Call features] ・Security and encryption via TLS and SRTP ・Make and Answer calls ・Call waiting ・Hold / Retrieve hold ・Transfer ・Call park ・Station hunt groups ・Call pickup ・Dial DTMF (RFC 2833/In-band) ・Call forward – All, Busy, No Answer and Logout ・Voicemail access and Message waiting indicator NOTE: To work outside your corporate Wi-Fi, you will require a VPN connection or a Session Border Controller. THE ST500 is free to use on your NEC Phone systems (SL2100, SV9100, SV9300 or SV9500), but requires an activation code that you can obtain from your NEC representative. It may also requires spare licences capacity on your phone system to create a standard SIP extension.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Linphone at 35% against UNIVERGE ST500's 13%. UNIVERGE ST500's advantage is rating (3.0 vs 2.7). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
UNIVERGE ST500 holds the better App Store score, 3.0 against 2.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 10 and 9 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 35% of Linphone's written reviews are positive against 13% of UNIVERGE ST500's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Linphone ships an update every 2 months, UNIVERGE ST500 every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Linphone | UNIVERGE ST500 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.7 (10 ratings) | 3.0 (9 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 35.2% of reviews — better | 12.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 10 — better | 9 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 69 MB | 80 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Belledonne Communications SARL | NEC Corporation |
Customer experience
Linphone
UNIVERGE ST500
Bugs and requests
Linphone
Reported bugs
4 issues- Crashes on startup
- Incoming calls not working properly
- Settings not saving correctly
- Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions
Requested features
4 requests- Add support for multiple SIP accounts
- Improve user interface and navigation
- Provide more customization options
- Enhance audio quality and noise cancellation
UNIVERGE ST500
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Linphone
No in-app purchases
UNIVERGE ST500
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Linphone free?
Is UNIVERGE ST500 free?
Which has better reviews, Linphone or UNIVERGE ST500?
Do Linphone or UNIVERGE ST500 have ads?
Which is updated more often, Linphone or UNIVERGE ST500?
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