Why you need to buy a Mobile Phone... for Gran.

I'd like to draw your attention to a little known manufacturer who is struggling to get the message out about their brilliant device range.  As you might have guessed by my overview above, their devices -- in particular the M5000 -- are not aimed at you or I.  They're aimed at those aged 60+.  The device itself doesn't look sexy.  Indeed, it is the essence of utility.  It's flippin' massive.  It's got a huge screen and massive keys. It is, quite simply, a BIG mobile phone, easily usable by any pensioner.

I'm about to buy a few and I'd like you to take the time to consider whether any of your relatives could use one of them.  Here's what prompted me to go hunting for the device.

The Critical Need For Connectivity

There's a relative of mine who has only recently developed a need for a mobile handset.  For 86 years, she hasn't bothered.  She has made do with a fixed-line telephone that has done a super job.  She lives near Glasgow and she has, hitherto, been exceptionally mobile.  She is oft described as, 'good for her age'.  She has, in the past, attributed her rude health in advanced years to daily trips to the shops, affording her the opportunity to stretch her legs and get some fresh air.

It is generally accepted that the elderly should retain a degree of activity including regular walks to get the heart moving and to retain muscle mass.

Over the last year or so, my relative's eyesight has begun to diminish and that, inevitably, takes a toll on one's confidence at executing even the most mundane transactions.  Telling the difference between denominations of currency, for example, is a real problem.  Reading the newspaper requires the use of a magnifying glass and writing letters and paying bills has become a significant challenge.

The biggest issue for my relative, though, is going out of the house.  She has, of late, avoided walking long distances -- a description that now includes the 5-minute jaunt round the corner to the shops.  That requires the aid of a taxi.  As a family, we ensure that there is no issue from a cost perspective.  But there's a user-interface problem: Inconsistent service delivery.  This has a direct effect on the wellbeing of my relative.  Let me explain.

Marks & Spencer

The local taxi firm has implemented a system that allows my relative to simply place a call to them, press '1' on the keypad and then hang-up. The taxi firm already hold her address on their system -- and when she presses '1', that tells the taxi firm to send a taxi to her home address. All is good. The outbound journey isn't the problem. It's the return journey.

After paying for her food she usually asks if 'someone could call her a taxi'.

Normally this request is greeted with good grace.  Somebody, somewhere on the team at Marks & Spencer, flips open their wireless landline and places the call.  My relative then waits at the pre-arranged location and gets picked up swiftly.

But recently, the store has implemented a policy of refusing to do this.  Cost savings, perhaps, I don't know.   Whilst there is a phone that can be used in-store to call a taxi, it's a 'normal phone' with small keys.  Frail hands and strained eyes cannot easily operate it.

You wouldn't think this is a massive problem.  But it is.  It's such a problem that the thought of going out to Marks & Spencer’s now engenders a degree of panic for my relative.  This panic has been enough to begin to restrict her shopping trips to twice a month rather than once a week.

The Keys Are Too Small

"Buy her a mobile," I said, immediately, after my mum relayed the trauma of the relative's recent excursion.

My mum knew that wouldn't work, "Oh she can't work the keys on a mobile phone, Ewan"

"But... what about.." I said, scanning my mind for the largest Nokia or Samsung I could think of, before mum added, "And she can't read the small screens either."

Oh.

"But a mobile phone would fix the issue, entirely?" I asked.

Mum nodded, "Yes, it would.. just, I've been into the Vodafone shop and the o2 shop to look.  All of their phones are too small for her to use."

My mother's buying capacity is significant.  Vodafone and other operators would do well to look to this issue.

Just to reiterate the problem here -- because my relative can't rely on the Marks & Spencer team to dial a taxi for her, she has begun to seriously worry about 'going out'.  It's not just heading to Marks & Spencer -- going to the chemist, the doctors, the hairdressers -- all require return taxi journeys that need a kind soul to make a call to the taxi firm.  She's tried having them wait, but most taxi drivers refuse on the basis that 'most old dears forget I'm here' and 'I end up missing out on fares'.

What's the solution?

A big, big mobile phone.  A phone with a BIG screen, BIG keys and a LOUD ringtone.  Preferably one that integrates with hearing aids too.  And one that has a vibrate function guaranteed to wake the neighbourhood, a decent battery and an easy to use charging dock (little plug-in adapters are not good if you're elderly).

Enter Amplicom .

Amplicom are a UK firm specialising in producing easy to use phones (landline and mobile).  Their products are ideal for people hard of hearing, partially sighted and less able.  That is my relative.  In fact, when my wife and I had a chat about this earlier, it turns out we've got about five relatives who fall into this category and who should have a mobile handset (neither of them currently have a mobile phone).

The device that's caught my attention is their 'big' mobile phone, the Amplicom M5000 .

The M5000 not only offers an extra loud ringer (up to +100 dB), speaker (+23 dB, handsfree support) and a powerful vibrating alert.  But it also comes with a large screen with big fonts and buttons.
It has 5 number emergency memory and 3 dedicated quick-dial buttons.
Like most phones it is text message capable with a large phone book
and a great 120 minute talk time, its also Hearing Aid Compatible ("HAC") with integrated induction coil (Rating M3/T3).
The M5000 comes with a desktop charger and retails for about £80, unlocked.

The Market Doesn't Like Elderly

I can't quite believe this lack of awareness and consideration.  I'd go so far as to encourage the mobile networks to consider offering these devices to their existing contract customers for a tenner a month with a 250 minute/month inclusive deal.  I'd take a few from Vodafone and give them to my relatives.

The trouble with this kind of purchase is that the relatives in question are never, ever going to buy the devices for themselves.  They need to be bought by you and I and passed on, pre-configured with the relevant taxi and family phone numbers.  Further more, I don't want my relatives to have to mess about with Pay As You Go sim cards.  I don't want them paying 45p a minute or a similar stupid rate to phone the taxi.  I'll pay for it.  Add it to my bill.  Let them use my minutes.  Don't take the p**s, Mr Operator, and I'll buy a few -- and what's more, be kind to me and be sure to retain my primary business with you too.

I'm disappointed that the market -- in particular, the mobile phone retailers -- haven't quite recognised the need.You sell it to ME.  I buy them for my Gran, my Aunts, all my elderly relatives.  As much as I'd love to give them an iPhone or something whizzy, I recognise that this segment of my family simply needs a device that offers basic telephone functionality when they're out and about.  And eighty quid doesn't break the bank.  It's a brilliant investment in terms of peace of mind for me, my family and the relative in question.

As for the relative I described above, I think -- when she gets this -- it'll change her perspective on getting out the house.  I'm also going to sort out another line on my Vodafone account for her so she doesn't need to worry about topping up.  I hope the M5000 will give her more confidence to go out, safe in the knowledge that she will be able to summon a taxi whenever she wishes it.

By Ewan McLeod

1560 words

Images available upon request.