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Right, OP, like others are hinting - what you're asking is for your parents to suddenly enjoy communicating as much as you do. Why should YOU get to choose these things? Nope.
If this a "for emergencies" situation - get a flip phone. Dials almost like a landline.
Keep in mind that most older people have gone through, and mastered, so much tech in their day they are tired of it and not at all in awe of smart phones. It's just another thing to them, except now smart phones are more complicated than ever.
I have a friend who is older than me and she has disabled her smart phone! Meaning that the internet is "off of it" though I know that SHE just can't access it. Oh well. I just go with it because I'd rather be kind than be right.
While I do have my iPhone with me 24/7, it’s for medical reasons not social. I call it my tether. I honestly keep it muted 24/7 on just vibrate so it doesn’t annoy me. And the games I have on it typically don’t require internet access to play. If they do, I delete them.
Back when my daddy was alive, I had to be added to his bank account since he wasn’t computer literate. He only played ONE game on his computer, didn’t even have internet, and used a flip phone or a land line. I had to take my laptop over to his place to help him with his banking. But he was in his late 80’s. Rather than get upset, I worked with him.
I was 45 before I even had my first computer. We’ve come a long way in 24 years. Give us grace.
19 Years Ago. When I was 57 and newly retired I had a flip phone. You know, a hard-press button for each of the 10 digits.
Was alone working in the woods. Tree fell on my head. Had to crawl 200 feet just to get a signal. By then my face and phone were covered in blood. Could not see. But I was able to feel where the numbers 9 and 1 were. 911 operator saved my life by yelling at me to stay awake. VFD saved my life, got there first, slowed the bleeding, and started the IV. Ambulance crew saved my life by deciding to go all the way to a trauma hospital instead of the local hospital. Trauma surgeon saved my live with the surgery.
But. It was really the old-fashioned cell phone that saved my life. Without those hard-press numbers I would have died.
A little bit of an aside, but perhaps it might demonstrate to the OP just how much of generation gap we could be talking about here.
I watch TV with the closed captioning on and the other day I watched an old B&W show in which one of the characters was dialing a rotary phone. Apparently the person who did the close captioning was so unfamiliar with rotary phones the captioning read "Sound of phone buttons being pushed" ! https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/st...bk0wxxxih.html
I am currently trying to get my parents regularly use and wear the iPhone I bought for them. Any tips and tricks how to make them wear it more often and therefore answer my calls?
Why don’t you call their landline when you know they are likely to be at home? My guess, for example, is that they are not out partying every evening.
Perhaps OP wants the comfort of knowing the parents can call if there’s an emergency. If one of them falls, they may not be able to contact someone on a landline. I’d suggest that they EACH have a phone, not just one of them.
We are in our 70s and dh had almost a whole year having several surgeries and falls requiring an ambulance. He kept his phone on him at all times.
Try a Senior Center- They have various courses to aide the seniors in learning tech related devices.
Keep the expectations realistic. Most folks have other things to do in their precious time then learning ten apps and how to use the camera. Its a phone. Keep it simple.
If they are in their 60s, you can probably teach them to master the smartphone.
If they are in their late 80s, you have an uphill battle.
He stated it elsewhere, 69 and 71. My comment was he needs to be patient and realize that learning to use a smart phone is not necessarily high on their list of things to accomplish any time soon. I’m 69 and while I have an iPhone, there are things I simply do not do. It’s only been in the last five years I’ve gotten use to FaceTime and texting.
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