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rembert
Contributor
Message 1 of 6

questions & suggestions family safe

First of all I want to say that I like the approach of family safe. Still I got several problems (parent: win10 & android 6.x; Child: android 6.x). My questions:

- how can I set a time for overall screen usage? I see that on the promotional video but the button/entry field is just noch there on my devices

- how can one get back to a predefined settings preset after having altered settings for my kid?

- is there a way to allow some actions/applications no matter what the settings for screen daytime and overall screentime might be? (Like calling home for having the kid picked up after school - very important)

Futhermore I have some suggestions

- my kid gets crazy about the "ask for screentime" button and sends tons of messages. Maybe you could have a max. Limit of requests

- Same for location messages. No use having half a dozen messages saying my kid is at home (he has never left home).

- There are as many app categories as apps on the device. This wont simplify the app usage. Reduce to max 1/4th.

- provide a way to reduce the amount of popups on the kids device

Cheers

Rembert

5 Replies
esaung
McAfee Employee
McAfee Employee
Message 2 of 6

Re: questions & suggestions family safe

Hi Rembert,

Thanks for your feedback, we are always in a process of making improvements and adding new features based on user demand.

here are responses to your question/feedback/requests:

- how can I set a time for overall screen usage? I see that on the promotional video but the button/entry field is just noch there on my devices

[E-ming] - correct our promotional video does mention some features that are not yet implemented. This is something that we are planning, but can't share any specific timelines at this point. to be clear, you are looking for the feature that allows a child to spend 4 hours total in a day across any device?

- how can one get back to a predefined settings preset after having altered settings for my kid?

[E-ming] - there currently isn't a reset rules button, part of our goal is to help you get to a very customized set of rules for your kids since you know your kids the best and your kids are like no one else's kids. if you aren't worried about the activity history of a child, the easiest way to reset today is to create a new child profile and delete the old child profile.

- is there a way to allow some actions/applications no matter what the settings for screen daytime and overall screentime might be? (Like calling home for having the kid picked up after school - very important)

[E-ming] - currently when screen time rules are in effect, phone apps are already allowed to be used even if the device should be blocked for exactly that case that you mention or if your child needs to contact emergency services. certain critical services/apps won't get blocked even when screen time is disabled for your child. We don't yet have a way for you to customize the list of apps that can be accessible when the device is disabled.

Futhermore I have some suggestions

- my kid gets crazy about the "ask for screentime" button and sends tons of messages. Maybe you could have a max. Limit of requests

[E-ming] - Thanks for this request, I will take this feedback back to the team.

- Same for location messages. No use having half a dozen messages saying my kid is at home (he has never left home).

[E-ming] - we are looking into making some improvements in this area.

- There are as many app categories as apps on the device. This wont simplify the app usage. Reduce to max 1/4th.

[E-ming] - noted, we are leveraging the app categories that are provided through Google Play store. the benefit of having the app categories is that you can block apps that haven't yet been installed on your child's device, but when they are installed will be blocked by default. if your kids are into trying a lot of different apps, this can help ensure those apps within the blocked categories are blocked by default and your kids don't get access until your approval. but I hear you, there are too many app categories to manage.

- provide a way to reduce the amount of popups on the kids device

[E-ming] - can you provide some more details about this request? what type of popups are seen on the kids device? is this happening while the device is not accessible due to screen time rules?

if there's anything else, please feel free to let us know.

Thanks,

E-ming

rembert
Contributor
Message 3 of 6

Re: questions & suggestions family safe

Hi E-ming,

thanks for your response.

>to be clear, you are looking for the feature that allows a child to spend 4 hours total in a day across any device?

Yes exactly. And I feel that almost all of the parents would see this as the most crucial part of such an app. Mind you: In Germany many parents would never let kids play e.g. 4 hours but 15/30/45 min or thelike...

>we are leveraging the app categories that are provided through Google Play store.

Understood. You could bundle GooglePlay Categories in "McAfee Categories". And maybe have a button "categories easy/advanced" so one could choose (but oI guess no parent would like to bother with that many categories - thats mainly for developers).

> phone apps are already allowed to be used even if the device should be blocked for exactly that case

Hm, that´s not what it looked like over here. I have to reproduce this.

> if there's anything else, please feel free to let us know

I uninstalled the app because without an overall screen limit there´s no point for me to use the app. If theres an update to the beta version that implements this feature I´d consider to use again. How can I stay informed?

Cheers

Rembert

esaung
McAfee Employee
McAfee Employee
Message 4 of 6

Re: questions & suggestions family safe

HI Rembert,

Thanks for further clarifying the first two items. We are just starting out and have a lot of features to work on. Will keep you posted on your feature requests.

> phone apps are already allowed to be used even if the device should be blocked for exactly that case

Hm, that´s not what it looked like over here. I have to reproduce this.

[E-ming] - to further clarify, phone dialing apps should not be blocked while the device is blocked. if you are running into this issue, please let us know.

thanks,

E-ming

catdaddy
MVP
MVP
Message 5 of 6

Re: questions & suggestions family safe

Marking this thread as Assumed Answered.Locking it

Cliff
McAfee Volunteer
MushroomDerby
Contributor
Message 6 of 6

Re: questions & suggestions family safe

Hello,

I have one of the same questions that this gentleman from Germany had --how do you limit the total amount of time a child spends on the internet? Not the times during which he uses the internet ... I found that ... but the total time on apps combined?

Five years later, what have you come up with? I only see features that limit the amount of time per app.

Thank you.

 

 

 

 

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