Can I send photos in Kid Pickup’s chat?

Yes, from 2.1. Tap the camera beside the message box in the family chat, a pickup’s chat or a private conversation. Only the people in that chat see it.

How do I stop Grandma getting every notification?

From 2.1, grandparents, nannies and sitters hear about their own pickups and the ones that need someone, not every pickup in the family. Each can change it under Settings → Choose Notifications: Only mine, Mine and when someone’s needed, or Everything.

Is Kid Pickup 2.2 free?

Yes. It’s a free update on the App Store for everyone who has Kid Pickup.

What’s New in Kid Pickup 2.1 and 2.2: Photos in Chat

Q: What’s new in Kid Pickup 2.1 and 2.2?

Photos in every chat, photos full screen on Home with pinch to zoom, updates that show which kids and which activity they’re about, events and reminders with no child, fewer notifications for grandparents and sitters, a work roster read from pasted text or a PDF, and Redeem a code on the plans screen. On a computer, Week view drag and keyboard shortcuts.

Quick answer: Kid Pickup 2.1 and 2.2 are free iPhone updates, out since November 2 and November 8. You can send photos in any chat, tap a photo on Home to see it full screen, and add an event with no child for your own appointments. Grandparents and sitters now hear only about their own pickups and the ones that need someone, and can change that. Offer codes can be redeemed on the plans screen.

Kid Pickup 2.1 came out on November 2 and 2.2 on November 8, both free updates for everyone on iPhone. Neither is as big as 2.0, but between them they fix something grandparents told us about (too many notifications), put photos in chat, and let the calendar hold appointments that aren't about the kids.

Here's what changed.

Photos in chat

Tap the camera beside the message box to send a photo: in the family chat, in a pickup's own chat, or in a private conversation. Take one or choose one from your library, and add a few words if you like.

Only the people in that chat see it. The photo in the family chat goes to the family; the one you send Grandma privately goes to Grandma. Tap any photo to open it full screen.

Fewer notifications for helpers

Until 2.1, a grandparent or a sitter heard about every pickup they could see: who took Tuesday, what moved on Thursday, who arrived where. For someone who helps once a week, that was a lot of buzzing about other people's afternoons.

Now grandparents, nannies and sitters hear about their own pickups, the ones they were asked to do, and the ones nobody has yet, so they can still say "I'll do it" from the notification. Everything else stays in the app, where they can look whenever they like.

Anyone who wants it different can change it under Settings → Choose Notifications, at the top: Only mine, Mine, and when someone's needed, or Everything. Parents and guardians aren't affected and still hear about everything.

Photos full screen on Home

Tap a photo in a post on Home and it opens full screen. Swipe to see the post's other photos, and pinch to zoom on an iPhone.

Updates say who and what they're about

An update about a pickup on Home now shows, above what happened, the kids it's for and the activity: their avatars and ⚽ Soccer, say. When the feed is busy, you can see at a glance which updates are about your kid.

Events that aren't about the kids

Not everything on a family calendar involves a child. An event, an activity or a reminder with no ride no longer needs one, so your own dentist appointment, a parent-teacher meeting or the day the car goes in for service can go on the family calendar too. A pickup or drop-off still needs a child, since somebody is collecting someone.

Reading a roster

Settings → Work Schedule → Read your roster takes pasted text or a PDF. Copy the roster's text and paste it, or choose the PDF, and check the hours it found before you save.

Offer codes

If we've sent you a code for free time, open Settings → Manage Subscription and tap Redeem a code at the bottom. Apple's own sheet opens to type it in. 2.2.1 moved those last links clear of the tab bar, where they had been hiding when the plans screen was opened from Settings.

On your computer

At app.kidpickup.com you can now drag a pickup onto another day in the Week view, as well as the Day and Month views, and the calendar scrolls when you drag near its edge. Press ? for keyboard shortcuts: N for a new event, / to search, T for today, the arrow keys to move through the calendar, and D, W or M to switch view.

Getting it

Open the App Store, tap your profile picture, and find Kid Pickup under available updates. Everyone in the family updates on their own phone, in their own time.

If you're new here: Kid Pickup is a shared calendar for the people who get your kids where they need to be. Every pickup gets a name, and grandparents and sitters say "I'll do it" with one tap. One subscription covers your whole circle, and grandparents and sitters never pay.

The update before these, 2.0, brought in Google Calendar, a Home Screen widget, Who's free? and the browser version. All of that is still here.