How to Use an iPad for Video Calls With Your Family

An iPad makes video calls easier than almost any other device, because the screen is large enough to see faces clearly and the camera is built right into the top of the screen. There is nothing extra to buy and, for the most common apps, nothing to pay either. You hold the iPad up, tap a name, and a moment later you are looking at your grandchildren.

The hardest part is usually not the call itself but knowing which app to open and where the buttons are. Once you have done it twice, it becomes as ordinary as answering the phone. What follows walks you through the two apps almost every family uses, how to start a call, how to answer one, and what to do when something looks wrong.

What you need before your first call

You need three things, and you almost certainly already have all of them. First, an iPad that is charged and connected to the internet, either through your home Wi-Fi (your wireless internet) or a mobile data plan. Second, the name and contact details of the person you want to call, saved in your iPad or known to you. Third, the same app installed on both ends, because a call only connects when both people use the matching app.

FaceTime is Apple's own video-call app, and it comes already installed on every iPad. The white icon with a green video camera sits on your home screen. It only works between Apple devices, so the person you call needs an iPhone, iPad, or Mac. WhatsApp is the other common choice, and it works across both Apple and Android phones, which makes it handy when your family is split between the two.

How to start a FaceTime call

FaceTime is the quickest option when everyone in your family owns an Apple device. The app is already on your iPad, so there is nothing to download and nothing to set up beyond signing in once with your Apple Account, which is the email and password you use for the App Store (the place where you download new apps).

1. Find the FaceTime icon on your home screen (white square, green camera) and tap it once.
2. Tap the green New FaceTime button near the top of the screen.
3. Start typing the name of the person you want to call. If they are saved in your contacts, their name appears below as you type. Tap it.
4. You can add a second or third person the same way if you want a group call. Each name turns into a small bubble.
5. Tap the large green FaceTime button to begin ringing them.
6. When they answer, their face fills the screen and yours appears in a small window in the corner.

To end the call, tap once anywhere on the screen so the controls appear, then tap the red button with the white phone symbol. The call closes and you return to the app. Nothing is saved, recorded, or charged when you do this.

How to answer a call when someone rings you

When someone FaceTimes you, your iPad rings and a notice slides onto the screen with their name and two buttons. If the iPad is locked, you slide the green camera icon across to answer. If you are already using the iPad, a green Accept button and a red Decline button appear at the top. Tap the green one to answer.

If you miss a call, do not worry. Open FaceTime and you will see a list of recent calls, with missed ones marked in red. Tap any name in that list to call the person straight back. You cannot break anything by tapping the wrong entry, and you can always end a call immediately if you reached the wrong person.

How to start a WhatsApp video call

WhatsApp is the better choice when some of your family use Android phones rather than Apple ones, because it works on both. You download it once from the App Store, register with your phone number, and after that it remembers you. A WhatsApp video call connects to anyone in your contacts who also has WhatsApp.

1. Open WhatsApp (the green icon with a white telephone inside a speech bubble).
2. Tap the Chats tab at the bottom and open a conversation with the person you want, or start a new one.
3. At the top right of the chat, tap the small video camera icon.
4. The call starts ringing. When the other person answers, you see each other on screen.
5. To hang up, tap the red phone button at the bottom of the screen.

WhatsApp also lets you make voice-only calls with the telephone icon next to the camera, which is useful when your internet is slow or you simply want to talk. Both kinds of call are free over your internet connection.

Group calls with the whole family

Both FaceTime and WhatsApp let you put several people on one call at the same time, which turns a quiet evening into a kitchen-table gathering even when everyone lives miles apart. In FaceTime, you simply add more than one name when starting the call, and each person appears in their own tile on the screen. The tile of whoever is talking grows larger, so you always see who is speaking.

WhatsApp handles group calls through a group chat. Open the chat that already has all the family members in it, tap the video camera icon at the top, choose the people you want to ring, and start the call. A birthday, an anniversary, or a Sunday catch-up works beautifully this way, and nobody has to drive anywhere or set out chairs. If the screen gets crowded, turn the iPad sideways into the wide position so the faces have more room.

Common problems and quick fixes

Most call problems come from one of a few ordinary causes, and none of them mean your iPad is broken. If the picture freezes or the sound stutters, your internet connection is usually the reason. Move closer to your Wi-Fi box, or end the call and start it again, and it normally clears.

If a call drops entirely, simply start it again. Dropped calls happen to everyone and reflect a brief internet wobble, not a mistake on your part. When nothing works at all, restarting the iPad by holding the top button and sliding to power off, then turning it back on, fixes a surprising number of small glitches.

Tips to make calls easier and more enjoyable

Good light makes a bigger difference than any setting. Sit facing a window rather than with the window behind you, so your face is lit instead of being a dark shape. A lamp to the side works well in the evening. Keep the iPad steady on a stand so your arms do not tire during a long chat.

If reaching the buttons is fiddly, ask a family member to add your most-called people to your Favourites in FaceTime, so one tap starts the call. You can also tell Siri, the voice helper, to do it for you. Press and hold the top button and say "FaceTime" followed by the person's name, and the call begins without any tapping at all.

The first call is the one that feels strange. By the third, your hands will know where to tap, and the iPad becomes the window through which you watch a birthday, see a new haircut, or simply say goodnight to someone far away. That is the whole point of the thing, and it is well within your reach.