Cell phones for elderly parents

[Lynne M]

I'd appreciate it if y'all could share your advice and personal experiences......

My mom has a pre-pay phone with Verizon that has been one billing nightmare after another. I won't bore you with the details, but I've had it, and I want to do something that's easier for both of us.

The phone needs to be very basic, and it's really only for emergencies (car breaks down, etc). She'll never text or use any data services.

I thought about just adding her to my Sprint plan. I have their $60-unlimited-everything plan, and as near as I can figure out, we'd both be paying $40 month if I switched to the family plan. So, effectively a $20/month increase in my bill (please tell me if I have that wrong). It's overkill for her, as she doesn't need the data or text on that plan, but I think $20/month is fair for a peace-of-mind phone, and she wouldn't have to bother with managing the account. I think it's about $5 per month for a flip phone.

The other option is to get her set up with something like Consumer Cellular, and let me manage her account online. Anyone have any experience with them? At a glance, it looks cheaper, $15/month for the plan, and I think the phone is a one time payment. I think they're a prepaid-minutes system, and that worries me, because that was the root of a lot of the billing issues with Verizon.

Anyone have any other ideas? Any and all thoughts appreciated. Thanks!

 

[dclpluto]

Just add her to your sprint plan.

 

[Westcoastwild]

Have you price compared between getting her own account at Sprint (with flip phone) or adding it to yours? Or does sprint do prepaid phones? I don't know if it would be cheaper or not. Sometimes they don't tell you unless you're firm about wanting a flip phone- mother goes through this every time. They try so hard to sell her on a data plan.

 

[wenrob]

Some companies will have an emergency phone only option for elderly folks. The last time I looked into (long time ago) it was $9.99 a month with AT&T. That was the rate at the time to add my Grandma to my plan so that's what I ended up doing. Even flip phones these days can get on the web and text so you'll want to go into the settings and shut them off. One issue she had is that she would forget that the "off" button was the power button. I can't tell you how many times she called me to tell me the phone was broken. So if there's any confusion going on that might be something to keep in mind.

When we changed our plan a few years later her phone went up monthly and she literally never used it. I switched her to AT&T Go Phone under the impression that I'd only need to top it up when needed. Turns out that wasn't the case and I'd have to top it up every three months which was just crazy. Long story short, I worked my way up the chain of command until I got someone who could grasp the situation: elderly women, might use 10 mins in a year, I just needed for her to be able to call me if her scooter got a flat. They let me pay $30 for 120 minutes that never expired. She passed last year and as far as I know those minutes are still good.

TL;DR- Call around, explain the situation and see if you can get someone to work with you.

 

[capegirl]

No experience with Consumer Cellular, but DH is very happy with his low tech TracFone. He only uses it for emergencies, etc., no texting or data. The phone was purchased at Walmart, and was very inexpensive. It came with double minutes for the life of the phone, so you get 120 minutes when you buy a 60 minute phone card that costs $20. Every 90 days, he buys another card; he has never exceeded the 120 minutes. You can purchase minutes from your phone, from the TracFone website, or just buy a card at the store. You can check to see if TracFone will work in you mom's location by entering her zip code on their website. No bills to decipher, and this simple little flip phone had excellent call quality; even better than my way too expensive AT&T iPhone. Best of luck, the world of cell phones can be complicated.

 

[low-key]

my mom thought the only way you could get a cell phone to work properly was push each number as hard as you could

 

[flyingdumbo127]

Hi Lynne and everyone else, too , my Dad and I have been on a Consumer Cellular, or CC for short, family plan for a couple months now. He is a member of AARP so that offers an additional discount including $10 off for the first 5 months. My Dad initially tried the Doro (more expensive) flip phone choice and I quickly switched to the more basic Consumer Cellular 101 because I found the Doro to be (for a flip phone) heavy. (I believe that was an Alcatel). I formerly had a pay as you go flip phone through Verizon that I paid under $13 for at Wal-Mart. I was told many times by Verizon that a flip phone has older technology and therefore is not completely supported on the network. IMO, if a phone is being sold it should work. Anyway, both my Dad and I not long after receiving our CC phones began experiencing the same old troubles including for me the phone not even always ringing. It would also disconnect calls, rarely had a signal, even when it did have a signal there was no guarantee it would work, and as far as voice mail messages...let's just say those when they came sometimes did so the day after the person had left it Even I knew, and lol, I am not that old in age, but just am not too techy interested, that is was time to get a Smartphone. I am Blessedly busy at church and needed also in general to know my phone would work!

A very cool thing about Consumer Cellular, is that (when you are an AARP member) you get a 45 day or 450 minute (whichever comes first) risk free guarantee. For non AARP members, I believe it is 30 days or 300 minutes. Also when we decided to upgrade to Smartphones, CC sent them along with postage paid mailing emvelopes to return the flip phones in--so no cost to us to return! They also have excellent customer service. As long as you transfer over your current number to CC BEFORE closing out your former account with abother company, you are able to keep the same #. I didn't get to do that but my Dad did.

Long story, shorter, I am happy with my Samsung Galaxy J3 (I think it is a 2016 model) Smartphone. Even I have to admit, it is easy to use for how i use it lol. I love thta it offers Easy Mode for display which means only 6 bigger buttons on the main screen instead of a bunch of Apps. Also, because it is a Samsung, if ever I wanted, Best Buy offers free classes (you just need to sign up). I know! I want to pass along, remember that I knew zip about Smartphones, is depending on your plan, to be sure and turn off Mobile Data. I had no clue and learned the expensive way, that anytime the phone would update be it an actual update or just the weather that used data which costs money. By turning off (manually under Data Usage) mobile Data, my phone is only able to use data (including texting and going online) when it is connected to free Wifi. My only "complaint" is I would prefer the phone not vibrate when it shuts down but that is minor. Also, and don't any of you laugh too hard, it took me a while to figure out how to answer the phone! You need to slide the green button not just push it

So if I am able to use a Smartphone , anyone can

 

[Skippy918]

Freedompop may work for her. You only need to get a phone and they have cheap ones and there's no monthly bill. I have the service for myself and dh got it for his mother.

 

[moon]

Have you checked Jitterbug?

https://www.greatcall.com/phones/jitterbug-flip-cell-phone-for-seniors

 

[AquamarineSteph]

We added my father to our cell phone plan. It was a little more expensive than setting up his own plan, but it made MY life so much easier b/c everything was all on one bill. As things progressed and I wound up having to manage more and more of his affairs, it was just easier in the long run to have one less piece of paper to address each billing cycle.

 

[xlxo]

I like the idea of senior phones. Two things to research....

• how droppable are the phones? Some phones I've seen feel so fragile.
• battery life.... how often do I need recharge it? Does it have a week standby time?

 

[winterman]

I have been with Consumer Celllular for 3 1/2 years and have been very happy with them. I switched because after I retired, I was using very few minutes and wanted a cheaper alternative. My first CC phone was a Samsung Galaxy but they have all sorts of phones. I now have an IPhone (a 5 something that while not the newest model, is great for me). I pay $20/month for a plan that includes texts and a small amount of data as well as minutes. It all more than I need but I love the price. If I go over my limits in a given month, they automatically bump me to the next level. You can change your plan at any time. I get the AARP discount and when my AARP membership was up for renewal, CC paid the dues for me.

 

[richmo]

Also take a look at ting.com . They have really cheap plans, especially for those that don't use it much.

 

[Lynne M]

Lots of great suggestions here....thanks, everyone! I'm going to go to my Sprint store this week and get some firm numbers on adding her to my plan, and I'm going to look at all of the companies you recommended, too.

 

[clori]

A few years ago we got my father a big button phone for tracfone. The plan was fine it came with a few hundred minutes for 1 year and was $25 total for the phone and 1 year service/minutes. The phone itself while designed for the elderly was really confusing at first. Although it was primarily an emergency phone it was also in case my parents weren't together and my mother had the regular cell phone. My dad hated it and it was never used.

My mother has a non flip basic phone. As for dropping it I think the phone is a lot sturdier than smartphones. She is on my family tmobile plan. I pay either $10 or $20 a month for line (it depends on if you divide it evenly among the 5 of us or just the cost of her line - I don't charge her anything - she is 88 now). At this point my mother had unlimited minutes, data and text though data/text has never been used and date may not even be possible on her phone. We have since added unlimited long distance to her home phone since she hears better with that and now she only goes out with someone other than taking a senior bus to/from a senior center. At $20 a month I still feel much better knowing it is there for emergencies and she knows how to use it. Even if she can't hear we can hear her if it ever is needed. I also like not having a separate bill.

 

[jt'smom]

After a lot of family drama over my inlaw's phones, I just said screw it, and added them to our bill to simplify things. The added bonus, is if you have problems with your mom getting scammed, (which was a huge problem for us), you can utilize "parental controls" to make sure there is a level of safety. Plus, for us, and we have Verizon, it only adds 40 bucks a month to our bill, versus us paying a $100+ separate bill for them to have their own plan.

 

[flyingdumbo127]

A 90 year old friend of mine ha a jitterbug flip phone. It does not always work and was very (for a flip phone) expensive. She is overall happy with it and that's what counts

 

[Lady Gaga]

We added my Mom and my Dad to our Sprint plan several years ago.
We have the Unlimited Text and Talking Plan for all 5 lines on there - it's actually an old plan that is no longer available but we never switched plans and they have to honor the plan.

My 80 yr. old Dad has an iPhone and texts, sends photos, etc.
My Mom is 79 and only wants the flip phone. She uses it a lot to talk to friends and family who are long distance.

 

[bjscheel]

I got my aunt a Tracfone on Amazon that was very basic. A year of service is $100 plus tax. I just re-upped her last week on the website and left her a message on her home phone to make sure to turn the phone on to get the new minutes because the website showed it pending. She had to call my mom to see how to turn it on. Customer service can be sketchy but Live Chat is the way to go if there's an issue. We've used Tracfone for almost 20 years so I am familiar with the process. Works great for someone who barely uses a phone, and costs less than $10/month.

 

[NotUrsula]

Whatever payment setup you go with, think SIMPLE and LARGE. Large buttons and as few of them as possible. In fact, some of the phones that are meant for young children are also good for seniors, the kind that only have 3-4 preprogrammed buttons. Whatever you do, don't get a phone where the red hang-up button and the power button are the same. Somehow, older folks never seem to be able to wrap their heads around the idea that the button that hangs up a call is the same one that turns the phone on. A separate power button is best, and paint it some odd color with nail polish so that it is easy to see. Also, if she uses hearing aides, be sure that the phone can handle them; many phones will trigger nasty feedback noises if they are not hearing-aid compatible. Although it looks odd to those of us who are used to smartphones, black and white displays are best, much easier to see if your eyesight is going.

If you can get a phone with a SIM card in it, even from overseas, all US carriers that use GSM technology can power it. Not so with phones that use CDMA; those are US-based only. (Of course, if you want to add it to a CDMA carrier such as Verizon, you will need CDMA.)