Android parental control or separate user account

[vince]

hi all,
I've just bought a 10" tablet with Android 13 for my elderly mother, and need to choose the best method to setup so that she only has access to a handful of Apps, essentials like WhatsApp, photo albums, YouTube, safe browsing

I've see Google Family link which is popular to use together with Android parental control, but I was wondering if it was better to setup as a separate user account instead?

I don't wish to go down the dedicated launcher route if possible.

Looking forward to your replies.

 

[WaveJumper]

Not really answering your question but I have a 91 year old mother set up on an iPad, deleted any Apps she does not need, biggest problem, the phone calls in the morning saying she can't log in as she's forgotten her password ......... how many times have I told you mum, it has face recognition you don't need to remember your password ?

Best of luck

 

[fisicx]

My mother thinks you need to hold the phone an inch away from your nose to get the facial recognition to work. When it doesn't Dad says to give it to him to try. Which also doesn't work because it's the wrong face. Happens at least once a week.

We just deleted everything she doesn't need and hid the ones we couldn't delete. The only problem was she managed to set the screen lock to 1 minute. So is forever trying to login, giving up and calling me. 'Can you login for me...'.

 

[Russ Michaels]

I would suggest just using family link, it has proved to be the most reliable and easiest solution thus far because it is made by google and thus tightly integrate into Android, better than any 3rd party app.

Of course, because she is an adult, she will be able to turn off any parental controls if she so wishes, as the law has decided anyone over the age of 13 doesn't need parental controls or any kind of online protection and are tech savvy and smart enough to protect themselves, so apps have to allow them to to do so.

I would also suggest installing Bitdefender total security which will protect from malware, scam messages, spoofed emails and the likes.

 

[DanMitchell]

The best option, I think, is to set up a separate user account for the elderly person, which can limit access to certain apps and features. This can be done by going to Settings > Users & accounts > Users > Add user. Additionally, it is recommended to keep the setup simple and avoid using dedicated launchers. Some essential apps for an elderly person can include WhatsApp, photo albums, YouTube, and safe browsing. It is also possible to limit access to websites by filtering out adult content.