Ease of Use

Challenge- When your turn on your Smart TV you want TV!!

Solution: Change the the Amazon Fire TV Cube default setting from Fire TV when powering on to the cable or satellite TV you expected

How to get it: Using your Amazon Fire TV remote, perform these steps

* Click Home

* Scroll across and click Settings

* Scroll down and across and click Equipment Control

* Scroll downs and click Manage Equipment

* Scroll down and click Advanced Settings

* Scroll down and click Power On Input

* Scroll down and click on TV Default

* Click Home to exit

How it works: After performing the above steps, the next time you turn on your Fire TV Cube it will select the Cable of Satellite receiver versus the normal Fire TV Home Page

Challenge- Display Multiple Cameras on Fire TV

Solution: If you have been using your Amazon Fire TV to display a camera and wanted a way to display multiple cameras at a time... take a look at this solution

You can display cameras using Alexa verbal commands on your Fire TV from Nest, Ring, Blink, and many others as a SINGLE camera. Currently there is no way to display MULTIPLE cameras at the same time.

How to get it: TinyCam is an Amazon Apps Store app that can display multiple cameras at the same time on your Fire TV. The TinyCam Pro app is available in the Amazon App Store for Fire TV and Fire Tablets. The free version is available only for Fire Tablets. The easiest way to install the app is to use your computer to order it and “deliver” it to your Fire TV or Fire Tablet.

Once installed and configured, you can display your multiple camera setup by saying “Alexa, launch Tiny Cam”

How it works: Although the app is capable of supporting many different brands of cameras, I am only using it with Nest and Wyze. There is no support for Ring or Blink and the Nest support is only 1 frame per second, usable but very slow

Finding your lost devices

Challenge- Its very common to misplace certain personal items such as keys, medications, wallet even your phone as we age or become infirmed. For several years the Bluetooth based “finder” type devices (tiles) have relied on using your phone with an app to ping the devices. These devices work well, IF

1. IF, you can locate your phone

2. IF, it’s charged

3. IF, you can handle the unlocking code

4. IF, you can find the app on the phone

Solution

With the addition of a low-cost Amazon Echo Dot, you can avoid these steps as long as you can remember the phrase to speak. If someone has trouble doing that, an Amazon Echo Button can be placed in a FIXED LOCATION(maybe on the fridge door) that just requires the person to tap on it.

Here are the functions this setup can provide using voice or a button touch

· Ping my tagged item

· Ring my phone

In addition, some tiles, notably Chipolo and Tile, have added a “separation feature” so that if you leave home without your phone, but have your tagged item with you, e.g. car keys, that tile will beep. The tile can also be squeezed to beep the phone when you try to locate it

Making Your Smartphone Easy to Use

Samsung Easy Mode

Challenge- It's sometimes difficult to find the contact you wish to call, email or message

Solution- Samsung Easy Mode

It gives a simple “home screen” with just a few icons and much bigger text. Swiping your finger from left-to-right gets a full screen with pictures of your friends and family that you can just tap to call, text or email them.

Enabling Samsung Easy Mode

1. Swipe down from top of the screen

2. Tap the “gear” icon

3. Scroll down to “Display”

4. Scroll down to “Easy mode” and tap it

5. Tap “Easy mode”

6. Tap Apply

You can always go back to “Standard mode” the same way

Using Easy Mode

The home screen consists of a few basic icons that you can also remove or add to by tapping the icon that looks like a group of “dots”

1. Tap and HOLD to delete or move any icon

2. Tap the “dots” icon to see more icons to add

3. On the home screen, swipe in form the left to see your Contacts page

4. Tap any icon to add an existing contact or a new one

Samsung Direct Dial Mode

Challenge- for those with cog, having to choose between phone, email and text can present a problem

Solution- Samsung Direct Dial feature

Enabling Samsung Direct Dial Mode

1. Tap and HOLD in the middle of the Home Screen

2. Tap the “Widgets” icon

3. Scroll over to “Contacts” and tap it

4. Tap “Direct Dial and DRAG to your Home Screen

5. Select a contact

6. Repeat the above for other contacts

Using Direct Dial Mode

You can now just tap any of the Direct Dial icons to call your contacts.

You may want to move or remove other icons from your Home Screen

Tap to Answer a Phone call

Challenge- for those with dexterity issues, having to "swipe" to answer a phone

call can present a problem

Enabling Samsung Tap to Open (Note that older devices may have a different procedure https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLWUYNEweW4 )

1. Swipe down from the top of the screen

2. Tap the “gear” icon

3. Scroll down to Accessibility and tap it

4. Tap on Interaction and Dexterity

5. Tap on Assistant menu and enable it

6. Tap on Single tap to swipe and enable it

7. Tap the Home Button to get the Home Screen

Using Tap to Open

Have someone call you and note that you can now just “tap to answer” instead of “swipe to answer”

If you’d like to get rid of the “Assistant menu” (4 dot icon), just tap and drag it to “hide here” which will appear after you tap and hold it

Unlocking your Phone

Challenge- Keeping your phone protected with a PIN is a great idea, when you are out of the home, but is a hassle when in your home

Solution- Samsung Smart Lock

Keeping your Phone Charged

Challenge- Remembering to keep your phone charged is not always easy and plugging into that small connector is tough

Solution- Samsung Wireless Charging

Enabling Samsung Wireless Charging

Many Samsung phones (Note 10 Plus 5G, Note 10 Plus, Note 10, S10 5G, S10 Plus, S10, S10e, Note 9, S9, S9+, Note 8, S8, S8+, S7, S7 Edge have wireless charging that allow you to simply place (without connecting a cable) the phone on a special wireless charging stand the charging starts.

Phones without this feature can be adapted to wireless charging through a charging sleeve

Be sure to purchase the type with the correct connector for your phone

USB-C https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M11UT3V/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_0KNaEb7W4HRPH

USB-micro https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CVYM71T/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_hNNaEbRMT0VQ1

(Be sure to check the orientation)

Of course, this also requires the purchase of a wireless charging stand

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DBXZZN3/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_iKNaEbRP6CFVQ

A less costly approach, but not as convenient, is the use of a break-away magnetic charging cable. This is much easier to connect, especially if your phone charging cable needs to be plugged in the “right way”

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07QR33659/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_gPNaEbWTRE8RP

Technology4Seniors