Simple tv control for old guy
Author
Discussion

Stevemr

Original Poster:

892 posts

183 months

Yesterday (19:49)
quotequote all
So my father in law is 96 and getting confused. He has a Samsung tv with a humax box and a dvd player.
He has just been in hospital and come out with a lot of confusion.
A month ok he could work the tv fine. Now he pushes random buttons on any of the three controllers and basically can not get it working.
Is there any kind of really simple controller that might help?

bristolracer

5,935 posts

176 months

Yesterday (20:10)
quotequote all
Does he use the humax and dvd player?

If not some Samsung tvs had a really simple 5 button remote
Or you could get him an Amazon tv which would operate by voice.
Logitech used to do all for one remotes but I think they have stopped now or one for all may still be going but both of these still have a lot of buttons and a lot of potential to confuse the tv
So much stuff nowadays is not simple, technology seems to get more and more complex when really it should make operation easier

AlexC1981

5,692 posts

244 months

Yesterday (20:13)
quotequote all
If you google "TV remote for eldarly" there are lots of options.

Agent57

2,498 posts

181 months

Yesterday (20:30)
quotequote all
I'm middle aged and I find multiple remotes confusing.

Sky Plus remote is excellent. We recomended it to my Dad but he ended up with Sky Q which is shockingly bad. Don't know if Sky plus is still available.

If I had a pound for every time I see "No SIgnal" I could have retired long ago and set up my own company making tech that is designed for normal people of every age and not tech geeks.



Edited by Agent57 on Friday 24th July 20:43

TheDrownedApe

1,711 posts

83 months

Yesterday (20:40)
quotequote all
bristolracer said:
Does he use the humax and dvd player?

If not some Samsung tvs had a really simple 5 button remote
Or you could get him an Amazon tv which would operate by voice.
Logitech used to do all for one remotes but I think they have stopped now or one for all may still be going but both of these still have a lot of buttons and a lot of potential to confuse the tv
So much stuff nowadays is not simple, technology seems to get more and more complex when really it should make operation easier
This. I don't think about 96yo (happy to be proved wrong) is using those devices. Get the original tv controller, stick it on bbc and forget about it. My father is 86 and uses bbc one and classical fm through the TV. He knows two numbers and needs no more.

At 50 odd I had a harmony for 4 devices but the wife had zero clue. Now I've binned sky, firestick and chromecast in favour of stremio app on TV I need nothing other than tv controller....long live stremio!!

Edited by TheDrownedApe on Friday 24th July 20:44

fooman

1,158 posts

91 months

Yesterday (21:39)
quotequote all
Not really just a remote but I found a Roku Smart TV to be the simplest TV / Freeview / Streaming / Remote eco systems. Basically a TV with one remote, does everything, very simple interface.

InitialDave

14,927 posts

146 months

Yesterday (21:47)
quotequote all
Possible immediate solution?


monthou

5,309 posts

77 months

Yesterday (21:50)
quotequote all
We got a couple of Doro HandleEasys for my mum (the second for when she mislaid the first).
There may well be something better out there now, but they worked well.

Agent57

2,498 posts

181 months

Seem to recall a Panasonic remote I had 25 years ago had the main buttons as normal but then the remote could be flipped open to reveal all the advanced buttons. So no chance of changing a setting in error or getting confused by a mind-blowing array of buttons.

Are ergonomics getting worse as the years pass?