Guide

How to turn a spare tablet into a family wall calendar

Updated 14 November 2026 · 3 min read

An old iPad or Android tablet in a drawer can become the most useful screen in the house: a family calendar on the kitchen wall that everyone can read at a glance. Here’s what you need, where to put it, how to set it up so it stays on, and what a good family display should show.

What you need

• A tablet: an older iPad or Android tablet is fine. Around 8 inches or larger is easiest to read from across a room.
• A stand or wall mount. A simple bench stand works; a wall mount keeps it out of the way of spills.
• A charger and a cable long enough to reach a power point, because it will be plugged in all the time.
• Home Wi-Fi, so it stays up to date when plans change.
• An app or website that shows your family calendar in a big, always-on view.

No tablet? An old laptop or a spare monitor with a browser can do the same job.

Pick the right spot

Put it where the family passes several times a day: the kitchen bench, beside the fridge, or near the door you leave by in the morning. Mount it low enough for the kids to read, keep it away from the sink and stovetop, and avoid direct sun, which causes glare and heat.

Set the tablet up as a display

1. Update the tablet and remove apps you won’t use on it, so there are fewer pop-ups.
2. Turn off notifications from other apps, so messages and games don’t appear on the kitchen wall.
3. Use an app that keeps the screen awake, or change the auto-lock setting so the screen doesn’t switch off.
4. Check the tablet’s battery settings. Many tablets have an option to protect the battery when they’re plugged in for long periods.
5. To keep little fingers in one app, use Guided Access on an iPad or app pinning on Android.
6. Dim the screen at night so it doesn’t light up the kitchen.

What a good family wall calendar shows

• A big clock and today’s date.
• What’s on now and what’s next, with who it’s for.
• The next few days, so Thursday’s excursion doesn’t sneak up on anyone.
• A colour for each person, so kids can find their own activities.
• Reminders that are hard to miss, ideally spoken out loud.
• Kids’ chores, if you use them, so they can tick them off themselves.

How HomeHum’s kitchen display works

HomeHum has a kitchen display built in. Install HomeHum on the tablet (or open it in the tablet’s web browser), sign in as an adult in your family, then go to Settings and tap Start kitchen display.

• A big clock, what’s on now and next, and what’s coming up, with a Today layout and a Week layout showing the next four days.
• The screen stays on and dims overnight. Brightness, sound and vibration can be set for each tablet.
• Reminders appear full screen and are read out loud, and there’s a spoken morning briefing.
• Shift rosters show as day and night banners, and the kids’ chore board can sit beside today’s plan.
• When nobody has touched it for a while, it can show a calm weather scene for your suburb.
• It works upright or sideways on a stand, and changes made on any phone appear straight away.

Want reminders on a Google Home or Nest speaker as well? That needs a small helper app running on a computer at home.