5 Easy To Use Electronics Gadgets for Older Adults

5 Easy To Use Electronics Gadgets for Older Adults

Elder care technology has become one of the growing niches in today’s environment. Numerous researches are being made to make a senior person's life healthy, secure, and independent.

Also, older adults are getting more and more familiar with technology and curious to use it to make their lives better. It is really fascinating to witness how today’s older generation is more keen on adopting the technology.

However, it is also important to understand that with old age, our bodily and psychological functions slow down. Therefore, technology needs to be easily usable by people with physical limitations and mild cognitive impairment.

That brings to a question, which tech gadgets are best as a stepping stone for older adults?

For older adults looking for specialized devices for themselves, here are 5 easy-to-use electronic gadgets. All of the following equipment can be used by a senior person with little to no help from others.

1: White Noise Generator

Sleep. Everyone loves it, yet few get a good one.

Especially in the case of older adults, having a good night's sleep is crucial for their mental health. However, older adults often face problems in having a deep sleep as it gets disrupted by even the slightest of noise.

It is quite surprising that older adults can’t sleep well in a noisy environment, nor can they sleep in utter silence as sudden loud noises like snoring, barking of a dog, or even a leaking pipe cause distractions.

White noise is an excellent option if you want to keep a steady stream of sound in your bedroom. Not only it helps in maintaining a consistent environment when you sleep but also cancels out sudden noises to ensure a longer sleep.

Equipment like Lectrofan High-fidelity White Noise Machine gives a variety of white sound options like that of a table fan, TV static noise, flowing wind, etc. to cancel out excess noise and have a disruption-free sleep. These white noises are in low frequency to have a calming effect.

Just select the white noise machine which suits you best and play it whenever you’re sleeping or reading a book.

2: Robotic Vacuum Cleaner

For older adults living alone, cleaning your entire home is difficult due to physical limitations like arthritis, shivering, weak bones, etc. It is also important to have clean and dust free environment in the home to avoid respiratory infections and other diseases.

In such cases, robotic vacuum cleaners are an excellent option to keep your house clean with minimal effort. All you have to do is charge it, connect it to your smartphone, and you are good to go.

It cleans the entire floor surface, even the places where standard vacuum cleaners can’t reach such as areas under the couch and tricky corners of your home. It only requires assistance when you have to use it on upper or lower floors.

Some high-end models of robot vacuum cleaners also have smart cleaning mechanism which detects the floor type like wood, carpet, etc. to give a specialized cleaning experience.

3: Specialized Phones

Feature phones (affectionately called "Dumb Phones") are witnessing an increase in popularity in a world where smartphones are dominating the cellular mobile market.

Why?

Due to its ease of use, lack of distracting apps, longer battery life, and sturdy design feature phones are still used by people as a secondary phone for a digital detox.

When it comes to older adults, there are specialized feature phones with large buttons and a bigger display. These phones are more manageable for seniors to use due to their user-friendly interface, ergonomic design, and overall simplicity.

Devices like Jitterbug Flip, Jitterbug Smart, and Punkt are designed with features like large fonts, easy access to important apps, and one-touch SOS in case of an emergency.

4: Wearable Technology

Now we’re talking about gadgets which take little time and effort to get familiar with but are essential for seniors. Wearable technologies like fitness bands, smartwatches, smart rings, etc. have significantly improved the lifestyle of seniors.

Here’s how.

Wearable health technology is primarily designed to monitor the health and track the location of a person. These devices are usually used by fitness conscious people to keep track of their progress. For seniors, it helps them monitor their health and possibly predicting severe medical conditions and avoiding them in time.

Smartwatches provide these features and more. They allow you to check your emails, make calls, provide navigation through vibrations, and a lot more.

Although it takes time to get familiar with this technology, wearables are ideal companions for older adults.

5: Voice Assistant devices

Voice assistant devices like Amazon Echo and Google Nest Hub are the best tech gadget for older adults due to the numerous services they offer.

For starters, voice assistant devices use voice commands to perform various activities like providing answers to questions, playing music, planning schedule, etc.

However, the most significant role voice assistants play is in smart homes.

They act as a central hub for smart homes that can be operated by voice commands. Older adults can try activities like turning lights on and off, regulating room temperature, opening, and closing curtains, etc.

We’re not done yet.

Smart screens like Amazon Echo Show and Google Nest Hub can also be used to stream music and videos on music streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music, and video streaming platforms like Hulu, YouTube, etc. You can monitor outdoor activities with smart cameras and connect with your loved ones on video chat whenever you want.

And the best part is, voice commands can be given by any senior no matter their physical limitations. All they have to do is "ask" Alexa or Google to do work for them.

Bottom line: Using technology for the elderly is much easier, making it an ideal component of a smart home for older adults.

Which one of the following gadgets was the most interesting? Do you know any more devices designed especially for seniors? Let us know in the comment section below.

Barry Sardis is the founder of Techforaging.com. He is passionate about sharing his knowledge about smart homes for elderly. Starting as a self-taught programmer in the tech industry over 50 years ago, Barry believes in learning technology and using