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Ask Slashdot: Touchscreen Device For the Elderly?
Lord Byron II writes "My grandma is in her 80s, is bed-ridden, in a nursing home, and is basically reaching the end of her life. Her legs are weak, meaning that she is confined to her bed, and her hearing is pretty much gone. Her sight is good and her mental facilities are still there, but even so, she spends most of her days just watching daytime TV, like the Price is Right and talk shows. The family has tasked me with finding her an easy-to-use, not overly expensive device that would mentally challenge her. Ideally, I would like to get something iPad like so that she could play card games and such. But the Internet connectivity and advanced features are completely unnecessary. Is there a simple device that will let her easily play some games?"
Are you sure a touchscreen is what you really want? Have you ever used a touchscreen to play games? Constantly having your arm at attention and moving your hands around blocks screen real estate is a really big minus most people don't consider. Get her a Nintendo hand held.
"When life gives you lemons, don't make lemonade. Make life take the lemons back!" -- Cave Johnson
Why wouldn't you want your Grandma to be able to access the internet? If she's still got it mentally then easy access to the internet might be good. My mother, in her 70's uses her iPad to access the Internet everyday.
You may think me a tired, old, cynic. I'd have to disagree about the tired bit.
He has a computer (old G5 Mac tower) but rarely uses it now since the iPad can be used virtually anywhere in his home.
It's also reduced the number of "how to" and troubleshooting calls we get from him. For an 83-YO former pastor he does pretty good technically and recently figured out how to properly install the OS/X drivers on his G5 for a scanner/printer on his own.
Short answer: by all means get an iPad. It has the richest set of games and social media connections. My $.02.
The Nintendo DSi XL is comparetively cheap, has awsome games that the elderly love (such as the Professor Layton series) and it was built with old-timers in mind. Big screen, modest colors, large pen-like extra stylus and absolut idiot-proof usage. Get her one plus one or two Layton titles and some other slow or non-action puzzle game. ... Most likely she'll ask for more sooner than you'll expect.
And who knows, maybe she'll also be kicking your sorry ass at MarioCart in 2 months aswell. :-)
We suffer more in our imagination than in reality. - Seneca
Try watching something WITH her instead. Or, since her eyesight is still good, playing cards or something else that is not physically demanding, and allows for both mental stimulation and social interaction. There's a reason you see all those old folks playing bridge or bingo or dominoes, and it's not because of the games themselves. (get one of those 12 or 15-pip domino sets and give it a whirl - everyone from 9 to 90 can enjoy it).
Internet connectivity would give her access to far more mental stimulation than a few games, plus potential social interaction as well.
...I don't think you should undersell Internet connectivity. Although fortunately I am not confined to bed 24/7, I spend more than half the day there, and Netflix streaming (which would be a wonderful gift you could frurnish her) is a savior; given the paucity of her programming now it would undoubtedly improve her day, and she would have some control over her entertainment choices. That and a twitter client (and set up the family on Twitter -- those that aren't already) and the family can stay engaged with her; an iPad or Android device with WiFi and a camera a can give her even more interactivity over Facetime or Skype.
You have an opportunity here to improve her daily life to an incredible degree, and obviously want to. Were it myself I'd even obtain here a Mi-Fi device and account if there was little or no Wi-Fi were she is living. Were it my own Grandmother I would not by skimping here.
My recommendation would be a wii, which I believe has already been successfully used in a few nursing homes. I think it would be even more successful for individual cases like this.
This general question has been a part-time quest of my own. I cared for a loved blind grandmother for several years, and realize my own fragility. There are a lot of agencies out there, and support groups / not-for-profit orgs working on different areas. Many of these are slowly starving because of the economy ( less subsidy, less generous donors) - but still around and happy to help.
In the big picture, just keep in mind that I found help and helpful advise just by reading/trolling on Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimers, and other orgs - in addition to the " Senior Services" and various blind orgs. ( props to LightHouse!)
In the short term, if you can afford an iPad, why are you concerned about 'extra' stuff? Believe me, I've been on the neutral-evil side when it comes to Apple fanaticism, but the iPad is in my home. For the set of purposes you laid out, this is probably one of the lightest, easiest to use devices.
Borrow (or buy) one, and some bluetooth devices ( mouse, keyboard, trackball, drawing pad) that can work with it.
-- my purchase came from (USA) Target, with a 45-day no questions refund policy.
(plus a 10% discount for accepting their credit card)
I just mean, if you want something "like the iPad", then get the iPad. Android devices have many similar abilities, (and WebOS devices, too) but few have the quality screen, battery life, and natural resistance to tampering that is genetic to the Apple family.
By all means - get what you can afford, and what is useful - not a dust collector.
And yes.. as other folks have suggested, there is nothing .. **NOTHING** that is more fulfilling, mentally stimulating, and emotionally positive than loved company. The basic stuff like reading a book together, reminiscing, or even learning to use two iPads (or Androids, or tablet PCs) to play scrabble, yahtzee, bingo, or whatever.. as long as you do it together, is a lot more fun and fulfilling.
Plus it will help Grandma learn if she knows you are coming back to play or video chat to see that new baby in the family.
Caveat: get the service contract, and take photos of the serial numbers. Use tracking software. Even in a "good" place, lots of stuff gets misplaced/lost/stolen in retirement/rehab homes. If Grandma does actually like the device, then losing it to a crash or light-fingered help will be depressing.
Why do you decide what's necessary? How about either asking her, or leaving it in and if it isn't used then it isn't used.
It's not like tablets without Internet would be much cheaper. And when you think tablets already, I think the iPad is what you want. You can pick up a 1st gen device fairly cheaply these days. It's easy to use, you can use parental controls to make sure she doesn't mess anything up that would require you coming over to fix it, and there's lots and lots of apps available.
Assorted stuff I do sometimes: Lemuria.org
I've had good luck with customers and the Velocity Cruz and Archos tablets. Sure they're not speed demons, but we are talking grandma and he is worried about price. they start at $99 for the 7 inch Cruz but if its for grandma I'd probably look at the 10 inch Archos for $169.
As someone whose grandma passed away this yer I wish you all the luck in the world. We were lucky that mine was a spirited little thing that managed to stay on her feet right up until that last week of her life when she passed right after her 96th birthday.
I learned one thing though...I don't EVER want to live to be THAT old! all your friends are gone, more of the people that you knew are below ground than above, she had even lost one child and one grandchild by the end. Personally I'd rather bite the farm before everybody i know does, thanks.
ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
My mother suffers from Alzheimer's and some other conditions. She recently spent about a month in a skilled nursing facility, doing physical rehab and strengthening before returning to live with me. About the time she was admitted, I purchased an HP touchpad for her as a gift. I think that the device was great for her, but not in the ways I expected. She used it almost daily. I was able to load it up with a lot of music, which she enjoyed greatly, And the slideshow function also received rave reviews from her.
However, the touchscreen interface (though seeming simple to me), was not ideal. First of all, it proved difficult for her to master the touch interface because of problems applying enough pressure on the screen, or too much. Those of us without arthritis, and who do not have as much difficulty with manual dexterity, perhaps do not always anticipate what a challenge it can be to master the making of gestures to interact with a touch interface. Second, learning the GUI itself proved hard, and her preferred approach became to call me on the telephone to have me make sure that the programs she preferred were running. She was pleased to have music play on on a preset or shuffled playlist, but with a month to try, it did not seem that she managed to master how to select particular songs off of the playlist. Switching between programs was a task on which she would make progress with coaching, but repeating this skill on her own was a real challenge.
I've also let her work with my iPad, and similar difficulties are present.
Your grandmother may do much better, and may not necessarily find it quite such a challenge. But there's also a good possibility that she will find efforts to operate it without the assistance of others, rather frustrating. I recommend spending time together in person, and augmenting that quality time by using the device as a conversation piece, something to talk about and an activity to share together. Perhaps there are other devices that are more suitable, but I do not recommend touchpads generally, except for use as a common activity to enjoy together.
Good old-fashioned books, with pages to turn, on the other hand, are a killer app for all ages. My mom cannot get enough of them. And I personally believe the stimulation is very important for maintaining cognitive function as long as possible.
Hope that helps.