Install the CTTE mobile app on your phone

Install the CTTE mobile app on your phone so that it is no longer just a website on your browser.

The “app” is a Progressive Web App (PWA), which means it works like a standalone app but is not something that is installed on your device like a native app. For this reason, you will not find it in an app store. It runs on the back of a web browser, but without the usual clutter of a browser.

Android

To install the CTTE PWA on your Android device, go in the usual way to the CTTE mobile site on your phone using your browser (cell.ctte.org.za). You should see a button [Install App]. If you do, tap that and follow the instructions to install the app and save an icon to your home screen. If not, press your browser’s 3-dot or 3-bar settings button [⋮]. In the menu, you will see something like “Add to home screen”. On tapping that, you will be asked if you want to install the app and add an icon to your home screen. Accept the options to complete the action.

iPhone

On the iPhone, the key to installing a PWA is the “Add to Home Screen” function within Safari’s Share menu.

Web apps that install easily on Android usually do so because they are well-built PWAs and Android browsers often prompt the user directly to install them. On iPhone, this prompt is replaced by the following manual steps:
  1. Open the Web App in Safari: Navigate to cell.ctte.org.za using the Safari browser (it must be Safari for this to work).
  2. Tap the Share Icon: Look for the Share icon ( – an upward arrow coming out of a square) at the bottom center of the screen.
  3. Find “Add to Home Screen”: Scroll down the list of options in the Share sheet until you see the option “Add to Home Screen”.
  4. Confirm the Name: A new screen will appear, allowing you to edit the name that will appear under the app icon on your home screen.
  5. Tap “Add”: Tap the Add button in the top-right corner.

The web app icon will now appear on your iPhone’s home screen. When you tap this icon, the app will open in a full-screen, standalone window without the Safari address bar or navigation elements, just like a native app.

Usage

Once you have done the above, quit your browser and go to the icon on your phone’s home screen. You will see the green logo of CES. On tapping that, the app will launch and you can log in to your CTTE account in the same way as before. The app looks the same as the current mobile site, but you will no longer be distracted by the clutter of your web browser. To quit the app, swipe it off your screen in the same way as you close any other app.

Additional features are being added and the design will change in the future. First will be the ability to enter transactions offline, and then there will be background sync, notifications and alerts.