life 360

Life360

Life 360 is lightweight, non intrusive easy to use,  good locator within 10- 50 feet depending your phone’s GPS ability.  Lots of features for safety as well as communication. It is compatible for Android, IOS and Windows Phone.

Presenting my pick for the best app for connecting families and friends! I’ll admit I’ve tried a couple of family locator apps before with marginal success, but this is a real gem. Life 360 is more than just a locator app, it’s a communication app! It is compatible for Android, IOS and Windows Phone. The free version stands alone offering plenty of features, but if you want to shell out around 5 dollars a month there are additional 24/7 help features including roadside call for help assistance and stolen phone protection.

Life 360 is much more than just a simple family locator. Location sharing is optional and used completely with permission. It connects people with messaging, chat, and check-ins that are group (or circle) specific keeping private information private. Alerts can be created to let you know when your loved ones arrive at home, school or work. And I love the grocery list feature! Lost your phone? It can be located within a few feet using this app’s GPS technology. You may have to ask another in your circle to locate it for you. Circles can be any type of group. In addition to the family circles, a group can include best friends, extended family, sports teams, anything you can dream up. It’s a great way to plan a surprise party with instant communication among the selected members.

My daughter placed Life 360 on my granddaughter’s phone and she cannot imagine life without it. She worries much less for her daughter’s safety. When kids go on supervised trips, Life 360 can let you know if they arrived safely and even give you a Google earth view of the area they are located. While teenagers may not love being located, it’s usually acceptable to them if the use of Life 360 comes with the use of the phone and the lifesaving safety features are communicated to them. My teenage granddaughter actually says she feels safer knowing she can be found if ever in trouble.
One fun way to use this app is to create a temporary “vacation” circle. Part of your family may be planning a trip to an exotic location and if they agree to share their locations, this app is precise enough to show in great detail the area in which your family members are located giving you a bird’s eye view of the surrounding amenities and landscape. By enlarging the map view you can see even greater detail down to actual streets and houses. Another great safety feature includes Crime and Sex Offender alerts. These alerts can be set up to let you know if there has been an incident close to you during your trip. Reports of sex offenders can also be located in areas where you live or may be visiting.

Life360-main
The best features offered are the emergency features. There is a panic button that will automatically take a picture from your phone showing your surroundings and call designated family members and/or 911 if you are compromised. One push does it all. Communication is instant and in real time. It’s an easy app to set up and maintain and will be a part of my family for quite some time. It has very few bugs and crashes and seems to get better with each update. Widgets are also provided for your phone if you like to monitor several items at once.
Excuse me while I go check to see how soon my kids will be arriving home from their vacation. A surprise dinner will be hot and ready right on time!

Yay/Nay:  This app gets a “Yay”

Cost : Free. However, there is a premium version starts at 4.99 month with a free 30 day trial.

Pro’s:  Lightweight, non intrusive easy to use,  good locator within 10- 50 feet depending your phone’s GPS ability.  Lots of features for safety as well as communication.  Great Earth imaging on enlargement of maps.

Con’s:  Occasional time delays depending on your phone’s signal.  You have to keep Location GPS active which could use battery life in some older phones.  Needs the Premium version to track older “non-smart” phones

Download: Google Play Store | iTunes App Store | Windows Phone Store

By Tomi Davis

By day I'm a nurse, but I have a love of technology, computers and gadgets. I"m always trying the newest thing it seems. I also am an avid knitter and often find ways to make technology work with the fiber arts. My favorite job of all of course is being a "Mamaw" to two great grandkids!

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