Aug 26, 2021
What’s new in the August 2021 release for the Theora Connect wearable and Theora Link smartphone app?

At Theora Care, we are delighted that thousands of customers have chosen our wearable to provide better care and maintain independence with confidence. We are committed to providing care providers with the best possible solutions and we’re always searching for ways to improve by listening to customer suggestions and feedback. That’s why we’re excited to share the new features and enhanced functionality for our wearable and caregiver smartphone app.

Here’s what this blog covers:

• New weather app for the wearable
• Auto-answer for all contacts, not just the primary caregiver
• Voice first for charging statuses
• Enhanced lockdown options for the wearable

Weather app for the wearable

We received requests from our customers for a way to check the weather now that they are out and about again. With an active, independent lifestyle being able to check what the upcoming weather is without carrying an additional smartphone was a top request. We are happy to provide a new weather app on the Theora Connect wearable. There is a new weather icon on the watch face. When pressed it retrieves the weather information for the current location. See the demonstration here.

Benefits

• One of our top requests from customers
• Provides basic temperature and weather conditions like air quality and partly cloudy
• Keeps watch wearers informed of changing weather conditions so they can be more confident in their outdoor activities

Auto Answer for all contacts
Previously, Theora Connect would only automatically answer for the primary caregiver. We have expanded this capability to any contact included in the Theora Link application.

Benefits

• Enables any member of the care team to call the wearer and be able to speak with them without the wearer needing to press “answer” in response to the incoming call
• The wearer can be hands-free and speak to their contacts, great for when the wearer is out and about, or even at home
• Only contacts listed in the Theora Link app can call the watch – no SPAM calls can get through
• Allows care team members to be able to pass care coverage easily

Voice First

We continue to provide more voice first capabilities for the wearable. New in this release is the watch telling you whether it’s charged or not, and an immediate verbal prompt when placed on the charger. When the watch is 90% charged or higher, the watch will say “Watch is charged” when removed from the charger.  Under 90% charged, the watch will say “Watch is not charged”. Additionally, when the watch is placed on the charger, there is an immediate verbal prompt that the watch is charging.

Benefits

• Enables caregivers and wearers to know the charging status of the watch without having to touch the watch face
• Easier to use for those with cognitive or physical limitations

Enhanced lockdown on watch

We are continuing our feature enhancement for wearers that may have mild cognitive or cognitive impairment that causes them to inadvertently change the watch settings. When a person has Alzheimer’s or dementia for example, they may inadvertently change settings on the watch that would negatively impact its functionality and the caregiver’s ability to remotely monitor and communicate with the wearer. In enhanced lockdown mode, the SOS button continues to function, but all other settings are disabled. For example, the wearer can’t change the watch face, or make non-emergency calls on the phone. The weather app is also disabled. The watch can be unlocked by the caregiver with the default passcode 1234.

Benefits

• Keeps the watch in a consistent state, preventing the wearer from inadvertently changing settings
• Caregivers have confidence they can reach the wearer at all times
• Wearers with cognitive impairment can’t change settings that leaves the watch in an incorrect state
• All functionality, such as Quik Connect, outgoing calls and the all-important SOS button will continue to work in lockdown mode

We hope you enjoy the enhancements in the August release, and we look forward to providing more in our next release!