Grandkins › Answers

The easiest video call app for elderly grandparents

The easiest setup is one where the grandparent never has to create an account or remember a password. On Grandkins, you send them a 6-letter code; they install the app, tap "Join my family" and type it. You can even read the code to them over an ordinary phone call. After that, calling the family is a tap on a face, and every word the family says reaches them in their own language.

Designed with the least technical person in mind

No email, no password. Grandparents join with a code, so there's nothing to forget and no sign-in screen to get stuck on.
Faces on the buttons. Add a photo for each person; a face is quicker to find than a name.
They hear who's calling. The phone can say the caller's name out loud instead of just ringing.
Calls that answer themselves. For someone who finds answering hard, a family call can connect by itself after a 10-second countdown while the app is open. It's off unless you turn it on, and they can always turn it off.
Help is one tap away. An "Ask for help" button tells the organizer they're stuck.
Calls on a schedule. Set a weekly call and everyone gets a reminder ten minutes before, in their own time zone.

The same app as everyone else

Grandparents see exactly the same screens and features as the rest of the family, not a cut-down version. The buttons are in simple English; what the family says to them, on calls and in messages, arrives in their own language.

Set up remotely by whoever runs the family

One person starts the family, adds everyone with a name, photo and language, and sends each person their code. If a grandparent needs a hand installing the app, the step-by-step guide walks through it, and it's a one-time job.

And if the family speaks another language

Calls translate live in both directions across 36 languages: the grandparent speaks naturally and hears the family in their own language, with captions. See how the live translation works.

Common questions

What phone does the grandparent need?

An iPhone or an Android phone that can install apps from the App Store or Google Play. Grandkins also works in a web browser.

Do they need an email address or a password?

No. They join with the 6-letter code you send them, which works once and lasts 7 days. If it runs out, send a fresh one.

Can they start calls themselves, or only receive them?

Both. They tap a family member's name to call, and once the organizer connects people, grandparents and grandkids can call each other directly.

Does it ring like a normal phone call?

Yes. Calls ring on the phone even when the app is closed, as long as notifications are allowed, and the app can say out loud who is calling.

Does it help with hearing or reading the call?

Every translated call shows captions in the viewer's own language alongside the translated voice, and "Say that again?" asks the other person to repeat themselves.

Try it with your own family

Setup takes a few minutes: add your family, pick each person's language, and send each of them a 6-letter code. Plans start at $9.99 a month for the whole family, and every family starts with a free trial of 14 days or 60 translated minutes.

Start your family's free trial