It can be heartbreaking to watch someone you love suffer from Dementia. Like many health conditions, Dementia makes staying in contact more important than before. So what’s the best cell phone for seniors with dementia?
Top Choice
Jitterbug Flip Easy-to-use Cell Phone for Seniors (Red) by GreatCall
4/5- Easy to use
- Emergency SOS
4/5
- Easy to use
- Good value plans
Someone with Dementia may struggle with most mobile phones, especially if they were not technologically adept in the first place. It is therefore important the best cell phone for seniors with Dementia is simple to use and very visual. What does this look like?
In reality, every person with dementia has different needs. A new feature might help one person a lot while confusing another. Some people may also be wary of trying new things or find it difficult to learn new skills.
Because of this you should consult medical advice before buying a new product as we cannot provide such an insight. We can however give you some tips.
How To Choose The Best Cell Phone For Seniors With Dementia?
- Aim to find solutions that can be integrated into a normal routine with minimum disruption. If the person has not used a cell phone regularly before then why should they now? Maybe a landline phone for dementia would be better?
- If buying products for someone else, get there opinions and help them decide.
- Assistive products generally work better if introduced at an early stage.
What Makes The Best Cell Phone For Seniors With Dementia?
It’s a common misconception that senior phones have to be simple. For instance, a camera can be a valuable feature especially for seniors with Dementia – whether to keep happy memories from day to day life or even to record things to remember like shopping and other reminders.
Good features:
- Large, legible buttons
- Easy navigation
- Medical alerts – contact emergency services or family at the touch of a button
- GPS monitoring – to help find people who get lost easily
Best Cell Phone For Seniors With Dementia Suggestions
Generally it is clear that there are not many effective options when it comes to the best cell phone for seniors with dementia. There doesn’t seem to be many products made with the same standard and effectiveness as the landline alternative Future Call.
That could be a matter of demand as lots of seniors with Dementia may not have been avid cell phone users in the first place.
Alternatively it could be that many standard cell phones are more appropriate for seniors with dementia rather than a specialized product.
Indeed plenty of senior cell phone options we reviewed appeared to prey on the old offering a “specialized” product that in reality was not very good. As such we have considered non-specialized cell phones for their Dementia-friendliness.
Best Cell Phone For Seniors With Dementia Reviews
Jitterbug Flip Easy-to-use Cell Phone for Seniors (Red) by GreatCall
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Pros
- Big buttons
- Emergency SOS
- Built-in magnifier
- Loud
- Long battery life
Cons
- Using your existing number requires calling customer service
- Activation fee
- Have to use GreatCall network
Jitterbug Flip Phone Review
The key features of the Jitterbug are big buttons and large, legible numbers for easy dialling while simple “Yes” and “no” menu buttons make navigation easier. You can also assign a primary contact for any technical issues so customer service go straight to them.
You can also keep your existing phone number so this avoids another major confusion, especially as someone with Dementia is likely to have friends with Dementia and coordinating a change in phone number could be difficult.
The speaker is extra loud making this a great cell phone for seniors with or without Dementia. The phone also has some health and safety services and so can work a bit like a medical alert bracelet.
Check Latest DealSnapfon ezTWO 3G
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Pros
- Large buttons
- Simple navigation
- Emergency SOS
Cons
- Low quality camera
- Does not work with Verizon or Sprint
Review
We love the SOS functionality of the Snapfon. Choose a sosPlus Mobile Monitoring Service Plans and you’ll get a 24/7 agent with all your urgent care information on hand in case of an emergency 24 hours a day who will stay on the line with you until your emergency is resolved.
The SOS button can also trigger an alarm and will send text messages to up to 5 contacts.
Another great feature is you can set the phone to send a text to a close contact when the battery is low so they can get in touch to ensure the phone gets charged.
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