#Video chat for android autoanswer how to
#Video chat for android autoanswer android

To help others in similar situations, I found 3 devices that make it possible to video chat with someone who can’t answer a call. Interestingly, we found conversations with him went much better when we could see each others’ faces – often, plain old phone calls would for some reason turn adversarial. We’d call, he’d hear our voices, turn towards the sound (he’d forget he had the device in the room until then), see our faces, and all he had to do was smile and say hello.Īfter we were able to regularly video chat with him, my father-in-law improved significantly.

#Video chat for android autoanswer how to

So, I figured out how to put a video calling system in place that would let us see and talk with him – without any action needed on his part. And then he’d forget to plug it in to recharge it, so when we’d call, we’d always get his voicemail.

#Video chat for android autoanswer android

He got to the point where he couldn’t figure out how to answer his Android phone when it rang – let alone make a call himself. When we were able to get in touch with my father-in-law, we were shocked and saddened to see how quickly he had declined in such a short time. Without their help, it’s nearly impossible for families to stay connected because someone with more advanced dementia isn’t able to initiate or accept video calls, no matter how simple the technology.Īnd even without memory issues, most people in nursing homes aren’t terribly comfortable with new technologies like smartphones, touch screens, and voice recognition devices. The care community staff was busy with added tasks due to Covid-19 and couldn’t spend much time helping residents connect with their families. When the pandemic started, my family was cut off from my father-in-law who has dementia and lives in a memory care community. How we lost and then regained our connection with my father-in-law Sure, there are plenty of video calling apps and devices out there, but for many older people, using these modern apps is confusing and overwhelming.Īnd if they have memory issues, it’s even harder – you can teach them how to use the device on Tuesday, and by Thursday they’ve forgotten everything you taught them. This level of isolation and the major changes in daily routine has been especially devastating for people with Alzheimer’s, dementia, and other cognitive impairments.Īccustomed to regular family visits and not being able to comprehend what a global pandemic is, someone with dementia doesn’t understand why they’re suddenly alone and often feels abandoned. To make matters worse, group activities and dining room meals inside many care communities have been suspended to keep residents physically distanced to help reduce the spread of the virus. To reduce exposure to Covid-19, most of these places are in lockdown, which means that family and friends aren’t allowed to visit in person – only staff can enter the building. The coronavirus pandemic has made it very difficult to keep in touch with someone who lives in a nursing home or assisted living community. Here, he shares a solution everyone can use and setup mistakes to avoid.Ĭoronavirus lockdown has been devastating for people with Alzheimer’s or dementia

Then, he figured out how to make video calls without needing his father-in-law to press buttons and without needing help from staff each time. Michael Cottam, who cares for his father-in-law with dementia who lives in a nursing home, was struggling with this too. This can be devastating for people with Alzheimer’s or dementia who aren’t able to use popular video calling apps and may not understand the situation. For this project we'll add the project using JCenter.Īdd the following line in your project level build.Due to Covid-19, families may have a tough time keeping in touch and seniors may feel isolated or abandoned. You can use JCenter or you can manually add the SDK. There are two ways to add the Agora Video SDK into your project. Within Android Studio, create a new Single Activity app. Open the Projects tab on the left-hand nav to see your default project’s App ID. Once you finish the sign-up process, you will be redirected to the Dashboard.

An Agora Developer Account (see: How To Get Started with Agora).Basic knowledge of Java and the Android SDK.This tutorial and project have been updated to use v3.4.1 of the Agora Video for Android SDK In this guide, we’ll build a basic video chat app in 10 easy steps, using the Agora.io Video SDK for Android.