If you have ever watched a parent or grandparent tap their phone again and again with nothing happening, you have seen the problem first-hand. It is easy to blame “not being good with technology.” The real cause is usually the design of the phone. Today’s smartphones are built around a flat glass touch screen, small icons and layers of menus. That design works well for a 25-year-old with steady hands and perfect eyesight. For many older adults, it works against them at almost every step.
Below we look at the four main reasons the standard touch screen lets older users down: the touch technology itself, non-standard interfaces, small screens and sheer complexity. We also look at what a better approach looks like.
1. The touch screen often can’t “feel” an older finger
Almost every modern smartphone uses a capacitive touch screen. Underneath the glass is a grid of electrodes. When your finger touches the glass, it draws a tiny electrical charge, and the phone registers a tap. That only works if your skin conducts electricity well enough, which depends on the moisture and salt in your skin. As How-To Geek explains, dry skin is the most common reason a phone fails to detect a finger.
This affects older adults in several ways:
- Dry skin (xerosis). As we age, our oil and sweat glands become less active, so skin gets drier and less hydrated. Very dry fingertips carry less charge to the screen, so taps get missed. People sometimes call this “zombie finger”.
- Reduced circulation. Lower blood flow to the hands can leave fingertips colder and drier still, which further weakens the small electrical signal the screen needs.
- Arthritis, stiffness and tremor. Touch screens demand precise movements: double-taps, swipes, drags and long-presses held perfectly still. Osteoarthritis, joint stiffness and essential tremor make these movements much harder. Arthritis is common in later life: America’s Health Rankings reports that prevalence among adults 65 and older is more than six times higher than among adults aged 18 to 44.
- No tactile feedback. A glass screen is completely flat and rigid. Unlike a physical button that clicks, it gives no sense that a press has registered. Users who grew up with buttons and dials are left guessing. Did it work? Should I press again? Pressing again often triggers the wrong action.
The result is frustration that has nothing to do with intelligence or willingness to learn. The phone simply isn’t hearing the user.
2. There is no standard way to use a smartphone
A landline phone worked the same way in every home. Smartphones don’t. Every manufacturer, operating system and app arranges things differently. “Back” might be a button, a swipe or an arrow in the corner. Settings move with each software update. One app uses a menu with three dots and another uses three lines. A gesture that works in one place does something completely different in another.
For younger users, working out each new screen becomes second nature. For many older adults, every update or new app means starting again. Learning by trial and error is also risky on a device where one wrong tap can delete a contact or start a call by accident. It is no surprise that, in Pew Research Center’s study of older adults and technology, 77% of seniors said they would need someone to help them learn a new device like a smartphone or tablet.
3. Small screens, small targets
Phones have become thinner and sleeker, but the things you need to tap have stayed tiny. Icons, keyboard keys and buttons such as “Accept,” “Cancel” or “Skip ad” are often just a few millimeters wide and packed closely together. That causes two problems:
- Seeing them. Visual acuity naturally declines with age, and conditions such as macular degeneration, glaucoma and cataracts are far more common in later life. Small, low-contrast text and icons can be hard or impossible to read.
- Hitting them. Even when a user can see the target, a slightly unsteady finger can easily land on the button next to it.
Phones do offer zoom and larger text settings, but these are often buried in menus. Turning them on can also push content off the screen, which makes navigation even harder.
4. Too much complexity, too many layers
A modern smartphone can do hundreds of things. The cost of that flexibility is complexity: home screens full of app icons, notifications popping up over whatever you are doing, pop-up permission requests and settings nested three or four levels deep. To make a simple phone call, a user may need to unlock the phone, find the right app, open the contacts list, scroll, select a name and then tap the call button. Each step is another chance to get lost.
For someone experiencing mild cognitive changes, reduced vision or limited dexterity, these problems pile up. A small difficulty with touch, plus a confusing menu, plus a tiny button, can turn an everyday task into an impossible one. Many older adults then stop using their phone for anything but answering calls, and lose access to the services, family contact and independence a smartphone can offer.
A better approach: let people just ask
The answer isn’t to expect older users to adapt to the phone. The phone should adapt to them. The most natural interface there is is the human voice.
That is the thinking behind RealSAM Pocket. Instead of hunting through icons and menus, users tap anywhere on the screen and simply say what they want: “Call Ben,” “Read my messages,” “Where am I?” or “What’s the weather today?” There are no complex gestures to learn, no small icons to find and no commands to memorize. You don’t need a precise finger on a precise spot, because one tap anywhere is enough.
RealSAM Pocket was designed for people who are blind or have low vision, many of whom are older adults. It brings calls, texts, audiobooks, podcasts, radio, reading printed text aloud and location help together in one simple, voice-driven experience. Explore the key features, compare RealSAM Pocket bundles, or read our FAQs.
See the difference for yourself
If you or someone you care for struggles with a touch screen, the problem is the design, not the person. Schedule a free demo to see how RealSAM Pocket works, or visit our financial assistance and resources page to find funding options that may be available to you. Veterans can learn more on our Veterans page, and our team is always happy to help through our contact page.
