Mobile development proposal · October 2026

Your memories.
Closer than ever.

Bring Vocara to iPhone and Android with native capture, reliable media delivery and one consistent subscription experience.

Prepared for Joy Watson Seon and Andrew by Alex Seixas. My commitment: own the complete V1 delivery on Ionic Vue and NestJS, validate the native foundation in a contained first phase, and ship through measurable milestones for a total fixed development fee of US$ 5,500.

US$ 5,500
Complete iOS + Android V1
4–5 weeks
Proposed Phase 1 delivery
9:41VOCARA

Our family story

Chapter / Childhood
A moment worth keeping.

Photo ready to upload

Capture → Upload → Save to chapter

Concept illustration · no device access

01 / Technical direction

Reuse the product.
Engineer the native boundaries.

Capacitor is the right starting point for the stack described. Keep product logic and existing APIs shared; isolate platform-specific behavior behind small, testable adapters.

Ionic Vue experienceChapters, permissions, memories, onboarding and mobile navigation.
Capacitor adaptersCamera, secure storage, biometrics, links, push, recording and billing.
Native platform componentsiOS sharing, Android intents and OS-managed media transfers where required.
Authenticated API requests ↓ · direct authorized media transfers ↓
NestJS + Prisma + PostgreSQLAuthorization, upload state, prompt scheduling and canonical entitlements.
AWS S3Scoped signed uploads, size/type limits, safe object keys and verified completion.
Store & delivery servicesApple, Google, Stripe, APNs/FCM and existing email infrastructure.

Media that survives interruptions

Create an upload record, transfer directly to S3, then finalize the memory through an idempotent API. Persist transfer state, show progress and support retries without duplicate memories. Native background transfer must be validated on physical devices; it cannot be promised by keeping JavaScript running.

Network loss, app suspension, termination and user force-quit are separate test cases. OS restrictions will be explicit in acceptance criteria. A transfer queue does not imply a full offline product.

One entitlement model

The backend determines access. Verify store purchases server-side, process Apple/Google/Stripe lifecycle events idempotently and reconcile missed events. Link purchases to the authenticated Vocara account and protect against assigning a transaction to multiple users.

Test renewals, refunds, expiration, grace periods, restore and account switching. Cross-platform access is shared; billing management remains with the originating provider. Prevent accidental duplicate subscriptions.

Technical references: Capacitor · Background execution constraints · Apple server notifications · Google billing backend

02 / Capability & ownership

One accountable engineering lead.
Clear boundaries from day one.

I can lead the application architecture, shared implementation, backend changes and delivery coordination. Phase 1 is the evidence gate for Vocara to decide whether to continue with the remaining build at the agreed fixed total.

Established experience

Shared application & backend

8+ years in software engineering, including Vue, TypeScript, Node.js, NestJS, SQL databases, AWS and production web applications. These are the foundations for adapting Vocara, managing authorization and building reliable backend workflows.

Build + validate

Capacitor & device integrations

Capacitor configuration, native camera/gallery, secure storage, biometric unlock, social auth, deep links, recording and push integration. I would own implementation and validate plugin behavior, device permissions and platform differences early.

Targeted specialist review

Highest-risk native work

Swift/Kotlin sharing components, durable background transfers and store subscription lifecycle deserve focused native review. I would coordinate that support when needed, within my development fee, while remaining responsible for the integrated result.

AreaProposed ownershipEvidence / validation gate
Capacitor; iOS & Android integrationsOwn implementation; native research and review where neededPhysical iPhone vertical slice; Android build smoke test
Camera/gallery; biometrics; secure storage; deep linksOwn adapters and application integrationPermission denial, token expiry, cold start and device tests
APNs; Firebase/FCM; pushOwn backend and client integration; validate platform setupReal-device delivery, token rotation, logout and linked destination
iOS Share Extension; Android sharingOwn workflow; targeted native specialist review recommended (within my fee)Multiple files, logged-out user, app cold start and safe handoff
Background media uploadsOwn transfer design; native expertise recommendedSuspension, connectivity loss and termination behavior
StoreKit; Google Play BillingOwn integration and server model; specialist review recommendedSandbox purchase, restore, renewal, refund and plan changes
Server-side entitlementsOwn backend design and implementationVerified events, deduplication, reconciliation and account mapping
App Store & Google Play submissionOwn release preparation and technical submission supportClient-owned accounts, signing, metadata and review checklist

I am not positioning myself as a long-time Swift/Kotlin or store-billing specialist. Native delivery history for the areas above should be discussed explicitly before signing. No part of the scope needs to be handed off entirely by default; I remain accountable for the full scope. Any implementation support I choose to engage is covered by my development fee; no specialist is represented as already booked.

Vue & TypeScriptNode & NestJSAWS & SQLProduction delivery
03 / Fixed first engagement

A real photo. A real chapter.
A real iPhone build.

Phase 1 / Proposed fixed fee
US$ 1,100

4–5 elapsed weeks

Approximately 100 planned engineering hours. A production-quality vertical slice integrated into the existing codebase, with a clear stop/go decision. This US$ 1,100 is part of the US$ 5,500 total, not an additional fee.

  • Audit the app, authentication and upload contracts.
  • Configure Capacitor and iOS/Android projects.
  • Adapt existing login; store session credentials securely.
  • Capture a photo or select one from the gallery.
  • Select an authorized capsule/chapter and save the photo.
  • Test permissions, upload errors and session recovery.
  • Deliver a signed iPhone/TestFlight build and Android smoke build.
  • Hand over code, build instructions and a revised V1 estimate.

Phase 1 covers foreground single-photo upload. Advanced background transfer, share extensions, new social/Apple login, biometrics and store billing are later milestones.

Acceptance is observable

  1. A tester installs the agreed TestFlight build on a physical iPhone.
  2. An existing account can sign in; expired credentials fail safely.
  3. The tester captures/selects a photo and chooses a permitted destination.
  4. The photo appears once in the correct chapter and in the web app.
  5. Permission denial, interrupted foreground upload and retry produce understandable outcomes.
  6. Code passes agreed CI checks; secrets are excluded; setup and architectural decisions are documented.

Commercial structure

50% at kickoff (US$ 550), 50% at Phase 1 acceptance and handover (US$ 550). One consolidated acceptance review within five business days; defects against agreed criteria are included.

Start date depends on agreed availability and access. TestFlight processing or external testing review may add waiting time. The scope assumes the existing product described in the request is functioning. Included mobile adaptations do not attract hourly surcharges; newly requested functionality or a materially different starting system follows written change control.

WEEK 1

Audit & foundation

Baseline builds, plugin decisions, API contracts, secure session design and acceptance checklist.

WEEKS 2–3

Capture → chapter

Native photo flow, destination selection, foreground transfer, errors and backend completion.

WEEKS 4–5

Prove & hand over

Physical-device QA, TestFlight, code review, build documentation and revised remaining estimate.

04 / Delivery roadmap

Progress through product milestones.

Phase 1 is independently valuable. Vocara can stop after Phase 1 and retain the delivered work. If it continues, the remaining US$ 4,400 completes the agreed V1. The audit refines sequencing and timing, not the agreed price for unchanged scope.

01 / Validate the foundation

Deliver the Phase 1 vertical slice. Review architecture, code quality, velocity and the revised effort/timeline forecast before continuing. The fixed fee for unchanged scope remains US$ 5,500.

Gate: install → login → photo → correct chapter.

02 / Make mobile capture valuable

Complete account/onboarding improvements, batch capture and filing, voice notes, scanning, trimming, native share intake and resilient transfers.

Gate: a user can capture, organize and recover interrupted media flows on both platforms.

03 / Bring families back

Database-backed prompts and admin tools, scheduled nudges, push/email delivery, invitations, deep links, Estate Map and Expression of Wishes.

Gate: access-controlled sharing and reminders work without duplicate or excessive notifications.

04 / Monetize, harden and release

Implement store billing and unified entitlements; test lifecycle and accessibility; prepare store submissions and respond to initial review feedback.

Gate: purchase and restore work; access follows verified lifecycle state; release candidates meet acceptance criteria.
05 / Fixed-price investment

Complete V1.
One agreed development fee.

US$ 5,500 for the full scope requested by Joy, including both platforms, backend changes, testing and initial store submission support. This is a project price, not an hourly multiplication.

US$ 5,500

Complete V1 · total development fee

US$ 1,100

Phase 1 · included in total

US$ 4,400

Remaining V1 · only if Vocara proceeds

Functional areaEstimated effortFixed-fee allocation · USD
Foundation & Phase 1

Codebase audit, Capacitor shell, secure login, native single-photo capture/upload, iPhone/TestFlight and Android smoke build.

100–100 hoursUS$ 1,100
Accounts & onboarding

Mobile signup/reset, secure sessions, social + Apple login, biometrics, plan continuity, five capsule types, templates, contextual prompts and product tour.

65–90 hoursUS$ 450
Media & voice

Camera/video, gallery and album browsing, multi-select, batches, background uploads, native scanning, crop/rotate, supported trimming, dictation and voice notes.

150–220 hoursUS$ 1,000
Native sharing & deep links

iOS Share Extension and Android share intake, multiple photos, capsule/chapter selection, universal/app links and shared destinations.

65–95 hoursUS$ 450
Organization & invitations

Chapters/roles/search reuse, move memories, batch filing, unfiled filters, sorting/date, SMS/iMessage, previous invitees and bulk invitations.

50–75 hoursUS$ 350
Prompts & notifications

Prompt database/admin/reordering/categories, scheduled nudges, mobile push + email, delivery limits and shared-capsule activity notices.

90–130 hoursUS$ 550
Legacy & wishes

Mobile Estate Map with sections/progress/autosave; separate Expression of Wishes and backend persistence.

55–85 hoursUS$ 350
Subscriptions & entitlements

StoreKit, Play Billing, validation, restore, upgrade/downgrade, web/iOS/Android access sync, Stripe continuity and web gift redemption.

120–175 hoursUS$ 800
QA, release & handover

Native navigation, refresh, accessibility, permission flows, signing/CI, device tests, store metadata/screenshots/privacy labels and review feedback.

100–140 hoursUS$ 450
Complete V1 · Phase 1 included795–1,110 hoursUS$ 5,500

The allocations explain how the fixed fee is distributed; they are not hourly rates or individually purchasable line items. The effort forecast is an independent planning estimate before the repository audit. I absorb engineering-effort overruns within the agreed scope; revised effort estimates do not automatically increase the price.

Timeline & capacity

Phase 1: 4–5 elapsed weeks. Complete V1: approximately 30–43 weeks from kickoff, including Phase 1, assuming an agreed allocation of 36 productive engineering hours/week, prompt client decisions and a planning allowance for integration uncertainty.

This is a planning forecast rather than a guaranteed store-approval date. The Phase 1 audit produces a revised schedule and remaining effort estimate. Actual start date and capacity are agreed before signing.

Payment milestones

  • Phase 1 kickoff: US$ 550.
  • Phase 1 acceptance: US$ 550.
  • Continuation kickoff: US$ 1,100.
  • Media, sharing and organization acceptance: US$ 1,100.
  • Prompts, legacy and subscription acceptance: US$ 1,100.
  • Release handover and initial review support: US$ 1,100.

Total: US$ 5,500. No obligation to authorize continuation after Phase 1. Final payment covers the agreed submission/review support, not an indefinite wait for an external store decision.

Included: development, native integration research, my chosen specialist implementation/review support, agreed QA and handover. External operating costs remain separate: developer-account fees, client hardware/build services, hosting, storage, email/SMS/LLM usage, paid third-party licenses and applicable taxes. No paid service is adopted without Vocara's approval. These costs do not change the fixed development fee.

06 / Complete scope coverage

Every requested area.
Explicitly included.

The written V1 request is the scope baseline. All twelve functional areas below are included in the US$ 5,500 fee; the request's “Not Required for V1” list remains excluded.

Accounts & access Included

Reuse/adapt signup, login and password reset; secure device token storage; existing social login; Sign in with Apple; Face ID/Touch ID with password fallback; preserve selected subscription plan through login; mobile signup/subscription flow.

Acceptance focus: Login/session and provider flows tested on both platforms; selected plan survives authentication; biometric denial has a password fallback.

Onboarding & guidance Included

Myself, Shared Family, Family Member, Gift and Celebration of Life; seed templates/starter content; filter/recommend prompts; support a bounded personalized LLM prompt generation flow if Vocara elects to activate it; 2–3 next steps, dismissible reminder and first-use tour.

Acceptance focus: Each capsule type receives the correct starting experience; tour/reminder dismissal persists; optional generation has limits and deterministic fallback. LLM usage is an external cost.

Photo, video & media Included

Native camera capture into a chapter; native video capture; gallery picker; multi-select; batch uploads; album browsing through supported native picker; background media uploads; native photo scanning with automatic edge detection/crop/perspective correction where supported; glare/angle capture guidance; manual crop/rotate; system video trimming.

Acceptance focus: Test photo/video destination, batches, progress/retry and background lifecycle. Unsupported scan/trim capabilities get an agreed functional fallback; guidance is included, advanced glare removal is excluded as requested.

Share-to-Vocara Included

One/multiple photos from OS share; native iOS Share Extension and Android sharing components; authenticated capsule/chapter selection. App opening to complete intake is acceptable.

Acceptance focus: Cold/warm start, multiple-file handoff and logged-out continuation tested. No silent-background-only workflow is assumed.

Voice & text Included

Normal OS dictation in text fields; dedicated record button and voice-note recording; live waveform; clearly labeled voice-note playback; reuse existing audio player where practical.

Acceptance focus: Microphone denial, recording interruptions, playback, labeling and saved audio tested.

Organization & browsing Included

Reuse chapters, permissions, search and moves between chapters; post-upload batch filing; assign multiple items at once; identify/filter unfiled items; filtering/sorting including date. Mobile select-and-assign; no drag-and-drop needed.

Acceptance focus: Permissions enforced server-side; batch assignment and date/unfiled filters behave correctly.

Story prompts Included

Existing text/audio prompt responses; migrate prompts from code to database; create/edit admin; reordering; capsule-type categories; scheduled prompts/nudges; mobile push + email; safeguards against excessive notifications.

Acceptance focus: Migration preserves existing references; admin authorization, ordering, scheduling, deduplication, quiet scheduling and per-user delivery limits tested.

Sharing & invitations Included

Reuse roles, permissions, invitations and capsule links; deep links to the correct app destination; OS SMS/iMessage composer with pre-populated text/link; autocomplete previously invited people; bulk invitations.

Acceptance focus: Permission-aware deep links, cold start and auth continuation; bulk invitation results and duplicate/error handling visible. Messages are sent by the user through the OS composer.

Legacy & estate Included

Mobile Estate Map: sections, save-as-you-go, navigation and progress. Separate Expression of Wishes: personal wishes, family messages, sentimental items, traditions and values; backend persistence changes included.

Acceptance focus: Values persist across sessions; progress reflects saved sections; errors do not silently discard edits.

Notifications Included

Native iOS/Android push; device-token registration; push delivery; deep links from notification; email fallback where appropriate; notify other members when someone adds to a shared capsule.

Acceptance focus: Real devices receive authorized destinations; tokens rotate/remove on logout; author excluded from other-member alerts; delivery limits prevent duplicates.

Subscriptions & payments Included

Apple StoreKit; Google Play Billing; server-side validation; restore; upgrade/downgrade; synchronized web/iOS/Android entitlements; Stripe remains web payment provider; web-purchased gift redemption inside app.

Acceptance focus: Sandbox lifecycle tests include purchase, restore, renewal, expiration, refund, grace/account hold, plan changes and account switching; original provider owns billing management.

Platform & release Included

Native navigation/tab bar; pull-to-refresh; secure storage; accessibility; notification permissions; deep links; iOS/Android build configuration and signing; CI/CD; App Store/Google Play setup; metadata/screenshots/privacy labels; submission and initial review feedback.

Acceptance focus: Physical-device matrix covers both platforms, key sizes, major flows, accessibility and subscription lifecycle. Setup, release assets and build documentation handed over; two initial review cycles per store included.

Value-conscious implementation

Background transfers, native sharing, scan behavior and billing lifecycle have the highest integration cost. They remain in scope. I recommend supported system pickers, scanning/trimming tools and focused native adapters to deliver their value without custom editors or a ground-up rebuild.

Template-based onboarding is the reliable default. Basic personalized prompt generation can be enabled within this scope; model fees and any new AI product beyond that bounded workflow require separate approval.

Only the stated V1 exclusions

No full Swift/Kotlin rebuild; offline mode; AI transcription/captions; photo restoration; AI memory search, automatic organization or writing assistance; location tagging; people/face grouping; full timeline; widgets; QR invitations; notification-preference centre; advanced glare removal; in-app gift purchasing; or capsule-view notifications.

These match Joy's explicit exclusions. Notification delivery limits are included even though a preference centre is excluded. LLM onboarding prompts are distinct from the excluded general writing assistant.

07 / Assumptions & delivery safeguards

Resolve uncertainty early.

Access, product decisions and working cadence

Vocara supplies repository access, staging APIs, representative test data, product/design decisions, existing invitation/email services, a supported Mac or build environment, physical iPhone/Android access and client-owned Apple/Google accounts. Existing role, chapter and media APIs are assumed reusable. Weekly demonstrations, a short written progress/risk update and one consolidated feedback channel keep decisions moving.

Security, privacy and account lifecycle

Never trust capsule/chapter IDs from the client without authorization. Keep credentials in platform-backed secure storage; biometric unlock protects access to the local session and does not replace server authentication. Audit logout, refresh, consent, microphone/photo permissions and account switching. Confirm account deletion and media-retention behavior for release; basic account-deletion integration is allowed within accounts/release work if backend support exists. Legal wording, privacy policy and retention decisions remain with Vocara.

Native scope and supported device matrix

Agree minimum supported OS versions and a representative device matrix at kickoff. Validate camera/picker, scanning, native trimming, audio interruption and background transfer behavior per platform. Plugin licensing, maintenance and supported versions are reviewed before adoption. Apple and Google do not provide identical device features; supported fallbacks must be accepted explicitly.

Subscriptions, review policy and release delays

Confirm product IDs, billing periods, upgrade/downgrade rules, existing Stripe subscriber treatment and gift redemption policy before implementation. Store requirements are checked at implementation and submission, including any applicable payment-link restrictions. Apple/Google approval dates cannot be guaranteed. Include initial review responses for two submission cycles per store within the release allowance; material new product scope is estimated separately.

Handover, ownership and post-release support

Work lands in Vocara-controlled repositories. Accounts, signing assets and infrastructure remain under Vocara ownership. Every milestone includes build/setup notes and relevant architecture decisions. Deliverables belong to Vocara upon payment, subject to third-party licenses. A proposed 30-day correction period covers reproducible defects against accepted scope; feature requests and continuing maintenance are separate. Final contract terms control.

Change control and estimate confidence

The hours and timeline forecast follow the written request rather than a repository audit. The US$ 5,500 price covers the agreed V1 on the functioning stack described. Phase 1 produces a revised remaining effort/timeline forecast without repricing unchanged scope. Changes are documented before work proceeds. The fixed total absorbs effort uncertainty within this scope. Changes requested by either party require a written scope, price and timing agreement before implementation.

Recommended next step

Start with evidence.
Earn the full build.

Agree the Phase 1 acceptance checklist, confirm access and capacity, and deliver the first complete mobile memory flow. Then decide whether to continue with the remaining US$ 4,400 using working software, an updated effort forecast and a refined schedule.

Review Phase 1