One Tech Tip: Keeping up with your Halloween trick-or-treaters with these tricks
NEW YORK– NEW YORK (AP) — For little ghosts, witches, KPop demon hunters and superheroes, Halloween is one of the most exciting nights of the year. But it’s also one of the busiest times for parents trying to keep track of their treats, hand out candy and watch over their house.
Luckily, there are a few tech tips that can help families stay safe this Halloween and have a little more fun.
If your kids have Apple or Google branded smartphones, watches, or tracking tags, you can use the Find My or Family Link apps to keep tabs on them as they embark on their candy journey. But don’t consider these apps basic. Since branded devices, like Apple Air Tags or Pixel smartwatches, are designed for use with Apple and Google platforms, their tracking platforms may be more reliable than some third-party services.
A trick I discovered last Halloween is that I can set up a geofence with Find My. This gave my kids a little more freedom to navigate a defined hunting or treatment area while I struggled to keep up with them. If someone separated from the platoon and left the designated area, I received a notification. Here’s how to configure it:
Go to the Find My app on your iPhone. Scroll to and tap the name of the person or device you want to be notified about. Under notifications, tap “Add,” then “Notify me.” Continue going through the menu options until you come to a location option. Choose “New Location” and you will have the option to set a location radius. You will then be asked how often you would like to be notified if the tracked person leaves the area.
Next comes a critical step if you want to set a recurring notification. Unless it is an airline tag, your child must give one-time permission to request. They will receive an alert requesting approval when they arrive or leave your chosen location for the first time.
Google users have a similar geolocation option. First, you need to set up a new family location in the Family Link app. Then select your child from the app’s main menu and tap Family Locations, add the location you just created and select how often you want to be notified when they enter or leave the area.
If you have a smart doorbell installed on your front door, you can make visiting treats a little more fun by adding spooky messages and specialty chimes.
For Ring doorbell users, go to your app and navigate to Menu-Devices. Select your doorbell. Then tap Smart Replies-Quick Replies-Quick Reply Message. You may need to enable quick replies if you haven’t already, but you will see a list of Halloween-themed replies. Ours is set to “I’ll be there to eat…I mean, I salute you!”
For those who own Eufy Doorbells, go to your app and select your doorbell. A voice response list should include selectable Halloween-themed effects and chimes. You can also take advantage of a message recording feature in newer doorbell models to create your own, hopefully spooky response.
Nest and Google home users should be able to use their apps to select a Halloween setting under Doorbell Themes (Google was updating Nest in October, so your menu may look different than mine).
An unrelated tip for smart doorbell users: You may want to reduce your motion sensitivity just for Halloween. If your device isn’t hardwired, the extra movement of the treats could drain your doorbell’s batteries quickly (as I discovered). You can also avoid a flood of notifications if you do this.
Smartphones have flashlights, sure, but they’re not the brightest or the best option if you’re carrying jackets, baskets of candy, water bottles, or costume pieces. Instead, get yourself or your children more portable lights so they can see (and be seen) easily in the dark.
There are plenty of options for all budget ranges, but I have a soft spot for lights that you can hang on jackets or suits to keep your hands free.
