In the past, keep in touch with family members who do not live within a close proximity was not very convenient. While there were a few options, they were mostly limited. Coordinating a time to chat over the phone was not always easy, and resulted in a higher phone bill. There was also email and texting, but that was it.
Fortunately, there are now several apps that be used to keep in touch with long distance family members. Not only are they easy to use, but they are also a lot of fun. They allow you to get a much closer look in on the lives of your family than you would through simple text messages. Whether it’s seeing their face on a screen, playing a game, or sharing photos, technology has made being away from loved ones a less painful thing that what it was. We are now able to share much more of our lives with.
Skype
- Free voice and HD video calls to other Skype users
- Instant messaging
- Send free, unlimited video messages to contacts who are offline
- Works on smartphones, tablets, Macs, PC’s and TV’s
- Works on 3G and Wi-Fi
https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/skype-for-iphone/id304878510?mt=8
https://www.google.com.au/search?q=skype+itunes&oq=skype+itunes&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.1720j0j4&sourceid=chrome&espv=210&es_sm=93&ie=UTF-8#q=skype+google+play
Words With Friends
- Similar to the classic game Scrabble, extremely popular among families
- Available on iOS, Android, and Windows Phone
- Players take turns in building crossword style puzzles
- Invite family members to play via Facebook and Twitter
- Has an in-game chat function, allowing for friendly banter
https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/words-with-friends-free/id321916506?mt=8
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.zynga.words
Tweekaboo
- Allows you to share your pregnancy and baby’s special moments with family
- Save notes, photos and videos to a private timeline that is stored securely online
- Organize your moments by child or in albums as you upload them.
- Get closer to the moment: message moments to your partner as they happen.
- Share privately with family and preserve their comments for your child to relive
https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/tweekaboo-journal-share-your/id440682407?mt=8
Kindoma
- Available on iPad only
- Allows you to read stories to family members when you are away from them
- Works similar to a Skype call, but both participants can see a book
- Page turns are synchronised, and when one participants points to something on a page the other can see it also
- Comes with more than 10 free books and for $7.49 per month you can get a “Kindoma Membership”, which gives you access to all books in the bookstore
https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/kindoma-storytime/id621742145?mt=8
Red Stamp
- Email, text, tweet, Facebook, Instagram and paper mail personalized photo cards, notes, invitations + announcements right from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch.
- 600+ thank you notes, greeting cards, birthday cards, invitations, announcements + personalized stationery, each with multiple color schemes resulting in thousands of possibilities
- Voted Best Of the Web by InStyle Magazine and featured in the New York Times, The Today Show, MSNBC, CBS Early Show, and more.
https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/red-stamp-cards/id414561551?mt=8
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.redstamp.android&hl=en
Simply put, it is easier to maintain a close relationship with long distance family members now than it used to be. Technology plays a big part in this, as it is what makes apps such as these possible. However, without high speed internet, we would be back to the old days of simply trying to make phone calls. Activ8me broadband provides the fast and effective internet you need to enjoy streaming at its best capacity. Multiple users with devices including laptops, tablets, and smart phones can connect to Activ8me Fibre at the same time without the internet speed slowing down on faster speed tiers. Activ8me also provides wireless internet and satellite broadband for those living in rural areas.