How to Set Up Easy Phone for a Parent or Grandparent
On this page (7)
Easy Phone turns an Android phone into a simple senior phone with big photo buttons, a huge Answer button and an SOS button. It is made to be set up by the family, on the senior's phone, in about five minutes. There are no ads and no account.
Step 1: Answer how they will use the phone
The set-up has six short steps: how they will use it, look, people, apps, reminders and phone check. Back always works, so you can change an answer.
A few questions suggest a ready-made arrangement, for example Just calls, Steady hands (help for shaking hands), Clear view (biggest text), Memory help, Hearing help, First smartphone or Independent (looks like a normal phone, with protected taps). Tap Use this arrangement. You can still change anything one by one later.
Step 2: Text size and colours
Choose the largest text size that still looks comfortable. Text size, theme and background photo can be changed any time in Family › Look and size.
Step 3: People
Tick the people who should appear as big photo buttons on the home screen (one tap to call) and choose the trusted people for SOS. Three photo buttons and three trusted people are free. Every contact can always be found and called from the big phone book.
Step 4: Apps
Under Which apps should be visible? tick only what your relative really uses. Fewer apps mean fewer mistakes. You can give apps names they know, for example "Bank" instead of the brand name.
Step 5: Reminders
Add medicine and appointment reminders now or later. See How to Set Medicine and Appointment Reminders.
Step 6: Make the phone ready
The phone check shows a list of items. Every green tick makes Easy Phone work better; it takes about two minutes. Tap Fix to open the phone's own settings page, change the switch, then press Back. You return to Easy Phone and the tick turns green.
- Easy Phone is the home screen, so the Home button always brings your relative back.
- Call and answer with one tap: the phone permission for photo calls and the big Answer button.
- Notification access and Display over other apps: needed for the big Answer screen over the lock screen.
- Never put Easy Phone to sleep: choose "Unrestricted" or "Don't optimise" so calls and reminders keep working.
- Loud ringtone and calls and Choose the SIM for calls on dual-SIM phones.
- Buttons at the bottom of the screen: choose "3-button navigation" in the phone's settings; swiping from the edge is hard for many older people.
- On Xiaomi phones, also turn on "Display pop-up windows while running in the background" and "Show on lock screen" for Easy Phone.
You can finish this later in Family mode › Phone check.
How to open the family settings later
Hold the small Family key for 2 seconds (or the clock for 3 seconds). The family settings open. There is no PIN to forget, and the senior will not open them by accident.