This guide will help you choose the right smartphones for your carers to use and also help you find some solid options for improving your WiFi signal in your care home.

First things first, let’s talk connectivity. By now you've probably realised that in order for your care team to use smartphones to record Log my Care, they either need mobile phone reception (3G, 4G or 5G) or have access to WiFi. This is because the ‘Carer App’ synchronises its information with the cloud, to access the most up-to-date information and tell the ‘Care Office’. Which route you choose is entirely up to you, but there are several different ways you can approach the decision.

If you’re concerned about having multiple data contracts and phones having to rely on their own connectivity then WiFi is the option for you.

However, if your care home is constructed in such a way that seems to really hamper WiFi signal you might want to consider opting for the data sim options.

We personally recommend you opt for the WiFi option as it will generally give your phone faster data transfer speeds and can be secured.

What are your options?

If you’re providing the connection or concerned about your home’s WiFi having areas it doesn’t quite reach, you can try several different options

Alternatively, having a professional install WiFi with full coverage will typically cost £1,500 and upwards, depending on the size of the building. We can put you in touch with reliable contractors if this is something you’re interested in, just get in touch with our support team. Perhaps the easiest thing is if you have a good mobile signal in the home, you can buy a 4G data SIM for each mobile device. On a network like Three, they are only £28 for 12GB of data allowance and that should last around a year of usage.

So, you’ve got the internet connectivity nailed. Now onto the smartphones your carers are going to use.

There are two main types of smartphones on the market. Those that are built by Apple and run on iOS – the now ubiquitous iPhone, or Android devices from the vast majority of manufacturers. Our general advice for care homes is to look into Android smartphones. This is because they come in at a far cheaper price point, meaning that you can get the same functionality that you’d get from an iPhone, but for a fraction of the price.

We always recommend that you choose an Android smartphone from a reputable manufacturer with a 4.5 to 8-inch screen. The screen size is important! It makes such a lot of difference to the amount of information a carer using the device can take in. 

What smartphones do we recommend?

If you're buying smartphones, our top choice is the Samsung Galaxy A03 at around £90. This phone has a lot going for it, a great brand, lots of RAM, battery and internal storage for the price.

What about tablets?

If you fancy a bigger screen, you can use the Carer App on iPads and Android tablets. We recommend devices with at least 2GB RAM and 32GB storage like this Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 which has a 4.7 star customer rating on Amazon.

Please note: do not buy any Amazon Fire devices as they don't come pre-loaded with the normal Google App store that you'll need to install our App

We have an exclusive partnership with a UK sustainable telecommunications company called Klyk. Through them, we can arrange cost-effective, fully managed handheld Samsung devices for you, without you having to do any set up whatsoever. The devices come with Log my Care pre-installed, have extra security features (such as blocking other Apps), and are ready to use right out of the box.

If you're interested and would like to know more, please click on the button below:

However, you could, of course, make use of your staff's own devices. Just make sure you're using the Shift Password function to prevent staff from logging in whilst they are offsite. 

Don’t forget when you purchase your smartphones to get them damage resistant cases. The amount of times they will be accidentally dropped is significant and you’ll want to protect them as much as possible.

If you need some more help

If you’re still struggling on what connection your home needs or what devices you’d like to purchase, then you can always chat to us via our live chat. Our friendly team are on hand to answer most questions and can share some of the experiences we’ve had from other members of the Log my Care community.