There is no perfect gift for everyone: it all depends on how comfortable they are with technology, the distance and where they live. Here is our advice for the most common situations.
Choose a gift that works without a router or Wi-Fi and with nothing to learn. The Familink frame contains a pre-activated 4G SIM card: you plug it in, and the photos sent by the family appear on their own. No account to create, no menus: you swipe through the photos with a finger and say thanks with a “Like”.
When you only see each other a few times a year, the best gift is sharing everyday life: the first day of school, the weekend match, the failed cake. With a connected photo frame, every photo sent from a phone arrives within seconds, from another city or another country.
In a care facility, space is limited and there is not always Wi-Fi in the room. A 4G frame sits on a bedside table and plugs into an outlet. Captioned photos also help residents remember everyone's name: in 2018 Familink received the Silvestre prize from the Fondation Médéric Alzheimer. To equip a facility, see Familink Pro.
For a big birthday, make it a group gift: everyone chips in, then everyone sends their photos to the frame. Prepare a few memories before giving it (old family photos, photos of the party): the frame will display them from day one.
A connected photo frame is an easy gift at Christmas, when the whole family is together: you set it up together, everyone sends their first photo, and the grandparents see right away how it works. Grandmother's Day (in March) and Grandfather's Day (in October) are also good occasions.
If your grandparents like to leaf through and keep their photos, give them the Familink magazine: a newspaper printed every month with 31 photos sent by the family, laid out automatically and delivered to their mailbox.
New photos after giving it
Needs an internet router at their home
What they need to learn
The whole family takes part
| Photo album | Tablet | Wi-Fi photo frame | 4G photo frame (Familink) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New photos after giving it | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Needs an internet router at their home | No | Yes | Yes | No |
| What they need to learn | Nothing | Apps, passwords, updates | Setting up the Wi-Fi | Nothing |
| The whole family takes part | Once | Yes, if they know how to use it | Yes | Yes, with no limit on the number of people |
In France, 59% of people aged 75 or over have not used the internet in the last three months: a gift that requires a router or a password risks staying in its box.
An object pleases on the day you give it. A connected photo frame fills up over the months: every new photo is a small gesture of attention, and grandparents watch their grandchildren grow up even when they are far away.
Children, grandchildren, cousins: everyone sends their photos and messages from the Familink app (iOS, Android), the website, an e-mail, WhatsApp or Messenger. Grandparents reply with a “Like”, and those who sent the photo can see it.
Familink has been designed in Rouen, France, since 2016. The family's photos are hosted in France, in Paris. The frame comes with a 2-year warranty.
A gift that brings them news from the family over time. A connected photo frame like Familink receives the photos sent by children and grandchildren from their phones, all year round, without the grandparents having to do anything.
A gift that works without a router or Wi-Fi. The Familink frame contains a 4G SIM card: it connects as soon as you plug it in and displays the photos sent by the family. 3 months of 4G are included with the purchase, then the 4G option costs €5.90 per month, with no commitment.
Time and news rather than an object: photos of the grandchildren arriving regularly on a connected frame, or a photo magazine printed every month like the Familink magazine.
A compact object that needs neither Wi-Fi nor any handling. A 4G photo frame sits on the bedside table and plugs into an outlet; the family sends their photos to it remotely.
Yes. The Familink frame is well suited to a group gift: everyone chips in for the purchase, then everyone sends their photos to the same frame, with no limit on the number of people.
The frame costs €219.90 to buy, with the free Basic plan (10 photos per day and text messages). Familink Plus (unlimited photos, videos, voice messages) costs €4.90 per month. You can also rent it all-inclusive from €14.99 per month, with no commitment.