Jitterbug: What My Parents Need in a Cell Phone

My parents had a medical emergency recently and didn't get in touch with one of us for many hours afterward. My dad tried calling my sister's cell phone, which wasn't on, and he wasn't able to access the rest of our phone numbers from the hospital via their cell phone.

So now I'm doing another thing I promised awhile ago: Ordering a Jitterbug cell phone for them. As Robin has written, GreatCall's Jitterbug is designed for people who want an easy-to-read, easy-to-operate cell phone. No frills. Just a big screen with big letters, dialing buttons the size of fingertips, and loud, clear sound. Oh, and an operator who can be reached 24/7, something I know my parents will like. The Jitterbug made it into our Last Gadget Standing final 10 because of its simple, smart design and affordable phone plans that serve and don't confuse consumers.

As I suspected, the Jitterbug web site is easy to navigate, too. It lays out the plan options clearly: The $147 phone comes with either a standard dial keypad or three emergency buttons (911, operator, and one one personalized direct-dial number). Monthly minute plans start at $10, $15 for 30 minutes, $20 for 60, $30 for 150, and $40 for 300 minutes. You can save some money by ordering the phone and 12 months of whichever minutes plan you choose.

My parents don't use their phone too often, so we're opting for the $15/30 minutes plan at first. Right now, they're paying about $40 a month for Alltel service they rarely use. GreatCall also offers a $25 "service pack" of 100 extra minutes to tap into if you run over monthly allotments. The minutes are good for a year.

GreatCall also is trying to distinguish itself with service to a generation more comfortable talking to a people rather than filling out computer forms and relaying financial information over the Internet. There's an 800-number to call, but if you're short on time and want to get started, you can fill out an Internet form with your name and address and up to 11 phone numbers that will be programmed into the phone before it is sent to you. (You can add more later.)

I filled out the form, which stops short of allowing you to order completely over the Internet. So I'll let you know how quickly GreatCall follows up, and what my parents think of their new phone.

Related:

Jitterbug: The Uncool Phone
Jitterbug Phone: A Hope for Gray Computing