I’m sure you’ll agree that the dawn of the smartphone has made various aspects of life so much easier. You’re never lost provided you still have a safety buffer and a GPS signal. If you’re in a foreign country and need to ask someone a question or translate a sign, all it takes is a few taps of a screen. However, if there’s one thing that’s gotten harder, it’s staying in touch with elderly people who are still hostile to this kind of tech! If you’ve got a parent or grandparent who you can never get a hold of, here are a few ways to convince them to get a smartphone.
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They Can Check Gas Prices
This is one of the most fool-proof ways to convince older generations that they could do with a smartphone. While you may just stop at whatever gas station you happen to be passing, lots of elderly people make a point of always finding the cheapest possible gas prices. It’s just something they do – like knitting, playing chess in parks or taking forever to get to the crux of a story. If you show the person you’re trying to convince that you can simply type “gas prices” into Google maps and see where the cheapest ones are, it may send them running straight to the stores!
They Can Play Games
Okay, your parent or grandparent might not be all that into jumping dirt bikes over canyons or mowing down hordes of zombies with a machine gun. However, there are various, more traditional games that elderly people might fall in love with once they figure out touch screens! There are countless chess apps on the Apple Store and Google Play, as well as various puzzler games like bejeweled that your parent or grandparent may get into. If the elderly person you have in mind was particularly into card games, but all their old poker buddies are scattered around the country, then they may like apps like Maria casino. If you and your elderly person have a common passion for a particular game, see if you can find an app for it and invite them to play it with you.
They Can Use Health Apps
One of the inconvenient truths of life is that as we age, our bodies start to fail on us. Our sight or hearing goes, our blood pressure can start to be unruly, and all kinds of other health issues can start to spring up. If your parent or grandparent is living with various health issues, or they’re just being a little more vigilant in their old age, perhaps the use of health apps could be a good way to bring them around. There are countless health apps on the market today, capable of monitoring blood pressure and heart rate, keeping track of prescriptions, contacting doctors, and various other handy functions. If the elderly person you’re thinking of says that smartphones are a waste of time, this could be a great way to convince them otherwise!