Ping

Getting Started

What is Ping?

Ping is a daily check-in app for people who live alone — and the people who care about them. Each day, you tap once to share how you're feeling. Friends and family see it instantly. If you miss your window, Ping reminds you, then quietly lets your emergency contact know. The default is daily warmth; the safety net only activates when needed.

What do I need to use Ping?

• An iPhone running iOS 17 or later
• An iCloud account, signed in on the device (for friend sync)
• The Ping app, free from the App Store (coming soon)

Who is Ping for?

Anyone who lives alone or is far from the people they love — students, young professionals in another city, parents whose children moved out, solo travelers, people managing chronic illness. Ping also works between any two people who want a lighter way to stay connected (long-distance friendships, parents and adult children, couples who travel for work).

How do I set up Ping?

1. Open Ping for the first time and enter your name and pick an emoji avatar.
2. Set your check-in window — for example, 7am to noon, weekdays only.
3. Add at least one emergency contact (someone Ping can notify if you miss your window for an extended time).
4. Allow notifications when prompted — the safety net depends on them.
5. Invite a friend or family member to share check-ins with you (or just check in for yourself).

Daily Check-In

How do I check in?

There are three ways:

1. Open the app — tap the big "Ping" button on the home screen, pick a mood emoji, and you're done.
2. Home Screen Widget — tap the mood emoji directly on the widget. No need to unlock or open the app (iOS 17 and later).
3. Apple Watch (Pro) — raise your wrist, tap the complication, pick a mood. Done.

How do I pick a mood?

Choose from seven mood emojis: 😊 great, 😌 calm, 😐 neutral, 😔 down, 😴 tired, 🥳 excited, 🤒 unwell. Pick the one closest to how you feel — there's no right answer.

Can I add a photo or note?

Yes, but they're optional. After picking a mood, you can attach a photo (a sunrise, a coffee, your cat) and/or a short note. Most check-ins take less than three seconds. The longest you'd ever want to spend is about ten.

What if I want to skip today?

Open Settings → Skip today (Pro feature). The safety net will not escalate for the day you skip. You can use this when you're traveling, in the hospital, or simply having a day when you don't want to check in.

What if I miss my window by accident?

Don't panic. The safety net escalates gently:

• At your window's end → soft reminder: "Today's Ping is waiting."
• 30 minutes later → second reminder, only to you.
• 30 minutes after that → your emergency contact gets a gentle "you may want to check on them" notification — not an alarm.

If your contact reaches out and you're fine, just tap "false alarm" in the app and they'll see "all good."

Friends & Sharing

How do I add a friend?

1. Open Friends → tap + in the top right.
2. Choose Invite via iCloud.
3. Send the share link (Messages, Mail, AirDrop — any way that reaches them).
4. Once they accept, you'll see each other's daily check-ins immediately.

How does iCloud sharing work?

Ping uses CloudKit Shared Zones (CKShare). Your check-ins are written into a zone in your own iCloud account, and friends are given read access through Apple's standard sharing system. Smart Kiitös never sees this data — it travels directly between your iCloud and your friends' devices, encrypted in transit by Apple's defaults.

Why don't I see a friend's check-in?

• Make sure both of you are signed into iCloud on your devices.
• Check that they actually checked in today (use the friend status board).
• Pull down on the home screen to refresh.
• If iCloud is having trouble syncing, give it a few minutes — CKShare can lag during heavy load.

How do I remove a friend?

Long-press the friend's card → tap Remove. They lose access to your future check-ins immediately. Their device may keep local copies of past check-ins until they delete the app.

Nudge & Warmth Streaks

What is a nudge?

A nudge is a single, gentle "I saw you" — no typing, no thread, no reply expected. When you tap nudge on a friend's card, their device receives a soft haptic and a short notification: "[Your name] nudged you 👋".

Each person can nudge each friend once per day. That's intentional — it keeps nudges meaningful instead of noisy.

What is a warmth streak?

The number of days you and a friend have both checked in. Streaks visibly heat up over time — from cool blue at the start to warm orange around 30 days, to a flame around 100 days, to incandescent at 365.

What happens at milestones?

At 7, 30, 100, 200, and 365 days you both unlock a small badge. There are no notifications for everyone in your friend list — just a quiet acknowledgement between you and that one person.

Safety Net

How do I set up emergency contacts?

1. Settings → Emergency contacts → Add.
2. Enter their name, phone number, and your relationship.
3. Choose how long after a missed window they should be notified (default: 60 minutes).

Free users have 1 emergency contact. Pro users can have up to 5.

What does the escalation timeline look like?

• End of window — first reminder to you.
• +30 minutes — second reminder, still only to you.
• +60 minutes (or your custom timing) — your emergency contact gets a notification.
• Your emergency contact's notification has a one-tap action to call you.

How do I avoid false alarms?

• Set your check-in window honestly — don't make it tighter than your real schedule.
• Use Skip today (Pro) when traveling, in surgery, on retreat, etc.
• Use Quiet weekends (Pro) if you only want weekday check-ins.
• If a false alarm does happen, tap "False alarm" in the app and your contact sees the all-clear immediately.

Is Ping a substitute for emergency services?

Widgets & Notifications

How do I add the Ping Widget?

1. Long-press your Home Screen.
2. Tap the + in the top left.
3. Search for Ping.
4. Choose Small (your check-in only) or Medium (your check-in plus up to four friends).

Can I check in from the widget?

How do I control notifications?

Settings → Notifications. You can independently toggle:

• Daily reminder — at the start of your window.
• Friend check-ins — when a friend pings (default off).
• Nudges — when someone nudges you.
• Safety reminders — when you're approaching the end of your window.

Make sure iOS notifications are also enabled: Settings → Notifications → Ping → Allow Notifications.

Subscription & Pro

What's free?

• Daily check-in with mood emoji
• Up to 3 friends
• 1 emergency contact
• Nudge and warmth streak (basic)
• Home Screen Widget
• 7-day check-in history

What's in Ping Pro?

• Unlimited friends
• Up to 5 emergency contacts
• Full check-in history with mood trends
• Custom widget themes
• Skip-today and quiet-weekend modes
• Apple Watch quick-ping
• Family plan covering up to 5 people on a single subscription

How do I cancel my subscription?

1. Open iOS Settings → tap your name at the top.
2. Tap Subscriptions.
3. Find Ping and tap Cancel Subscription.

You keep Pro features until the end of the current billing period.

Privacy & Data

Where does my data live?

On your iPhone (in SwiftData), and in your own iCloud (for sync with friends). Smart Kiitös does not run a server that stores your check-ins. See the full Privacy Policy for details.

How do I delete my data?

• Local data: delete the Ping app from your iPhone.
• iCloud data: Settings → [Your Apple ID] → iCloud → Manage Storage → Ping → delete.
• Past shared check-ins: ask each friend to delete the app or remove the share. We cannot reach into another user's iCloud on your behalf.

How do I report abusive behavior?

Long-press the friend's card → Report. Pick a reason. Your default Mail app opens with a prefilled message to our support team. The report does not include the friend's name or your check-in content — only opaque CloudKit record IDs and your reason. We respond within 24 hours.