The average UK home now has 10.3 internet-enabled devices. With children owning more tech than ever, these apps and add-ons can make your home computing a safer environment and an experience that you can share with the whole family.
Cybersecurity
Having your bank details stored away in LastPass doesn’t mean they’re safe once you pass your daughter your card number for her latest fashion purchase. Make sure to prevent identity theft from the family’s laptops by investing in a household VPN. Sharing a family package is possible, with up to eight devices able to use ExpressVPN for Mac at any one time. This way, the entire family can safely browse the internet on their laptops at the same time.
Subscriptions like these often cover gaming consoles and Apple TV, allowing children to browse the internet without accidentally leaking their household’s vulnerable data.
Child Safety
Parental Control apps offer a huge array of low to high-surveillance options depending on your family’s needs. Qustodio has the upper hand, however, in that it flags apps as and when they are being used on children’s devices.
Normally, parents will have to scroll through a long list and decide for themselves which apps are malicious, this software highlights only those that are being used and advises the parent as to whether they contain dangerous content.
Media
Adding onto Apple’s shared albums feature, iOS16 brought shared libraries. Ideal for tight-knit groups of up to 6, users can upload an unlimited pool of photos. Unlike shared albums, the group can participate wholly in the library, with abilities to edit and delete all photos. For families that want to keep up regular sharing of day-to-day life, beyond the big holidays, this is a great update from the last iOS.
Family sharing has also had some well-thought-out revamps. Beyond sharing subscriptions to Apple TV, the family calendar, and Apple Books, it has improved the set-up of child accounts. It allows parents to limit screen time on their children’s devices and even prompts them to update parental settings as their child gets older.
The more recent iOS17 has made family security even safer by protecting sensitive media sharing beyond just messages by expanding into other data-sharing features. A main culprit for information leaks has been addressed with new safety encryptions on AirDrop, a feature most commonly used by the younger generation.
Family Calendar
Long gone are the days when kids check the fridge before their phones. Capitalizing on this with family calendars like Upbase can revolutionize your own life as well as galvanize the kids to do their chores and be home for dinner in time.
Separate calendars for personal work and shared family commitments allow parents to work from one calendar, while the children only see what’s useful to them. It includes an in-app Pomodoro timer for homework and tasks, as well as syncing with Google Calendar.
OurHome is another option that appeals to younger users. The simpler interface streamlines the day’s events with child-friendly icons and buttons, with a points system that’s reminiscent of a gold star in class to encourage good behavior.
