Smart Mobile phone for the elderly

[The Dudess]

Hi All,
Looking for recommendations for a smart phone for my MiL who is 93 and hard of hearing. Needs to be sim free and if it has it's own docking station that would be helpful.
She only needs SMS, phone calls (including abroad) and WhatsApp.

Thanks.

 

[s20hymer]

I bought my fil a Dora phone, big numbers and easy to use.

 

[Lucky one]

Doro is great for phone calls and reminders but not sure that it would do whatsapp. Tony is hopeless with phones he is now using or trying to use a moto g. I am constantly having to help. Nothing on it only contacts and still struggles.

 

[Skyway]

Dora

 

[Ninjabob]

Doro phone on 1pmobile (uses EE Network) , £10 per month for 1000 minutes or 1000 texts or 1000megabyte or a combination thereof. 180 day before another £10 top up, unbelievably allowances roll over. They were doing £30 per year recently so I have them in my Motorhome Alarm and Cheapo Chinese Tracker - roaming as standard. Mother in law in Nursing Home had one in her Doro.

Absolute no brainer unless you have a Smart Phone and require lots of data.

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[irnbru]

This is interesting. Taking note for the future. The only Dora Ive heard of is our van.

 

[kevenh]

this article is quite current (going by the date).

edit: but judging by the $$ signs I need a different but similar article... soz
tbf that IS the UK version of the site. Sloppy cut n paste

 

[Minxy]

Hi All,
Looking for recommendations for a smart phone for my MiL who is 93 and hard of hearing. Needs to be sim free and if it has it's own docking station that would be helpful.
She only needs SMS, phone calls (including abroad) and WhatsApp.

Thanks.

I'd suggest that if she doesn't do a lot of texting then forget a smart phone and consider a flip phone instead as this will give her the 'usual' numbered buttons to press but also the ability to use it for WA with a fair sized screen, something like the below, but there are quite a few to choose from now as there was a 'resurgence' in their popularity (less likely to bust them!):

Alcatel Go Flip 3 - Review 2019 - PCMag UK

My Mum had a Three flip phone which she loved (hubby's old one) but unfortunately one day it stopped charging and we got her another as she wanted exactly the same one (took ages to find it but eventually got one on Ebay), however it eventually died too. Fortunately before this happened I found a nice ZTE F866 Three flip phone at the local car boot sale which was obviously originally supplied from Three on contract as it had a sim literally 'stuck' into it and was pristine and still boxed etc, so someone must have just stuck it in a cupboard and never used it. It was as close as I could get to the model she had got used to, just a slightly more modern design, so she was happy with it, then a week later I saw another new boxed one at the same car boot for £4 so snaffled that as a back-up, she's still using the first ZTE so they do last quite a while.