Unus Tactus App Review

I was recently contacted by the developer of a new application called Unus Tactus, and she asked me if I could do an app review on her application. Of course I agreed, so I present to you Unus Tactus.

*Please note that while the developer did ask me to write a review, all these thoughts are my own and are not influenced by the developer.

Unus Tactus is an application that has T.L.C. or Touch.Locate.Call.

This application was developed for individuals of all ages with mild cognitive and/or motor impairments, and it allows them to easily use a cell phone without having to press a bunch of different buttons.

This is a view of the application with one contact entered (no I did not add a pic of myself, but you do have the option to add a picture of the contact).

You have the option to create new contacts by importing them from your contacts list or creating a contact manually. For individuals with impairments, it would be best if a caregiver set this up first.

This is the "add a contact" screen. As you can see, it is extremely easy to input information. You just put in the contacts first and last name, phone and email information, and select a photo. Finally click "save" to save the information. Then it will look like picture #1 once it is saved!

At the bottom of the main page of the application, there is a large, red HELP button. I was curious as to what this button did, so I selected it. This is what it showed:

It is simply a button the individual can press if they need their caregiver's help. All you have to do is enter the emergency contact information from the settings screen (see picture below), and the application will call the emergency contact person immediately once the button is pressed.

This is the settings screen. You can input the individual's information as well as the emergency contact information. You can also turn on the button below the emergency contact information that will send the emergency contact an email every time a phone call is made from that phone (even to people other than the emergency contact). 

So what happens if you enter a contact but their information changes? Don't fret! You can edit every contact by selecting the "edit" button on the upper left corner of the main page of the application. Your screen would look like this:

You can tell it is the edit screen because the background turns black instead of white. Then you simply select which contact you would like to edit and click done.

The application also has a Geofence Alert. This alert will send emails to the emergency contact when every phone call is made and includes a map location of the phone. This alert can be turned on or off depending on the user and can also be configured to a specific radius. You can change the radius to 1 mi, 3 mi, 5 mi, 10 mi, or 15 mi, so there is obviously a huge range that the user can choose depending on their individual preferences. 

Some pros of this application:

1. It is extremely easy to use. It's easy to import contacts, change settings, turn alerts on and off, and use the application.

2. You can input an unlimited number of contacts.

3. The application features both a picture and a name display of each contact so that if an individual is unable to read, they can still use the application by viewing pictures.

4. The emergency HELP button is fantastic and easy to use.

5. Automatic email alerts (if the user chooses) including location information (google maps) are sent to the emergency contact with each outgoing phone call.

Cons to the application:

1. The only con I can think of is the app requires a lot from a caregiver to get everything set up and get it ready to use. Set up isn't so easy that an individual with moderate motor impairments could do it by themselves, so it is fairly dependent on a caregiver. However, use of the application itself is simple, and I suspect that an individual with moderate motor impairments could use it independently.

This seems like an extremely useful application overall. I would highly recommend it for individuals with cognitive and/or motor impairments. This would be a great app to use for those clients with Dementia, Parkinson's disease, TBI, etc.

The application is compatible with the iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, as well as the iPod Touch (3rd gen) and the iPad (but obviously you cannot make calls from these last two devices).

It's also only $9.99 from the app store! What an amazing price for such a great app!

Check it out here!

Have any of you used this application before? If so, what do you think about it?