Saturday Data: Old Folks & Technology

Trust me on this one: there is a wall out there for each one of you. 
It will have a name like "snapchat" or "fiqeu" or "ornfehwfhwurbncp;aofvna". 
But whatever it is called, it is coming for you....unless, somehow, technology saves you from...technology.

As you grow older, you'll become less adept at using the newest inter or intra net program or device...My parents "wall" was in the shape of a simple home computer. They wanted nothing to do with it, though I tried my best to sell them on the ability to "email" their kids and grandkids. They never went along, struggling with VCR- era recorders.

Doesn't that look like a Klansman?

My own wall is not quite here, though I've avoided snapchatting and the like.

The good news is that the devices, once they are set up, are getting a bit easier for seniors. Take Amazon's assistant, "Alexa". I can't imagine a more user friendly device for older folks----though they may fear the machine on the counter listening to us all the time so it can hear its name. 

But seniors, including this one, usually need help setting the tech up:

That's from a new report from PEW. It finds that tech is being used by older and older Americans. Yet:

One-third of adults ages 65 and older say they never use the internet, and roughly half (49%) say they do not have home broadband services. Meanwhile, even with their recent gains, the proportion of seniors who say they own smartphones is 42 percentage points lower than those ages 18 to 64.

And as is true for the population as a whole, there are also substantial differences in technology adoption within the older adult population based on factors such as age, household income and educational attainment.

 And one more positive note...

 

































[Saturday Data is a regular feature of www.timlennox.com.] 
Celebrating a 10th anniversary this Fall!!!