Over the years I have helped several individuals that fall into the so-called ‘silver surfers’ generation get to grips with computers. Most simply want to keep in touch with distant relatives or pursue a hobby online. Generally speaking, most have found it difficult to get to grips with the keyboard and mouse. Usually this is due to physical reasons such as arthritis or just simply finding it difficult to grasp the principles behind using a mouse and keyboard together to navigate around their chosen operating system.
Although I am something a Mac aficionado, my own sense is that both Macs and PCs are equally difficult to get along with because of their reliance on the keyboard and mouse combination.
So, it was interesting the other day to have a conversation with someone about their mother, who falls into the ‘silver surfer’ demographic. For ages she had been trying to get to grips with a computer but had failed to conquer the keyboard and mouse hurdle. Well, one day, her family decided to treat her to an iPad, as a gift and as a direct replacement for her computer. Imagine their surprise and delight to find that after a few days she is in happily spending lots of time on the iPad, doing all the things she tried to do on her computer but had found so difficult. It has literally transformed her life. As she lives alone, the iPad has become her means of keeping in touch via email, being able to browse the internet at leisure and she is spending more and more time on it.
So, maybe Apple should come up with some discount scheme for folk over 60 years of age? I am sure there is an opportunity here for Apple to grab even more market share whilst at the same time transforming the lives of our senior citizens. Anyone listening….
Related articles
- The iPad Just Ate 11% Of The PC Market (huguesrey.wordpress.com)
- Apple’s iPad Cannibalizes Mac Sales, Too (pcworld.com)
- Can an iPad Take the Place of a Computer? (maketecheasier.com)
- iPad sales are “an absolute frenzy,” Apple exec says (venturebeat.com)
- Keys to Easier iPad Typing (gadgetwise.blogs.nytimes.com)
- Apple Now Selling More iPads Than Macs; iOS Eclipses Dell And HP’s PC Businesses (blogs.forbes.com)
- Silver Surfer Typo = FAIL !!! (edugeek.net)
- Silver surfers: You have 65+ friends – Features, Gadgets & Tech – The Independent (avantrasara.com)
