The Swedish manufacturer’ s no-frills phone, which features loud, clear ringtones, a‘ Call Assistance’ SOS button and a battery life of three weeks, enables vulnerable and elderly people to make emergency calls

After all, the PhoneEasy 506 has no 3G or data connectivity of any kind( apart from text messaging). There is no internet browser, email client or camera of any description and no Wi-Fi or GPS. So, what’ s the point of a mobile that resembles the state of the art in 1990?

Well, think of the PhoneEasy 506 as not so much a mobile phone but more a handheld emergency beacon. So, if you’ ve got an elderly parent or relative who lives on their own and whose safety and welfare is of constant concern, read on, you’ ve come to the right place. Also, it makes the perfect cheap mobile to give to younger children to enable them to easily call home.

Doro is a Swedish company that claims to be a leader in the telecom care market. It was set up 38 years ago to develop easy-to-use mHealth( mobile heath) telecoms products specially adapted to the growing worldwide population of senior citizens.

The manufacturer currently has a range of around 16 mobiles all designed with security and simplicity of use as the main consideration.

Some Doro phones detect when the user has fallen over, others are programmed to send out alarms at the press of a single button.

So it is within this mHealth arena that we should regard the PhoneEasy 506. Remember this is not a mobile for technophiles or gadget freaks and certainly not for fashionistas.

Back to basics Anyone familiar with the first Symbian user interface that ran Nokia phones of some 20 years ago will know what to expect. The 506 uses exactly the same system of two smart keys that activate Phonebook, Messages, Call Log, Alarm, Calendar or Calculator.

It worked perfectly well for many millions of users for many years, so there seems little point in criticising it for its very basic functionality. It is what it is and is ideally suited for an‘ mHealth’ phone that will be used by people unfamiliar with technology.

Operating system is the same as old Nokias

Basic screen is fine for displaying text

“ Think of the PhoneEasy 506 as not so much a mobile phone as a handheld emergency beacon”

First look Taken straight out of the box, the 506 does seem like something you’ d find inside a Christmas cracker. The simple black candy bar case and small plastic keypad sits under the 28 x 35mm colour screen.

With a display of 128 x 160 pixels, compared with an iPhone 5 screen that displays 1,136 x 640 pixels for example, the screen resolution is very basic. But, as stated, you’ re not going to use the 506 for imaging of any kind.

All this screen has to do is display text and a few basic icons which it does well with a white font on a backlit emerald green wallpaper. When set to‘ large’ the numbers and letters are entirely legible to anyone with lessthan-perfect vision.

“ The phone would also make a great choice as an emergency backup glovebox phone for the car”

‘ In Case Of Emergency’ mode carries vital medical information for first responders

Three dedicated A B C speed-dial buttons

Battery An 800mAh Li-ion battery supplies the power. And with nothing to do but make calls and transmit text messages you won’ t be surprised to hear that battery life is phenomenal.

This review sample was turned on and remained untouched for a week. During this time it lost just two of its five bars in the battery meter. That indicates a standby time of three weeks between charges which is no small benefit from a device that is aimed at senior people whose cognitive powers may have peaked some years ago and who may not remember to charge it every night.

Attention assistance Attention Assist is the PhoneEasy 506’ s party piece and probably the main reason why you would buy it for a vulnerable person. The Attention Assist button is on the back of the phone. Press and hold for three seconds or press twice within one second and the 506 does its biggest tricks.

First of all, it switches call mode to handsfree / loudspeaker mode, so help can be summoned without the need to hold it to your ear. It then instantly texts a pre-written SOS message to designated numbers while dialling them in sequence until someone answers. If the first pre-programmed number is not answered within 25 seconds, the 506 will dial the next number. If the call is answered, the recipient presses 0 to stop the 506 continuing to dial numbers.

Naturally, this assumes that people have already been notified that their number has been registered as an Attention Assist number.

Dimensions 125.5 x 51 x 15.5mm Weight 81g Screen 28 x 35mm colour display Battery life 800mAh Li-ion, up to 500 hours’ standby claimed, eight hours’ talk time Extras Back-lit keypad, assistance button, maximum receiving amplification of 35dB, ringer volume up to 83 dB( A) at one metre

ICE is cool Another safety aid built into the 506 is the‘ In Case of Emergency’( ICE) mode. This carries basic medical information about the 506’ s owner that police, fire and ambulance services can access from the phone. This information( which has to be keyed in by the user) includes name, address, date of birth, height, weight, medical insurance details, doctor’ s details, blood type, vaccinations and medication notes. It may seem far-fetched, but a situation could arise when a person who has summoned help is in shock, unconscious or injured and unable to impart vital medical statistics.

Conclusion If you want a simple phone for a young child or vulnerable elderly relative with a one-button system of summoning help, this is a number one contender. It also makes a great choice as an emergency backup glovebox phone for the car. Load it with a £ 5 prepay card, charge it up and forget about it until you need it, just make sure you make a call every couple of months to keep the SIM active.

If you’ re interested enough in technology to buy this magazine, the Doro PhoneEasy 506 is not for you. But if there is any vulnerable or elderly person within your family or social circle who needs a foolproof device with which to summon help, or simply to keep in touch, the PhoneEasy 506 is probably the best £ 45 you can spend for peace of mind. Mark Wyatt What Mobile

MN 2013-0730 Device Review 1. indd 38 24 / 07 / 2013 15:57