Konnekt Captioning Videophone
An easy phone for people of all ages who have deafness, impaired hearing, or are hard of hearing.
- Captions. Fast, private, accurate. Multiple languages.
- Loud, clear sound. Hands-free, or holding a traditional handset.
- Read lips and facial expressions using optional video calling.
Read the other person’s words as voice-to-text, and optionally see your own words, as large text messages.
Our speech-to-text phone makes calls easy. Use with or without hearing aids.
Government funding is available for eligible individuals.
Captioned video calls enable lip reading
Talk face-to-face with family, friends and colleagues
- Captions start automatically (no buttons, no operators) thanks to Skype under the hood
- Read lips, facial expressions and gestures; know when it’s your turn to talk
- Face-to-face calls shown* to help prevent social isolation
- Incredibly easy to use, with options for dexterity, vision, cognitive and mobility needs.
Regular phone calls are captioned
Ideal for all ages, for hard-of-hearing to deafness
- Make and receive regular phone calls, with big captions up to 7cm tall
- One touch to call or answer, or dial using a large numeric keypad*
- Extra loud; adjustable volume; SUPER loud with our optional external speaker
Audiologist Recommendation – Hearing Loss
We recommend the Konnekt phone to our patients as it is extremely helpful to have the vision aid of the captioning and to be able to see the caller’s face when they have a hearing loss.
As many of our patients are elderly, they find that it is much easier to use the larger buttons of the Konnekt phone than a traditional handset.
— Nick Modrovich, Audiologist / Director, Ability Hearing and Balance
How to make a call
- One touch: Press a named button, or press Phone to enter a number
- Wait: The other person can answer on a regular phone or PC / tablet
- Watch: If they answer on Skype, you can read lips too
- Listen: Hear them answer; adjust sound easily
- Read: Captions start automatically, in your language
- Finish: Either of you can end the call
Konnekt Captioning Phone vs older captioning phones
Konnekt Captioning Videophone
• Video calls and phone calls
• Supports lip reading, sign language
• Fast, private captioning; no operator
• No phone service needed; just Internet
• Big captions, multiple languages
• Free lifetime local support
Older phone with operator captioning
• Phone calls only; no video
• No lip reading or sign language
• A human listens to your call
• Needs a phone service and Internet
• Captions in English only
• Temporary support offshore
2023-2024 Selection Guide
Download our comparison table and choose the captioning phone that best suits you.
How to receive a call
- They call you: The other person either calls your number from any phone, or calls you on Skype
- It rings loudly, and the whole screen flashes
- Other rooms: An optional remote alert flashes / vibrates
- One touch: Press ANSWER – or nominated callers can be answered automatically (optional)
- Watch: If they use Skype, see their face and read lips
- Listen: Hear them answer; adjust sound easily
- Read: Captions start automatically, in your language
- Finish: Either of you can end the call
Phone Keypad Dialler
Dial phone numbers easily using the Keypad Dialler*
- Huge on-screen buttons: Easy to press
- See entered digits: Avoid/correct errors
- Send DTMF tones during calls: “Press 1 for…”
*Inclusion of the keypad dialler is a free option. Please ask, if required.
More about How It Works
Yes and Yes. There are two ways you can call a regular telephone number:
Keypad dialler
Just enter the phone number you wish to call on the big-button numeric dial-pad.
If the other person answers, captions will start automatically. No buttons to press. No operator to wait for.
Call buttons
You can have your friends, family, colleagues and important Contacts on one-touch Call Buttons.
Each call button is up to 6 inches wide. The letters can be LARGE… up to about 3 inches tall.
Your Videophone comes with buttons already set up (personalized for you).
If you want more call buttons, or need to change or remove a button, just ask us. We do it for you, without anyone needing to visit.
Each call button can dial, in sequence, up to 5 phone numbers or 5 Skype Names or 5 groups, or a mixture of phone numbers, Skype Names and groups. Each group can contain up to 50 people (phone numbers or Skype Names) but we suggest to keep the groups small and instruct them not to all talk at the same time.
- So for example, you can have a BOB button that first calls Bob on Skype so that you can talk face-to-face, then calls Bob’s work number, and then calls Bob at home.
- You can have a FRIENDS button that tries all the important people in your life, one by one until one of them answers, or you can have an ASSIST button that calls up to 5 people who can help you, or a FAMILY button that simply initiates a group call with 10 family members.
- Or you can have an ANNE button that simply calls Anne on her phone.
If the other person answers, captions will start automatically. No buttons to press. No operator to wait for.
Call emergency easily
Option 1: In Australia (to call 000), USA (to call 911), UK (to call 112 or 999) and some other countries: Simply hit an emergency call button to call emergency services, or enter the emergency number using the on-screen dial-pad.
Option 2: Hit an Assist or SOS call button to dial up to 5 people or phone numbers, one after the other, or simply calls 1-50 people at the same time.
That’s it.
Your conversation with emergency services or emergency contacts will be captioned. Automatically.
Unlimited calls. No surprises.
The Konnekt comes with a subscription unlimited calls to landlines and/or mobile phones, depending on your plan.
Captioning is included.
And in case you missed it: Captions are fast, accurate, and will start automatically. No buttons to press.
Yes. People can call you in two ways: Video calls via Skype, and regular telephone calls to your new phone number. Both will be captioned automatically.
Receiving Skype calls
To call you with a video call, your contacts simply need the free Skype app for their mobile, iPad/tablet or computer. The Skype app is free for them to download and install, and free to call you Skype-to-Skype. It uses just a little of their Internet data. It’s very similar to FaceTime, Zoom, WhatsApp, Viber, LINE, WeChat or Facebook Messenger. They just tap on the Skype icon to start Skype, tap on your name, and tap on the video-camera icon to start a video call (if they want to talk to you face-to-face) or tap on the phone icon to start an audio call.
Just to repeat: If they call you using Skype, their call to you will be free. It will use just a little of their Internet data.
When you answer, captions will start, automatically. No buttons to press.
Receiving regular phone calls
Each Videophone comes with its own phone number. In Australia, for example, you can have your choice of a number that starts with 02, 03, 07 or 08. In the USA, you can have practically any area code. Phone numbers are available for many countries (just ask).
For your callers, calling your Videophone phone number is exactly the same as calling any other phone number: They’ll dial your number, you’ll answer, and you’ll talk. And captions will start, automatically. No buttons to press.
Diverting your old phone numbers to Videophone
In most cases, you cannot port (move) your existing phone number to become your Videophone number.
However, you can call-forward (divert) your existing landline and/or cellular mobile phone services to Videophone. So when contacts call you, Videophone will ring. When you answer, you’ll have captions.
Call forwarding may bear a cost, depending on your existing phone plan. Usually, each forwarded call is treated the same as an outbound phone call and may be covered by your existing phone plan. Check with your existing phone service provider.
To set up call forwarding:
- For landlines, it’s as simple as entering or dialling a special code from your existing phone. Contact your phone service provider for instructions.
- For Smartphones, you can also set up call forwarding in Phone Settings or Call Settings.
All calls forwarded to your Videophone will be captioned. Automatically.
The Konnekt Captioning Videophone offers much more:
- Huge 15-inch screen. About twice the area of an iPad / tablet. Many times bigger than a mobile phone screen. So it’s much easier to see faces, read lips, read captions, interpret facial expressions.
- Optional handset. You can talk hands-free or you can talk into your optional handset that you hold to your ear and mouth just like a traditional telephone.
- Big captions. Captions can be LARGE. The font size can be changed. Even the default is MUCH bigger than alternatives.
- Clear captions. During a video call, captions are off to one side of the video frame. So they’ll be easier to read, clearer, and not superimposed over your contact’s face… which also means your lip-reading won’t be interrupted.
- Optional local captions. View your own words as well.
- Easy to use. Videophone simplifies video and audio calling, and adds automatic captioning.
- 6-inch buttons. The call buttons are up to 6 inches wide, so you can locate and press them easily, which is great if you need help fast.
- It’s LOUD. Videophone’s twin internal speakers are real cone speakers. Not those little buzzy speakers you get in most mobiles, tablets and laptops. We can make the default volume as soft or as loud as you need. And if you wish, you can have on-screen volume buttons so you can easily adjust the sound level.
- It can go SUPER loud. We can include a powered external speaker that you can control easily that can go so loud, it would wake up a person sleeping one or two rooms away!
- Visual ringing. The Videophone screen flashes, and it can buzz/flash an optional remote-alert device when it’s ringing. No more missed calls.
- Privacy option. You have the option of allowing incoming calls only from known contacts. Remember: This is only an option. It is useful for those who may be vulnerable to scams, or wish to hide from telemarketers or unwanted callers.
- Internet. In most countries, our local sales and support partner can recommend an Internet service. In Australia, Konnekt can set up and manage Internet for you. Why do that? Well, if we provide the modem/router equipment, then we can take care of it. We’re responsible for it, and we fix any problems. Videophone can restart it every night, to help keep it reliable. And that modem/router is hand-picked, so we know it extremely well… it’s an ultra-reliable device that simply keeps working… it’s not a cheap pocket modem. But if cost is an issue, we can point you to a low-cost Internet service that you can self-manage, either with our modem/router or your own.
- Zero set-up. Videophone just needs to be taken out of the box and connected to power. We personalize it with key contacts before we deliver. We can even configure it to find your Wi-Fi signal and connect, automatically. Or it can connect via a regular network cable.
- On-going service for changes. If you need to make any changes or additions, simply contact us, and those changes will happen without anyone needing to visit, and without you having to do anything to the Videophone whatsoever.
- Disability options. We have a long list of options and accessories to help those with vision, memory, dexterity or mobility limitations. If you’re bed-ridden or chair-bound, no problem: We have customers with bed-mount brackets and monitor mounts, customers who use wireless mouse-compatible pointing devices, and customers who use a wireless access button. Oh, and the touchscreen itself is resistive so unlike almost every other touchscreen on the planet, you can operate Videophone with a bandaged hand, glove, prosthetic, telescopic wand or any object.
- Auto-answer option, with 2-way video on Skype calls. Only calls from trusted Contacts that you nominate will be automatically answered. Great for emergencies, or when you can’t make it to the phone in time to answer.
- IT Support. If there are any problems, Konnekt has local support partners in Australia, North America, UK, Europe, New Zealand and South Africa. You can chat with us online (on the web), phone us, call us from your Videophone with captioning, or send us email. It’s almost always an Internet problem but don’t worry, we’ll help you get going.
- Managed service. We take care of everything. And I mean everything. Need to mount it on a wall? We can help you with a bracket. Need a little table for it to go on? We can help you with that, too.
- Reliability. Many of our users live independently and are not IT-savvy. Videophone has to just keep working! We use multiple technologies to make it super reliable. Some of these technologies are under the hood… we can remotely diagnose problems, and we are alerted when something is going wrong so that we can preemptively fix the problem before you even notice. Software updates happen silently, overnight, unattended.
How captioning worked before 1 Feb 2020
Most older legacy captioning phones were disconnected from the captioning service from 1 Feb 2020 and were connected temporarily to an off-shore service. If a relay officer was available, the officer would “re-speak” what they heard into a computer, to help convert from voice to text. If there were not too many errors, and if they could spot the errors and correct them fast enough, they would correct the errors. Of course, having to re-speak and having to correct errors with a keyboard added a time delay. The positive was that the accuracy was usually quite high, as long as the speaker didn’t talk too quickly. Proper nouns (place names like Gunnamatta and people names like Rheagan) were often corrected, but only if the relay officer knew those places and was able to spell those names.
How captioning works with your Konnekt
Your Konnekt Captioning Videophone uses Skype’s fast, accurate captioning service for video calls as well as for regular calls to/from telephones. Skype is owned by Microsoft, which is one of the largest companies in the world. Microsoft purchased Skype for US $8.5 billion in 2011. Microsoft completely redeveloped the Skype apps and updated the server infrastructure in 2016-2017. Microsoft continues to invest heavily in Skype and releases an update every week or two, so it continues to improve.
On 3 December 2018, Skype joined the world in celebrating the United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities with the launch of live call captions and subtitles. In their press release, Skype announced that captioning works on one-on-one video calls, calls to/from any phone number, as well as in group calls. Live captions offer you a more inclusive experience, especially for people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Please note that Konnekt does not represent Microsoft or Skype.
The Skype-based captioning does not use any humans. The live captions are optimized to be fast, continuous, and contextually updated as people speak.
What does “contextually updated” mean? It means that as your friend speaks and continues finishing the sentence or phrase, the meaning of the entire phrase spoken so far will be analyzed, and where possible, errors in the captions will be corrected in a split second! This is best illustrated with an example:
- Your friend says, “Flour would be” but the captions show “Flower would be“.
- Your friend says, “…needed in this cake recipe.” Aha, the context is baking. A correction is made automatically, so now the captions show “Flour would be needed in this cake recipe.“
Here’s another example:
- Your friend says, “Red” but the captions show “Led“.
- Your friend says, “…is my favourite colour.” Aha, the context is colour. A correction is made automatically, so now the captions show “Red is my favourite colour.“
As well as being accurate, it’s fast. Very fast. There’s no re-speaking, no keyboard correction, and no trans-continental links to overseas-agent captioning centres.
In our experience at Konnekt, the Skype-based captioning is surprisingly accurate, fast, and very convenient. It particularly excels with fast speech and simply does not fall behind, so you will no longer need to ask your callers to slow down. Of course it will not be error-free, and you might still need to remind some people to speak clearly, but this is true of the legacy captioning phone systems too.
We have compared Skype-based captioning with Google’s voice-to-text (which is renowned for its accuracy, thanks also to context-sensitive captioning). They are comparable. The accuracy depends much more on the accoustics (such as background noise from trucks, if you leave the window open and you live on a busy road) and on the person speaking, than on the choice of captioning platform.
We didn’t trust our own judgement, so we asked some trusted individuals (who are hard of hearing or whose families are hard of hearing) who have long experience with other systems. They told us that our captioning system was faster, more accurate, and didn’t contain any spelling errors. It’s not perfect but we’re constantly improving it.
So on that basis, we believe that Skype-based captioning (and therefore the Konnekt Captioning Videophone) is the best phone replacement available. It’s fast, accurate, and a huge benefit to anyone with severe or profound hearing impairment.
And it’s private. No humans listening.
Languages
The Konnekt Captioning Phone / Videophone supports captioning in English by default.
If your first language is not English, or if you want to have phone calls or video calls with someone who speaks another language, don’t worry: The Konnekt can do captions in over 40 languages, such as German, Spanish, French, Italian, Japanese, Portugese, Russian, Chinese, Greek and more. Ask us about your language requirement.
So, the person who is speaking to you can speak in their/your first language.
This is something new, that is not supported by operator-based captioning services.
You’ll finally be able to talk to those overseas relatives, or local friends, in your favourite language!
Partial and full deafness
- Extra loud: Two large internal speakers. Much bigger than iPad/tablet laptop speakers. Adjustable volume and microphone levels.
- Super loud: Optional powered external speaker.
- Hearing-aids, cochlear implants: Compatible. No squeals. Audio output via USB, Bluetooth, or 3.5mm sound socket, for a hearing-aid amplifier / processor / streaming device, or for most headphones.
- Remote alert: Videophone can buzz or flash an optional remote alert device, when someone calls in.
- Sign language: Supports gestures and two-way sign language via video calling to anyone who uses Skype.
- Lip reading: High-quality video supports reading of lips, facial expressions, body language. Know when it’s your turn to talk.
- Screen-sharing: Your Skype contacts can share their screen to your Videophone. Photos, text, browser, social media. Anything.
- Automatic captions: No human involved. Privacy. Low delay.
Low vision
For those with blindness or poor eyesight:
- High-contrast colours: Ask for our colour scheme #4
- Huge screen: 15 inches (2 to 4 times the area of a tablet; even bigger than the $1,700 12.9-inch iPad)
- Big buttons: Up to 6 inches wide, large text over 200-point
- Wireless access button option: Make and answer calls without using the touchscreen
- Wide frame: Room for textured or Braille stickers
- Auto-answer option: Zero-touch, for incoming calls from only the trusted callers that you nominate
Mobility / dexterity limitations
For those with shaky hands and those who are chair-bound, bed-ridden, or simply slow to move:
- Wireless access button option: Make and answer calls without using the touchscreen
- Ability mouse: Works with mouse-compatible pointing devices (joysticks, joy-pads, head-mouse, foot-mouse)
- Resistive touchscreen: Works with gloved hand, prosthetic, telescopic wand, anything
- VESA-100: Use any monitor arm or TV bracket for mounting to wall, ceiling, desk, chair or bed*
- Auto-answer option: But only for incoming calls from trusted callers that you nominate
Dementia / learning difficulties
For those with memory loss, dementia, acquired brain injury or a mental impairment:
- Easy to use: Konnekt won Best Consumer Friendly Product at ITAC.
- Nothing to learn: There’s nothing to learn or remember.
- Personalised: Konnekt sets it all up for you and customises the screen.
- Zero set-up: Un-box and plug into a power outlet. It connects to Internet automatically.
- Automatic captions: Captions start automatically on all calls. No buttons to press.
- Languages: Some people who live with dementia revert to their first language. Videophone can caption in other languages.
- Changes service: We do changes for you, such as adding a call button for a new friend, without anyone needing to visit.
For All Ages, All Abilities
- Young: From 4, for those who read facial expressions.
- Children, Teens: For anyone who can read or sign.
- Adults: At home, in the workplace, working from home.
- Independent: Our oldest user is 104.
- Care Homes: Virtual visits are the best gift.
- Telehealth: Read about Tele-Audiology procedures
ATSA Seminar
- Konnekt Captioning Videophone and Lip Reading
- Medical Research and Case Studies
- Alternative Captioning Phones
- When to Recommend
Captioning Videophone – As Seen on TV
More about Captioning Videophone
Government funding and assistive technologies
The Konnekt Captioning Videophone is a type of Assistive Technology knowns as a Communication Aid. If you have deafness or are hard of hearing, you may qualify for government funding.
- Australian residents: Learn about Australian government funding options.
- United States residents: Learn about US government funding options.
- For Canada, United Kingdom, Europe, Asia, Japan, New Zealand: Contact your local Audiologist, your government disability authority, or your hearing impairment / deafness industry association. Alternatively, contact your local Konnekt sales/support partner.
A captioning video phone can help increase connection with the community, reduce social isolation, improve safety in the home, take care of daily activities, increase employment opportunities, get assistance when you need it, and enable you to communicate effectively with family and friends, colleagues, care providers and medical professionals.
Video calls are better than audio-only calls. Especially for those with a hearing impairment.
- Non-verbal communications: Read lips. Interpret facial expressions. Body language. Use sign language. Use AUSLAN video relay. Show flash cards.
- Greater safety: Trusted family or care-givers can check-in, visually, with selective-caller auto-answer — but only for the callers that you nominate.
This has helped to save a person’s life. - Reduced social isolation: Social isolation and loneliness are linked to poor sleep, mood, and a range of wellness problems. As a health risk, social isolation is worse than smoking or obesity. Learn more about social isolation or view our ATSA conference presentation that we delivered in Queensland. Or read about a medical study, Using Skype to Beat the Blues, led by Dr Alan Teo, a Professor at the Oregon Health and Science University.
- Improved cognitive function: A study published in a 2015 medical journal showed that increased social engagement via video calling actually improved cognitive function. The study ran for just 6 weeks, and involved 30 minutes of daily face-to-face conversation using video calling. The results were so positive that two 5-year follow-on studies were funded by the National Health Institute, to quantify the long-term benefits, for those with Alzheimer’s Disease or other forms of dementia, as well as those without dementia (but who may be at risk). The study authors suggested in their research paper that video calling could be used in the prevention and intervention/treatment of dementia. Read the detailed medical research paper by Dr Dodge and team, or learn how to help prevent dementia.
To use the Konnekt Captioning Videophone:
- No phone connection required: You do not need an active phone service. The Videophone makes and receives both video calls and regular phone calls using the Internet. Best of all, this means you can use your Konnekt phone anywhere in the home or office that there is Wi-Fi. You are no longer constrained to place your phone in the room that has a phone socket.
- Save on your existing services: Some of our Konnekt Videophone users cancel their landline telephone service or their mobile phone service. Others downgrade their phone plan to a cheaper plan that doesn’t include unlimited phone calls (for example). Because all or most calls are made from the Videophone, you can save on your call costs.
- Requires Internet: The Videophone needs to be connected to the Internet. It uses the Internet for video calls, regular phone calls, and captioning. Konnekt can recommend an Internet service. In some countries including Australia, we can provide Konnekt-managed Internet service.
- Any type of Internet is OK: You can use any type of Internet connection, including fixed, cable, optical, ADSL, satellite, or cellular mobile Internet.
- It works with NBN: If you use NBN: Make sure your plan is not just a voice service. Make sure it includes data.
- Uses only a little Internet data: The Videophone uses hardly any Internet data, even for video calling. About 85% of our users use less than 5GB per month of data. Those who only use their Videophone for regular (non-video) phone calls use even less data — typically less than 1 or 2 GB per month.
- Wi-Fi or wired: Videophone connects to your modem/router either via Wi-Fi or using a standard network cable (sometimes called an Ethernet LAN cable or CAT-6 cable).
- Wi-Fi auto-connect: Your Videophone can be pre-configured to connect automatically via Wi-Fi to your existing modem/router or Wi-Fi access point. Simply send us your Wi-Fi details before delivery. Or you can configure it yourself easily using our Quick Start Guide.
You can order a Konnekt Captioning Videophone from your local Konnekt sales partner. Depending on which country you are in, you may be able to buy it, rent or rent-buy it, or trial it for 30 days.
The Konnekt Captioning Phone / Videophone costs less than an iPad. It includes personalization of all contacts and preferences. Includes delivery. Optional powered external speaker.
The monthly service covers unlimited video calls. In most countries: Unlimited calls to landline phones (and to mobile phone numbers depending on your plan). Unlimited calls to your Contacts’ mobile phones that are running the Skype app. In most countries: A phone number that people can call you on, from any phone, anywhere in the world. IT Support. Software updates, done silently, overnight, unattended. Additions/changes to all contacts and preferences, done by us, without anyone needing to visit.
Please call or use this form for the latest pricing and specials.
Optional Extras
- USB Handset: Hold a traditional handset to your mouth and ear. Otherwise, the Konnekt works exceptionally well hands-free.
- Remote alert device: Flashes or vibrates so that you are alerted to incoming calls while you’re in another room.
- Mounting options: Contact us regarding brackets and monitor arms.
- Wireless access button: Answer calls, and make calls to key Contacts, from a chair or bed, without using the touchscreen.
- UPS: Uninterruptable power supply. Keeps your Konnekt appliance and (for example) a cellular mobile Internet modem running, on battery power, during a power outage. Vital for those in remote or rural areas who need access to health or emergency services.
About Konnekt
- Established 2013: Konnekt is a fully Australian company, with offices in the south-east of Melbourne.
- Global sales: Konnekt develops and sells the Konnekt Videophone and Captioning Videophone worldwide via sales and support partners worldwide including Australia, North America, UK, Europe, New Zealand and Africa.
- Konnekt won the award Best Consumer Friendly Product at the ITAC conference.
- Invited to speak: Konnekt was invited to speak and presented at the ATSA seminar to an audience largely of Occupational Therapists. We delivered the results of medical research into social isolation, and the huge benefits of face-to-face conversation via video calling.
- AACTC: John Nakulski, Co-Founder of Konnekt, was nominated Assistant Investigator of the AACTC (an Aged Care Technologies Collaborative) in October 2019. AACTC was established at the Menzies Health Institute. AACTC is charged with identifying gaps in Assistive Technologies, and making recommendations for medical research studies.
Want to know more? Read the Konnekt founders story.
How to contact a real person at Konnekt
Phone, Skype or email: Just visit our Contact page for Konnekt or your local sales and support partner. To email us, fill in our contact form.
Text chat: When we’re available online, you’ll see a blue talking-bubble at the bottom-right of any page of our website.
Click here for Frequently Asked Questions about the Konnekt Captioning Videophone.
Konnekt-Bellman Home Alerting System
Reduce your missed calls! Videophone now works with the Bellman remote alert system.
Fire, urgent calls, unexpected visitors
Can you afford the risk? Hear, see or feel alerts. Feel safer in the home.
Extend your Bellman system with smoke alarms, a video doorbell or long-range doorbell, a baby monitor and more.
Purchase from Konnekt to ensure correct configuration and receive on-going support.
Who uses the Konnekt Captioning Videophone
We recommend Captioning Videophone if you are either:
- not ready for hearing aids or Cochlear implants;
- despite hearing aids / implants, captions or lip-reading would help you on the phone;
- forget, lose, or no longer wear hearing aids;
- are at risk of social isolation; or
- would like captioned tele-audiology, with or without video.
The Konnekt Captioning Videophone is suitable for all levels of hearing including:
- partial deafness or complete deafness,
- profound hearing impairment,
- severe hearing impairment,
- mild to moderate hearing impairment.
The Konnekt phone is suitable for all types of hearing loss including:
- conductive hearing loss,
- sensorineural hearing loss,
- mixed hearing loss.
It is also used by people who have:
- tinnitus,
- ruptured ear drums,
- ear diseases.
Registered Communication Aid
The Konnekt Captioning Videophone is also sometimes classed as a communication aid for impaired hearing, a speech to text phone, a communication device for Deaf or deafness, a hearing impaired phone, or a phone for deaf people.
It is the ideal replacement for transcribing apps, talk to text apps, a TTY phone, teletypewriter phone, or other legacy caption calling phones.
This has made a huge difference for hard of hearing people, very easy to use for making and receiving calls. Very helpful staff who have solved any issues straight away.
I've had my Konnekt video phone now for almost two months. My hearing is less than 3% in one ear and doesn'rt exist in the other, so using a normal phone is impossible for me. With a super powerful hearing aid in my only working ear I can just understand voices I'm familiar with, sometimes, with a lot of concentration.I have had the NRS available for over two years but preferred not to use it unless it was an emergenycy: don't like the idea of going through a third person, especially with confidentiasl information.As a result, I was cut off from most people except thgose I met in person. Even then I often have to use a transceibingh program to understand them.Since I have my Konnekt video phone, things have changed dramatically. I can nowe use the phone almost exactly as I used to before going profoundly deaf. The captioning appears tyo be instanteousl and accurate - only some odd place names it has problems with. It even censors bad language insereting astereicks for the said word. (Smart people can work ou whaty was being said as usually it starts to show and the number of asterisks is the number of letters in the word.)I extremely happy with and it learns regular callers speech quite well. I have the loud base boosted speaker which makes it easily heard in other rooms and outside and talking on the phone. The captoioning is almost completely in sync with the audio so it makes it very easy to understand, even without the video. I have only had one bideo call to date, as I get by perfectly well wityh just audio/captioning, even when ringing numbers for busineeses and going through the menu options; the dial pad stays on the screen all the time, which is excellernt.The buttons are large enough to see without buttons, even when the entire 40 possible are used: the more people you put intop the speedd dial, the smaller the buttons get.Konnekt peopple are extremely helpful and guide you through the entire process of setting up your phone for you. It comes with all your presets numbers and you just plug it in and either connect to your computer by WiFi, cable, or it can come with its own WiFi router.Despite having a computer network I chose the later, because it gives me more options. If I go on holidays or have to be away from my residence for a while, I can take the phone and the WiFi router woth me.The phone itself id large and has a stand or it can be mounted on a wall or such. I have it mounted over my work desk as there was no room on the desk.All maintenance is did automatrically over night, so you have nothing to do. (if you are a tech wizard like myself then you can do entries, etc. and change WiFi networks, but the normal uyser doesn't need to do this as Konnekt doers it all for you, including any upgrades of the software.To me its more important than my computers, as I can speak directly to people instead opf having to rely on e-mails being replied to.I do have the handset as well, but for most calls I use the external speaker, but it does enable private calls (at least what is being said to be can't br heard.)9.9 out of 10.
My Dad is turning 102 this October. He is almost totally deaf. The text to talk and live video help him to translate and lip read. Absolutely 💯 recommend this for hard of hearing and the elderly. s Simone Knight
The Konnekt videophone is great!Easy to use,provides a visual calming to users where you can see loveones directly.Set up support is great. Phone can be dimmed at night not to keep you awake.One touch feature reduces complexity for users.
Absolutely brilliant. I can now visually check in with dad. He loves reading captions and being able to have longer conversations. I wish we had done earlier. Easy process to set up.
KONNEKT offer excellent customer support the whole way through. The phone helps me connect on a much more personal level with my father who is interstate, and is an important assistive device allowing him to easily make contact when he has fallen. I would highly recommended.
We have used a Konnekt for my wife’s mother here in Australia for the last three years. We started with it when she was still living in her home and kept it when she moved into residential care. It was so easy for her to use and with the automatic answering feature we are still able to communicate with her as her dementia has progressed. It was a God send during Covid.We have now ordered a second one for my father in the USA!In both cases family members have been extremely pleased with the ease of use.The tech service in both Australia and the USA has been excellent. They are very good with elderly people.
Konnekt have been amazing supporting and helping us through the process of getting the Captioning Phone for my 94 year old mother.Now she has the phone she can talk to whom ever she wishes via video phone Captioning appearing on the phone.Sound quality is absolutely perfect for her. She has a rather severe hearing impairment.I cannot believe how quickly she has embraced and uses her new system.She is calling people several times a day.Gives her great confidence when speaking to people as now she can read what they are saying.And amazing development by Australian small business.Recommend the Captioning Phone.
OMG this system is brilliant. So easy for my 86yr Mother to use.So easy for me to get my message across because she is severely hearing impaired. The captions help mum to understand us. when im out walking i can call mum and show her what i see. So i get to share with her immediately the moment. When the dreaded Covid struck, it was so easy for the nursing staff at my dads nursing home contact us, and put the trolley in front of dad and we could chat. so much better that waiting for the IPad to be come available. Easy for nursing staff to see who was on dads list and ask who he wanted to chat to. With the Automatic answer , it was wonderful to catch mum snoozing in her recliner and check she was ok. I think every Nursing home should have one for every resident. thank you Konnekt. with much thanks, xo deb Murray and Family
Thank you to John and all the supportive staff at Konnekt. What an amazing service and an amazing product. It enabled us to stay in touch with our father and enabled him to have a better a quality of life because of this. Thank you again, will always be so very appreciative of the special moments that we were able to have because of this service. Kind regards Tina and family
I would like to say that the Konnekt device was wonderful for my Mum, the Staff at the Aged Care Home, and the family. Mum had Dementia but Nursing staff could easily call a family member to help settle Mum as required. It enabled us to comunicate and this extended to the end when Mum was unable to answer the Konnekt but family could call in to see if Mum was sleeping or wandering around. If she was wandering, I could go up and spend time with her while she was awake which I now cherish. She had many falls so this extra time with her when she was wandering also meant that she had extra one-to-one attention which could have avoided a tragedy such as a broken hip from a fall. Now, in hindsight after Mum has passed, I can't help but feel the Konnekt device was instrumental in ensuring Mum did not suffer as much as she might have and was able to pass peacefully into God's care, as she would have wanted to.
Startling. The system was in place 4 days and my mother connected with her granddaughter and spoke with her great grandsons - and I wasn't there. Thank you Konnekt, it is as easy to use as you promote.
Thanks again to you and all the team for the blessing that Konnekt has been to us. I even got to see Mum and say goodbye via the videophone the day before she died, even though she was barely conscious in Canberra, and I was here on the Sunshine Coast. There was no way I could have got there in person in time as she went so quickly at the end. She was 95.
Alzheimers makes it so difficult for reliabkle remote connection. The Konnekt service was a Godsend for my mum. It was the only reliable communication method for years.
I inquired about this two weeks ago. Within a week, it was delivered to my home. Just connect to power and telephone line, and ready to go. Already programmed with my favorite 10 numbers. I would recommend Konnekt to every person like me who has a hearing problem.
Konnect was so easy to set up. We had support the whole way and it is a gamechanger for my grandma.
Fantastic system that allows our family to stay in contact even though we live in different states. Dad has dementia & is no longer able to navigate a mobile phone but he is able to use this with ease. Great invention
This Company has been great to deal with and my 85 year old Dad just loves his new videophone!It's such a great way for us all to keep in touch and see our loved ones.Everything is simplified and so user friendly for the hearing and sight impaired and those with cognition/memory issues.I've been telling everyone about this system!Thank you Konnekt!
I am a Health professional, and have an elderly Mother with severe hearing impairment. Mum thinks the phone is wonderful, as it has given her back some independence. For example if she needed to make an appointment over the phone , she would need me to do it for her , due to her hearing impairment. Now, she can communicate effectively with the person on the other end of the call and arrange appointments that suit her time frame. The phone has also assisted her to feel more connected as she can ring and talk to friends, whom she cannot visit due to distance.From a safety view point , I now feel my Mother would be able to dial 000 in an emergency, and successfully speak to and instruct the operator , if my elderly Father became acutely unwell and needed urgent medical care.I found organising the phone and the Customer service at Konnekt, to be excellent and have no hesitation in promoting this company and product.
Custome Service and hardware is 10/10. Right from my first contact Daniel, Karl, Tracy have all be exceptional with their response and clear instructions on how to set up and operate. We finally don't have to scream for our Mum to be able to talk with us on the phone - what a win!!
I was looking for a mobile phone for my mum as she has dementia. I found Konnekt. From the very start I had amazing communication. The help to get my mother connected in NZ, with no wifi, I had roadblocks after roadblock. The patience that all the staff at KONNEKT trying to connect was so worth it and absolutely 👍 amazing 🤩.My mum was isolated from her loved 🥰 ones because she couldn’t remember numbers, screen to small, couldn’t hear. This is the perfect phone ☎️ for SENIORS. The smile on my mothers face now is PRICELESS. Her persona has picked up, she’s all excited to chat, we giggle like little school girls. Mum LOVES what KONNEKT did for her to connect her family, without all the hassles of the internet connection. KONNEKT did it all. Thank you John, Natalie, Karl, Daniel, John and everyone else who HELPED.BEST GIFT 🎁 EVER.I am sooo excited and very very HAPPY and GRATEFUL to KONNEKT. I will send you customers. FOREVER GRATEFUL 🙏❤️Robyn R.
A great system for my parents to see all their children and grandchildren and talk to them. Such an easy system to use. Well done Konnekt!
The konnekt caption phone is amazing & so easy to use. It makes such a difference to someone who's only connection to the outside world can sometimes be only via the phone.
Many thanks to John, Karl and the team. My mum has severe hearing loss and the Captioning Videophone has been a life saver. Without it she simply would not be able to communicate with the outside world. It works reliably, is simple to use and the support provided by Konnekt has been first class.
For the last six months or so we have been using a Konnekt video phone to talk to Mum. She is in her mid nineties, with mobility issues and a hearing impairment.The device has been absolutely brilliant. Mum can see faces, and so see expressions and lip movements, and also read the captions as needed. And the family can see her! In many ways it is easier for her to communicate using the Konnekt than it is to talk to someone in the room with her.Moreover, the service provided by Konnekt staff has been exceptional. They are immediately available throughout the same service that the device uses. They have talked us through technical issues, customise the interface for our needs, and provided advice on placing the device in the best location.Konnekt enabled us to take advantage of the Telstra scheme making the device very affordable.The Konnekt is easy to use - Mum calls us regularly - it has made a quite substantial improvement in connecting Mum to her family.Highly recommended.
The Konnekt Videophone has been an invaluable addition to our daily routine, providing a lifeline to my 85 year old grandma's well-being. With the ability to visually connect with her every morning, we ensured she took her pills and checked in on her health. The peace of mind this device brought is beyond measure. Moreover, the Konnekt team's exceptional support promptly addressed any issues we encountered. A heartfelt 5/5 for the outstanding service that has truly made a difference for our family.
My father is konnekted to the World again.. What a change it makes to be able to communicated with him
Organised the Konnekt Videophone for my Grandmother as it has became difficult to have phone conversations. It has Improved her quality of life as well as ours. The staff at Konnekt are extremely helpful and personalise the Videophone such a wonderful gift.
This has made the world of difference to my 96 year old aunt with hearing difficulties still living at home. I was worried about introducing new technology at her age but with a little encouragement and help she is now confident to ring her contacts and have some better conversations with the captioning and Skype video calls.It has kept her in touch with family.Great service and staff to help with set up.
My mother loves her new phone. She wears a cochlear implant and has been deaf from birth. Now thanks to her new phone she can make her own appointments, at doctors, dentists and other medical offices. She loves the weekly catch-up with family as she can now see them when she speaks to them.The team at Konnekt were brilliant in setting up the phone, by rushing to have it delivered, and working on a Saturday on a long week so that I could travel to help mum setup.Sometime the teletext is a little off in getting some words correct but that just adds ti the fun. Well done. Great invention and no outlay cost, so anyone can afford it.
I organised the Konnekt video captioning phone for my Aunt-in-law who is 94 years old! She has been mostly deaf for the last year, however suddenly had complete hearing loss and her inability to socialise by any means other than writing isolated her greatly and impacted her mental well being. She reluctantly agreed to hearing aids and we were recommended to Konnekt services to try and resolve the phone issue.We did doubt her ability to adapt to these new devices as is very technically challenged and resistant, however to our utmost surprise and joy she has taken to both, and the Konnekt video captioning phone has made a massive difference to her, now being able to communicate with her small family and social circle again. She has got the hang of it reasonably quickly and is making calls everyday. So nice to see her face light up when she sees us, and also to watch her reading the captioning when not quite catching the words. Brilliant!The Konnekt team are absolutely amazing. They have responded so quickly to the whole process from start to finish and ongoing with any queries or changes we need.I would 100% recommend this product and company.
