Older people and Android phones.

Azureth

Azureth

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Just was curious on your thoughts about this. I have been reading a topic on another forum that primarily consists of older people. What's interesting is the good majority seem to be iPhone users, and have been saying how Android phones aren't nearly as intuitive or easy to use. One example many said was that there is no indication to swipe when answering a phone call whereas with the iPhone you just press a button and getting to what you want is easier to understand overall on the iPhone. Thoughts?
 
My mother and father in law are both using OnePlus One's without issue. Nearing 80's.

If anything, it's harder to teach them to tap without any drags or holds.
 
As much as I hate to admit iPhones are better for people that are completely technology inept. Like my 70 year old mom can't figure out simple things on her 5x. It is really frustrating to me. Like when she calls me and I miss it she never ends the call and I get a 3 min voice mail every time. She always puts it into Airplane mode and cry's her phone is broken. She came to my house at 5 am banging on my door with this issue before ~.~ Even after I removed it she still managed to turn on Air plane mode...
 
Kinda like me. older Cool Guy and never really liked the iphone or could figure it out Lol. But I like the Android, had one of the first ones an HTC and really liked it. now got one of the Samsung J7's. cool with me man.
 
I do not own any smart phone but my Wife does. She is not a fan of iPhones.

I do not find any of them to be "intuitive". How that word can apply is beyond me. Everytime I have to deal with one of those phones, and it makes no difference who made it, the first question I ask is, "How do you make a phone call?", then Ihave to watch all the gyrations of fingering the phone to get there from here, and I just walk away shaking my head.

Anytime I have to use one, I am totally lost. I usually drop them or hit things on the screen while trying to hold them and send them off into la-la land with no clue how to get back to where I was. Frustrating is the mild word for how I feel about those things.

The tap and swipe are impossible for me to master. Hell, even trying to figure out when those motions are supposed to be used is just aggravating. 5 minutes with my Wife's phone and I have 30 apps running and still have not figured out how to answer the damn thing.

Here is the kicker. I have worked in the computer industry for over 30 years. It is not like I do not have a handle on technology, but smart phones make no sense to me.

I am so glad flip phones are still around or I simply would not have a phone.
 
OP's argument is one that once had merit, but not for at least a few years now. As others have said, iOS isn't any more intuitive than Android now by a long shot. One look at an iPhone's lock screen with more than a few notifications now will make that pretty apparent.

The reason iPhones are a lot more common among the tech layman (allegedly, not completely true in my personal observations) is just because they really don't care what phone they have as long as it works and they figure a name as ubiquitous as the iPhone is their obvious/default choice. Though Samsung has pretty much garnered as much recognition as Apple in the past few years now.

Anyone still saying Android isn't as intuitive as iOS now hasn't really tried Android recently and/or is being a bit ignorant.
 
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Honestly I think the primary reason why grandparents have iPhones these days is because their grandchildren are on iMessage.
 
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Azureth said:
Just was curious on your thoughts about this. I have been reading a topic on another forum that primarily consists of older people. What's interesting is the good majority seem to be iPhone users, and have been saying how Android phones aren't nearly as intuitive or easy to use. One example many said was that there is no indication to swipe when answering a phone call whereas with the iPhone you just press a button and getting to what you want is easier to understand overall on the iPhone. Thoughts?
Click to expand...

to be honest i haven't found many older people that can use iphones outside of setting up the shortcut buttons to open specific things they want they typically get lost after a few screw ups. they tend to have less issues on android from my personal experiences.

ChronoReverse said:
My mother and father in law are both using OnePlus One's without issue. Nearing 80's.

If anything, it's harder to teach them to tap without any drags or holds.
Click to expand...

don't remind me, that shit was painful to deal with when trying to teach my grandmother how to use a smart phone.. i can't remember how many times she accidentally deleted program shortcuts by clicking and dragging them to the top of the screen.
 
I think more "older" people are on Android if only because the cost of phones is less. I was talking to a Vietnam Vet the other day who ditched his iPhone for a cheaper $99 Android Straight Talk phone because it had a larger screen and was only $99.
 
The best thing about Apple is the super easy backup and restore. It makes getting a new phone set up super easy.

I still won't own one, but that is a benefit.
 
kirbyrj said:
I think more "older" people are on Android if only because the cost of phones is less. I was talking to a Vietnam Vet the other day who ditched his iPhone for a cheaper $99 Android Straight Talk phone because it had a larger screen and was only $99.
Click to expand...
Yep my mom was pissed off over having to pay $200 for her 5x. Only reason she wanted a smart phone is cause all her friends have one. My mom is really cheap and refuses to spend money otherwise.
 
I think it depends on the phone. If we're talking about a Pixel or Nexus device I think they're better off as the process trees are very similar but the Pixel is easier to use IMO.

The problem starts when they get something like a Galaxy that is heavily skinned. At that point there's a learning curve.

I'm all for older people making the switch because I think Android is generally easier to use. If Apple were to move away from iTunes all together I think their users would be better off.
 
Blown 89 said:
I think it depends on the phone. If we're talking about a Pixel or Nexus device I think they're better off as the process trees are very similar but the Pixel is easier to use IMO.

The problem starts when they get something like a Galaxy that is heavily skinned. At that point there's a learning curve.

I'm all for older people making the switch because I think Android is generally easier to use. If Apple were to move away from iTunes all together I think their users would be better off.
Click to expand...

iTunes isn’t necessary at all for iPhones at all. It hasn’t been for at least 3 years.
 
I have had my mom using a nexus 7 first gen and now a second gen for the past 3-4 years. She is almost 70 and doesnt use my Dad's PC anymore because she does everything on it. The one thing she flips out on is her Free games ads that try to tell her she has viruses or some crap
 
BSmith said:
I do not own any smart phone but my Wife does. She is not a fan of iPhones.

I do not find any of them to be "intuitive". How that word can apply is beyond me. Everytime I have to deal with one of those phones, and it makes no difference who made it, the first question I ask is, "How do you make a phone call?", then Ihave to watch all the gyrations of fingering the phone to get there from here, and I just walk away shaking my head.

Anytime I have to use one, I am totally lost. I usually drop them or hit things on the screen while trying to hold them and send them off into la-la land with no clue how to get back to where I was. Frustrating is the mild word for how I feel about those things.

The tap and swipe are impossible for me to master. Hell, even trying to figure out when those motions are supposed to be used is just aggravating. 5 minutes with my Wife's phone and I have 30 apps running and still have not figured out how to answer the damn thing.

Here is the kicker. I have worked in the computer industry for over 30 years. It is not like I do not have a handle on technology, but smart phones make no sense to me.

I am so glad flip phones are still around or I simply would not have a phone.
Click to expand...

So yeah I don't get this. By default there's a green icon that looks like a phone docked to the bottom of the screen. When you receive a call, the the screen turns black and there's a green phone button with the word "accept" underneath as well as a red phone button with a "decline" label.
 
Never saw a green ICON and never saw the word "Accept" either. Probably due to my fumbling around hitting other areas of the screen. Or it was on some password screen and I could not get the password typed in before it timed out. It is on me. I know it is. I am just a clumsy fool when it comes to using touch screens.

For me, it is insanely awkward to try and use a smart phone. The Wife still tries to get me to do things with it, while she is driving, and then finally gives up and pulls over to do whatever it is she was wanting me to do.

Now, put me behind a monitor and keyboard, and I will smoke yer arse.
 
Blown 89 said:
:rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Okay, so is this the part in which I break this down for you?

You stated that it would be better if Apple would move away from iTunes altogether to make it better for old people. That's a paraphrase, feel free to correct me on your statement if I've misstated your position.
I would say the burden is on you to say which part of iTunes makes it difficult for old people.

Because literally you could have an iPhone and/or an iPad and literally NO OTHER COMPUTING DEVICE and be 100% just fine.

It's not necessary to start using the device. It isn't necessary to backup the device. It's not necessary for syncing the device. Or restoring the device.
There are alternatives for literally every other function that the device does, including music, files, and etc. But most of that deeper level stuff "old people" won't be doing anyway whether they are on iOS or Android.

So at what point is iTunes necessary or 'unnecessary' as a piece of software to you? This already is the dumbest argument because you don't need it for anything, and I'm arguing against a person that would rather give roll eyes than a legitimate answer on how the piece of software is necessary. And then in addition to that, how that makes it more complex for a user over an Android phone.
 
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UnknownSouljer said:
Because literally you could have an iPhone and/or an iPad and literally NO OTHER COMPUTING DEVICE and be 100% just fine.
Click to expand...
Try explaining that to an old person. They won't understand that....that's the entire point. I was expecting people to connect the dots from there.

Listen dude, I've seen your post history and it's clear that you're looking for any excuse to froth at the mouth and rage and I'm just not interested in going back and forth with someone so full of rage that they can't understand what I'm saying so go get pissed somewhere else.
 
Blown 89 said:
Try explaining that to an old person. They won't understand that....that's the entire point. I was expecting people to connect the dots from there.

Listen dude, I've seen your post history and it's clear that you're looking for any excuse to froth at the mouth and rage and I'm just not interested in going back and forth with someone so full of rage that they can't understand what I'm saying so go get pissed somewhere else.
Click to expand...
 
Blown 89 said:
Try explaining that to an old person. They won't understand that....that's the entire point. I was expecting people to connect the dots from there.

Listen dude, I've seen your post history and it's clear that you're looking for any excuse to froth at the mouth and rage and I'm just not interested in going back and forth with someone so full of rage that they can't understand what I'm saying so go get pissed somewhere else.
Click to expand...

Oookay. I don’t think there is anything to explain. Most old people don’t know the difference between an android phone and an iPhone.

With that argument I could say that they think they need iTunes for Android and it’s impossible to convince them otherwise. I have to play support person on multiple computers and phones for my aging parents. They have enough other software problems to worry about before thinking they need something else to operate a phone.

And also for what it’s worth, I think all of my posts have been to the point. I just expect when people take a position, that it’s defensible and informed. It turns out it rarely is. Mostly just opinion, hearsay, FUD, or annecdote. Give me any hard evidence or fact.
And to that end, love to see any evidence of me frothing at the mouth. Or “raging”.
 
My mom has been using my hand me down Android phones for a few years. She does OK.

It's all in what you get used to. There is a case to be made that a lot of people in some areas have iPhones... Meaning the older person could be the odd man out and other colleagues may not be able to help them if they don't understand something. That about the only benefit.
 
I do tech support for on of the big 4 cell providers... Hands down iOS is easier for most older folks to manage. Not because its more intuitive, its because folks who did not grow up with this technology dont do well with change. And on iOS things doing change as quickly or drastically. Someone who bought an iPhone 5 years ago & never updated a damn thing could switch today to an iPhone 8 & be just fine. Someone who bought a Galaxy s3 however going straight to a Galaxy s8 they will have a million questions because things are so different. And god forbid they switched from a s3 to a v30 where its even more different.

Older folks dont like the cost of the phone, but they like change even less. I have also talked to many many customers who call one or 2 times a week for help with an android & then it turns into one or 2 times a year after getting the iPhone (well after the initial migrate data from android to iOS phone call). So while I personally dont find iOS to be more "intuitive" it is certainly easier for most older folks to manage.

Disclaimer: I hated iOS & refused to use it until about a year & a half ago when my daughter begged me to get her an iPhone & I snagged a BOGO for iPhone SE's. Went straight iPhone for a while, but there are some things that I just like better on Android, but missed iOS when I went back to just an Android.. Now I have settled on carrying one of each with me all the time.
 
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