Mission Required Tablet

I recently had a sister from my ward receive her call to a mission in the United States. In the paperwork from the mission, it asked that they bring with them an Android tablet device.

Our missionaries currently have the Ipad mini's provided by the Church and I had not heard of missions requiring Android tablets be brought. Has anyone heard about this or if the Church is shifting away from providing Ipad mini's that are locked down and asking missionaries to bring their own? Seems odd, but I just wanted to see if this was a new direction the missions were heading.

Thanks!

Out of curiosity, where will she be serving her mission? I'd imagine that in some parts of the world, an Apple device would either face a high import duty or be highly coveted - posing a danger to missionaries. So I could see some missions "breaking away" and going for a less expensive device.

I remember an article from not too long ago that in China, Apple beat out other name brands like Chanel, Louis Vuitton or Hermes as a "status" brand. In that situation, I could see a iPad becoming a real distraction when dealing with people.

Make the mission provide the device for her if they want her to have it so bad. Good grief, what do these missions presidents think, that every member has that kind of money laying around or within easy reach/earning to be able to purchase such devices!? I sure hope that it was a misread somewhere and that they are not expecting the kids to come to the missions with these things. We got by just fine without them on our missions of the past, the new missionaries can do the same.

RyanGard1977 wrote:I sure hope that it was a misread somewhere and that they are not expecting the kids to come to the missions with these things.

Actually, they are. Since they keep the tablet after they leave the mission, that's why they're being asked to pay for them.

I know when the program first came out, it was said there were units for those who couldn't afford it (to stay with the mission after they were released). I haven't heard too much about it since then.

As I recall, many missionaries also had to buy their own bicycles - frequently buying them off a missionary that was going home.

Well the Lord's will be done, but sometimes I am left wondering, ya know.

The purpose of technology is to hasten the work of the Lord. "We should take advantage of all these great discoveries ... and give to our children the benefit of every branch of useful knowledge, to prepare them to step forward and efficiently do their part in the great work" (Brigham Young). Yes, a lot of work can get done without tablets, but it's about efficiency – moving more quickly, adding to our toolset, and extending our reach.

I was surprised when it was announced that missionaries would have tablets and use the internet in their proselyting – but, by now, these tools have moved beyond the testing, piloting, and refining phases and have proven themselves to be effective and inspired – for how they affect the work during the mission, and also for how they continue to move the work forward after these missionaries – now trained to use technology in inspired, positive ways – return home.

There are also these things called the Ward Mission Fund and the General Mission Fund, and there are people out there who will gladly help pay for this kind of thing. The church has always provided ways for those who cannot afford the whole cost of a mission to be aided, so why would the need for a tablet change that?

With all due respect, statements similar to "we didn't need them 20 years ago, so nobody needs them today either" are pretty dangerous. If that is universally true, a whole lot of missionary work wouldn't currently be taking place, there would be no lds.org, and this forum wouldn't even need to exist.

I currently serve in a state side mission office and I can tell you we are moving to Android tablets very soon

silus99 wrote:I recently had a sister from my ward receive her call to a mission in the United States. In the paperwork from the mission, it asked that they bring with them an Android tablet device.

Our missionaries currently have the Ipad mini's provided by the Church and I had not heard of missions requiring Android tablets be brought. Has anyone heard about this or if the Church is shifting away from providing Ipad mini's that are locked down and asking missionaries to bring their own?

Some missions are approved to use specially configured tablets. Here are two links to additional information that may be helpful. Please note that some details have evolved since these articles were published.

http://www.lds.org/church/news/more-mis ... l?lang=eng

http://www.ksl.com/?sid=30563256&nid=1284

Until recently, all authorized missionary tablets have been Apple iPads. The Church is constantly evaluating new technology in conjunction with evolving needs and has begun using Android tablets with some new missionaries. Missionaries should not bring or use mobile devices on their missions unless instructed to do so as part of their mission call or by their mission office. Additional information is provided at that time.

Paul Scherbel
Product Manager, Missionary Mobile Devices

Since Monday is a holiday in the US, you may have to wait until Tuesday.

It if the mmd account wasn't created automatically, I'm not sure how the old ward paid for it. The funds may just be sitting there. This certainly sounds like something that needs to be called in to get fixed.

I was under the impression that the Other:Missionary Mobile Device accounts were automatically swept once funds had been deposited into them. There is a separate Other:Missionary Mobile Device account for each missionary, and funds in the ward missionary fund are not to be transferred to or co-mingled with funds in the Other:Missionary Mobile Device account. I can't see any way for funds from an Other:Missionary Mobile Device account to be transferred to another unit.

russellhltn wrote:Since Monday is a holiday in the US, you may have to wait until Tuesday.

Memorial day is next week, not this week, but I'll take it this week too if we really are off

jonesrk wrote:

russellhltn wrote:Since Monday is a holiday in the US, you may have to wait until Tuesday.

Memorial day is next week, not this week, but I'll take it this week too if we really are off

Bah. I'm on vacation, so I'm thinking a week ahead.

cnhyland wrote:We had a new family move into our ward recently, with a son serving a mission. The missionary's mobile device account has not transferred to our ward yet. Our bishop approved the transfer of the missionary's accounts a week ago and it has not shown up yet. The missionary will lose his iPad at the end of this month if the mobile device account balance is not satisfied. The missionary's old ward said they paid for the iPad, but the mission office has no record of the payment. It is Sunday, so I cannot call the financial help line. Any ideas? I will call on Monday, but i know that the financial clerk from the previous ward has already called support, and he was told to go into MLS and create a Missionary Mobile Device account. Neither his old ward, nor our ward, has the authority to create a MMD account. I will try to call and sort it out, but it seems like we are going in circles. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

As of February 2016, missionaries have been asked to pay the Technology Use and Purchase fees for iPads through the LDS Online Store and not through the account in their wards. Each missionary has a link in their Missionary Portal to a page where the fees can be paid for that missionary. The missionary can send this link to anyone assisting the missionary with payment. The only circumstance where a missionary can still pay through the ward is when only part of the Technology Use Fee or part of the Purchase Fee has been previously paid in the ward. If a partial payment has been made, then the proper payment options will not be available at the LDS Online Store and the ward clerk will need to contact the Global Service Center for assistance, reactivating the account, as they have all gone inactive now. This may be why the missionary account has not shown up, even though the other accounts have transferred.

If you would like more specific assistance for a particular missionary, please email your question to mssdevicepayment@ldschurch.org and I can work with you there.

I am currently a missionary serving in the Colorado Fort Collins Mission. I have a mission issued iPad that I have paid $300 to use. I am writing this post on it.

Android tablets have been used for about 9 months now in the Colorado Fort Collins Mission, and I suspect that the change was worldwide. Upon entering the mission, or in the MTC, the missionary will be instructed as to how their device is to be set up so that they can get the mission specific apps. Please let me know if you need any other information, as I am quite willing to answer all of your questions.

Many missions have "loaner" iPad or Android tablets that can be borrowed for the duration of a missionaries mission. However, if they break the loaner, the missionary will probably need to pay for a replacement. If the cost is an issue for the missionary, their family, or their ward. They should contact the mission office to see if they have a loaner program, they will do their best to help you figure it out.

Like russellhltn said earlier, your missionary may be able buy the tablet from a missionary leaving the mission if your mission office says that will work. This is all done on a by mission basis.

I will be following this discussion, and I will do my best to answer questions about the missionary tablet program. Have a great day!

I am reading this to see if I can learn if missionaries in the Argentina Santa Fe mission have electronic devices, because my grandson is entering the MTC in a month, and it makes a difference in whether he buys and takes a camera or not. We just returned (August 2017) from serving in the office of the Italy Milan Mission, where our missionaries were provided first with ipads and they are now switching to androids (Samsung). They are really very useful in doing missionary work and it makes them much more effective, because so much is now done with them, including videos. Missionaries are not asked to pay for them, but they are asked to pay if they negligently break or lose them, which is the same policy if they break or lose their mission provided phone. Missionaries I know do not use their cameras any more, they use their ipads or androids to take pix, and they take a lot of them, including videos. So if anyone knows if they have these devices in Argentina Santa Fe, please post, and if you have any questions about Italy, feel free to ask.

jlhoopes,
If your grandson is going to a mobile device mission, it should say so in the call packet. I'm not sure you have access to that though. Here is what I know:
I know that with a few exceptions, all missions in the United States have a missionary mobile device program.
I also know that the following missions have a mobile device program:
Spain Madrid Mission
Germany Berlin Mission
England London Mission
Utah Salt Lake City West Mission
California Santa Rosa Mission
Japan Tokyo Mission
Utah Orem Mission
Arizona Tucson Mission
Colorado Fort Collins Mission

It is probably safe to assume that there are other missions in Japan, Spain, Germany, and England that have mobile devices as well.

I have yet to hear of missionaries outside of North America, Europe, and Japan with mobile devices. But this is from my limited point of view.

There are many countries where the conditions are unsafe for someone who has an item that is as valuable as an Apple or Samsung device. Or the physical conditions are too rough. But in first world countries, the Missionary Mobile Device program helps move the work of Salvation forward!

The most reliable way I know of to determine if an individual mission has mobile devices or not is by calling the mission office of the mission in question.

Best Wishes!

My son is in an android tablet mission and we had to purchase it but it is his after he comes home. I think they can monitor them easier than iPads. They have their own App Store with only approved apps. Also if you can’t afford one you can either buy used. Like someone else mentioned the ward mission fund can help pay for those things. One thing I can say is we couldn’t afford a lot of stuff my husband was unemployed for over a year and a half but somehow we were able to purchase everything our son needed to go to serve in France. It really is quite awesome for them to have the technology they need to teach the gospel and to communicate with you on p-day. They don’t have to purchase all the books and things because they are in the App Store so it really is worth it. Just have faith and know the Lord will always provide a way when a missionary wants to serve.

The church is cheaping out asking missionaries to bring android tablets/phones. I think it is fine for the kids to bring them but for Pete’s sake, let them bring their iPhones if they want. Give them a choice. I just forked out $230 for a Samsung galaxy J7 when my daughter, 5 months ago, saved her pennies and bought an iphone. MAAS 360 will manage both, neither particularly well but it will do it. The days in corporate America of single platform died several year ago, the church should come up to speed and offer choice too, especially when the burden of the cost is on the future missionaries. .

I think part of it is the internally developed applications that the missionaries run as well.