iPhone "Assistive Access" - Enables simple phone use!

Hi Friends,

My DW and I are normally home or shopping together, so I wasn’t concerned when using her iPhone became too complicated and she stopped using it.  However, I’d like to sometimes visit the gym or have coffee with a friend, but I'm concerned she couldn’t contact me if I was away.

I came across the “Assistive Access” feature on the iPhone and am pleased to have it working. She now has a very easy way to contact me and other key family members, so I wanted to share my experience and lessons learned setting this up.

Assisted Access is built into the iPhone and allows you to customize the home screen to only show the app(s) you allow. In my case, I only want her to be able to talk with key family members, so I only enabled the phone ap.  (You can add any other apps you desire, such as text, email, news, etc…),

Her phone is now always on with the display showing only a green picture of a phone with the word Call next to it. When she pushes Call, she gets a short list of names with me and a few key family members. When she selects a name, a big green Call button appears that she pushes to place a call. After the calls connects, she gets a “Turn Speaker On” button, which she can use to turn on the speaker phone feature.  (I can also leave the phone with my name selected already selected, so the screen shows my name with a big green Call button below. She just pushes that one button and it calls me…Simple!) 

I configured her phone to only place or receive calls from her "favorites" contacts. I added me and some key family members to her favorite list , so all other callers and/or spammers are blocked. She can only communicate with specific people I’ve defined as favorites. 

I encourage you to google “iPhone Assistive Access” and watch some YouTube videos to see how it works and how to configure it. You can find this feature on the iPhone by selecting Settings, Accessibility, and scroll to the bottom for Accessibility Access. The feature is free, doesn’t require any monthly subscription, and is built into the iPhone. 

After you configure the “Assistive Access” options, you return to Settings/Accessibility/Assistive Access and select “start Assistive Access” to turn on this feature. The phone takes about 10 seconds to get into this mode and then behaves as described. 

On our iPhoneSE, we get out of the Assistive Access mode by pushing the home screen 3 times and then entering the password. This reverts the phone to normal iPhone mode, where you see all the apps and can change settings or configurations. After you make any needed adjustments, you then re-enter the Assistive Access mode for simple restricted operation.

Our phone previously required a finger or passcode to wake up, which I wanted to delete.  I initially had trouble disabling the iPhone passcode, but then learned all stored finger prints must FIRST be deleted before the phone allows you to “delete passcode” in setup. Once that is done and you configure it to never go to sleep, no passcode or finger is required and it constantly stays on the home screen.  (I recommend you eliminate saved fingers and disable the passcodes before configuring the Accessibility Access mode). 

Since the screen is always on, the battery doesn't last too long, so I just keep it plugged in. I might get a wireless charging stand for ~$18 on Amazon, which will keep it charged up without plugging in a wire.

I turned on “announce calls” in the Assistive Access setup, so the phone will announce the person calling while the phone is ringing.  She knows who is calling and then sees the name and just pushes an "answer" button to connect.

This feature provides peace of mind knowing she can call me or I can call her if we’re apart. Very easy to use and no extra costs. 

Sorry for the detailed post, but I wanted to share my experience and hope this might help others.