This article comes from the in-depth report group of “Eye of the Wind” by Phoenix Network Technology, author Zheng Yuan, Ai Fanerjing Authorized release. p>
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Do your parents use smartphones? The answer of most people is-yes, they will call, they will send WeChat. p>
When you’re using a mobile phone to get food, clothing, and accommodation, many parents won’t connect to Wi-Fi. For them, mobile phones have changed from “bricks” that can answer calls to “bricks” that can answer videos. p>
In 2020, the “See” action, Phoenix Network Technology and Tsinghua University Human Factors, unveiled the semi-invisible population of the Internet age of up to 100 million-the elderly. p>
They have a strong desire to use Internet products “independently”, but the degradation of physiological functions, the arrogance of smart devices, and the neglect of young people have made them a group of people who have been abandoned by the development of technology and the Internet. p>
This year, PhoenixNet Technology will focus on the trivial matter of “teaching elders to use mobile phones” and its vision of “adapting technology products to an aging society”. p>
The “Old” Internet in Parallel Worlds h3>
In this plan, we have invited 10 elders and 10 young people to let them talk about the use of mobile phones separately. p>
On the one hand is a young man who is tired of explaining the use of mobile phones and software to his elders-he has to teach a software to talk about it three or four times, set it up and throw it to TA, and forget it within two days, and collapse. Chickens talk to ducks. p>
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On the other side are elders whose vision, hearing, and cognition are in decline. They want to learn how to connect to the Internet, clear their memory, and even take a taxi, book a ticket, or karaoke. But I’m afraid that my children will abandon themselves as “stupid” and unable to learn, and will rarely let them help. Abandoned, and proud of Jiao Jiao. p>
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They each represent two groups that cannot understand each other: in an Internet world where young people are like fishes, older people are awkward, slow and frustrated. p>
Is it really difficult to teach an elderly person to use a smartphone? Librarians of Jiaxing Library have a say. p>
There is a very hot course in the Jiaxing Library in Zhejiang Province-mobile phone training course. According to Mr. Yang of the library, the so-called mobile phone class mainly teaches the elderly how to switch on and off and connect to the Internet., How to use the camera, WeChat, etc. p>
According to the introduction, in 2019, the library’s eight librarians organized a total of 159 lectures, which attracted tens of thousands of elderly people to participate. The age ranged from 60 to 89. p>
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▲ The old man is learning how to set an alarm with a smartphone Source / Photo by interviewees p>
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Here, each mobile phone course is 3-4 months, divided into introductory classes, basic classes, and advanced classes. There are also special “WeChat classes”, “Taobao classes”, and “Meituan classes”. The lesson on “How to Make a Circle of Friends” takes more than an hour to teach. p>
According to Mr. Yang, a librarian, more than half of the elderly who are studying mobile phones carry old phones that their children have eliminated; too little memory and too many cards are common problems with mobile phones used by the elderly. p>
The teacher said that when he first started teaching, old people might ask the same question 4 to 5 times; and other seniors struggled with their backs due to their backs. And they have only one simple purpose, to learn to use mobile phones. p>
Mr. Yang told Fenghuangwang Technology, an old man who loves listening to books but does not have a Wi-Fi network in his home, will go to the library every week, and let the librarian delete the listening book files downloaded in the last course, and then download new Files just because the phone’s memory is too small. p>
In China, there are tens of millions of elderly people who do not have these simple operations yet. Is it difficult to learn to make friends? Is it difficult to connect to a 4G network? p>
When faced with these doubts, you may need to think about a larger issue-an aging society and technological infrastructure. p>
The “digital divide” behind the trivial matter of learning mobile phones h3>
5G, AI, mobile internet 2.0, IoT, new generations of technology products aroundFresh terms, head-on with China’s aging population. And the elderly who “do not make mobile phones” are blind spots for the “selective loss” of emerging technology products. p>
If the trivial matter of not using a mobile phone is a common problem for 100 million people? p>
According to data from the Mob Institute, the number of middle-aged and older people over 45 years old using mobile smartphone devices is close to 100 million. According to Tencent’s financial report, as of the end of 2018, there were 63 million WeChat users over 55 years old. p>
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▲ Source / Mob Institute “2019 Silver Hair Crowd Insights” p>
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▲ Source / Wavemaker “The Hidden Value of China’s Aging Society” p>
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At the same time, “The Hidden Value of China’s Aging Society” shows that 65% of the elderly “like the Internet”, and they have contributed important monthly activities and transaction amounts to social networking, news, and online shopping consumption. p>
Different from the young group, they may not know what B Station or Douyu are, just as young people have never heard of Doudou Square Dance or Xiaoniang; maybe they wo n’t know about it and get it, but it ’s all major information. , Loyal supporters of health apps. p>
Interviews with dozens of interviewees of different age groups found that the elderly people who have just entered the Internet portal have the same rich needs as the younger ones, and the limitations of their physiological conditions prevent them from understanding the “mobile phone” deeply. . p>
However, this part of the elderly who is being tested on the edge of Internet products will have an increasing proportion of the population in China. p>
According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics, as of the end of 2018, China had a population of nearly 250 million people aged 60 years and over, accounting for 18% of the total population, accounting for more than 0-14 years of population for three consecutive years. Among them, the age of 65 and over exceeds 160 million, accounting for 12%. p>
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▲ Source / financial data Raw data: National Bureau of Statistics p>
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Luo Zhenyu mentioned in his New Year’s Eve speech: By 2020, the number of people born after the reform and opening up will be more than the people born before the reform and opening up. The backbone of society is migrating and a generation is aging. p>
According to China’s “Predictive Research Report on the Development Trend of Population Aging”, by 2050, China’s aging population will exceed 400 million, meaning that one in every four people is an elderly person, and China will face unprecedented population aging pressures. . p>
When the new generation is anxious and running to welcome a new life, these people have become the “marginal group” of the technological society. The wheels of new technology roll forward, spanning two centuries, and witnessing the generation of new China being abandoned. p>
When the “digital divide” between new technologies raged between two people, a less “age-friendly” mobile phone became the first obstacle for the elderly to enter the Internet era. p>
Narrow handwriting input boxes, complex media volume and ringtone volume adjustment methods, privacy protocols that can’t be seen with reading glasses, puzzling “cellular network”, “local area network”, “desktop”, “backstage” “And other terms that make them appear sluggish and clumsy when using smart devices. p>
An interviewed aunt told Fenghuangwang Technology that he would never receive a call because he would not adjust the sound; another senior said that the phone was often stuck and every time it was stuck, press the power off Key … p>
Visual aging, hearing aging, sensation aging, memory aging, attention aging, etc., are all internal obstacles faced by elderly people in Internet products such as mobile phones. What is more frustrating for these elderly people is that they do not understand . p>
Interviews show that even in first-tier cities such as Beijing, the concept of the Internet for the elderly is still unclear-this screen that makes them novel also makes them worry. p>
In the interview, we collected some of the most common problems experienced by older people when using mobile phones: p>
1. The font is too small to read the text on the phone.Take reading glasses with you; p>
2, the sound is too low to receive phone and text notifications; p>
3, the memory is too small, it always reminds the phone that the memory is full and will not use cloud disk; p>
4. The operation flow is complicated, and the page cannot be switched back; p>
5. Unable to distinguish pop-up ads from message notifications; p>
6. The keyboard for handwriting input is too small and it is inconvenient to input; p>
7. There are incomprehensible Chinese and incomprehensible English. Such as: Apple Store, Safari, Bluetooth. p>
But while telling these difficulties, the old men expressed a strong thirst for knowledge. In order to learn a function, they will write down the operation steps with a pen, and they will ask the neighborhood neighbors for advice. p>
They will turn to their children for help only when all else fails. p>
A lesson on aging h3>
Why do children become the last stop for the elderly to ask for help? Elders who do n’t use mobile phones, are they really “stupid”? p>
In the interview, it was found that, on the one hand, young people overestimated how friendly technology products are to the elderly society. More importantly, we don’t know anything about aging. p>
In our textbooks, there is the birth and growth of life, but few courses let us understand the twilight of life. Except for the obvious white hair and wrinkles, we have no experience of getting older. p>
Let’s look at a set of data first: p>
Generally, when the myelin sheath produced by the 39-year-old brain reaches its peak, it gradually stops producing and aging begins. p>
From the age of 40, people’s eyesight will begin to age; p>
The 42-year-old brain enters middle age. As the ability to circulate decreases, the brain’s oxygen supply decreases and memory is affected; p>
After 55 years of age, many people will develop presbyopia, are insensitive to specific colors (especially blue and green light), and have reduced dynamic vision;
By the age of 60, the cataract problem is more prominent, and the cognitive function is significantly degraded; p>
In terms of the nervous system, compared with young people, the number of elderly brain cells and synaptic connections are reduced, and cerebral blood flow is reduced, leading to problems such as decreased memory, fatigue, and slow response to the outside world. p>
According to the research, visual aging will affect the perception of the mobile phone interface of aging users, aging action will affect their operation of input devices such as mouse and keyboard, and aging of memory and processing power will cause their operation behavior to be slow, while auditory aging and The aging of language skills directly affects their communication with the outside world. p>
If we can understand aging, perhaps we can better understand why the elderly are at a loss for electronics. p>
At the Human Resources Institute of Tsinghua University, we wear eye masks that simulate cataracts and macular degeneration, earplugs that simulate senile deafness, and equipment such as elbow pads and weight-bearing wrist straps., Using VR technology to personally experience the sensory experience of 70-year-olds. p>
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▲ Source / Tsinghua University Human Factors Institute p>
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After putting on this set of equipment, you can obviously feel that the knuckles become less flexible, the high-pitched audio is inaudible, the vision is blurred, and the field of vision is narrow. Weight-bearing slippers, curved bibs, and weight-bearing ankle straps are slow and laborious. p>
In addition, the device simulates the bone calcification, humpback and other experiences often experienced by the elderly. Experiments have found that changes in hearing and vision alone have significantly reduced the speed of testers’ actions and reactions. p>
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▲ Simulate the living conditions of seniors Source / Phoenix Network Technology p>
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The helplessness, loneliness and sensitivity brought about by the aging of the body, the young people cannot understand and empathize. p>
But what convenience can a mobile phone bring to the elderly? You can tell from the software they use the most. p>
This is the answer we got in the interview: voice and video, mobile payment, and navigation are the most commonly used functions, followed by news and information products. There are also online shopping. p>
An aunt said that since learning to buy online, you do n’t have to worry about your children when buying things, and you do n’t have to go to the supermarket to work hard. p>
Smartphones are the only way for children with empty nests in the field to communicate with the outside world. The problem is that networking, memory, and basic operations are difficult problems. The elderly’s needs have not been met or even seen. p>
Rao Peilun, a professor of human factors and ergonomics at Tsinghua University, has been studying the technology needs of the elderly for more than 20 years. In his opinion, aging should be recognized first. p>
The lack of awareness of aging has led to our inability to understand the “stupidity” and “laziness” of the elders, and China is still far from Japan and Western countries in the infrastructure construction of elderly society. p>
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He believes that since the industrial revolution first began in the United Kingdom, it began to experience the effects of aging population in the early 20th century. It will take some time for China to incorporate aging into its planning, so that young people, businesses, and society will recognize aging It is also a long process. p>
As Rao Peilun said: the more you know about age, the more you can intervene. The technology we have in our hands also means that we have more responsibilities and missions. p>
Information technology products cannot be “blind” selectively h3>
Through the interview, we found that the most common demand of the elderly for mobile phones can be summarized as “four majors and one simple”: loud sound, large screen, large words, large memory, simpler interface and operation. p>
Considering the deterioration of the eyesight and hearing of the elderly, mainstream mobile phone manufacturers Huawei, Xiaomi, and OPPO have successively introduced the simple mode, the elderly mode, and the family protection mode. Support icon and text enlargement, voice screen reading, etc. The remote guard function allows the monitor to remotely delete spam messages and terminate decoy payment. p>
In the introductory teaching of electronic products, the TV application “Kiwi TV” launched the “AI elder model”, including remote child generation login, child generation payment, etc. The 360 IoT department launched a boot video tutorial specifically for the elderly . p>
Children’s payment, remote operation, real-time positioning, viewing device storage and power, etc., solve some rigid problems from the system: such as preventing fraud and preventing loss, so that we can solve some urgent problems for elders. p>
In the app software products, the care for the middle-aged and the elderly is becoming increasingly obvious. p>
Apps with platform attributes, such as Baidu, Meituan, and Ctrip have launched voice search functions. For the elderly who have difficulty operating, Shouqi has also introduced the function of calling on behalf of others. p>
In the input method software, Sogou, Xunfei and other input methods have voice input. Among them, the Sogou input method has launched an older version of the app in some OEM products; Alipay provides a Alipay account that connects parents, and helps parents complete online registration in different places. p>
These companies are all trying to make up for the lack of functionality. However, from the perspective of the actual use experience of the elderly, the problems of pre-installed software, privacy acquisition, induced information pushed by the system, too many buttons, and complicated operations need to be further solved. p>
Aunt Zhang, who likes to use the mobile phone software K Song, is puzzled. Every time she opens the software, she will be prompted that K Song software is using my location. “Mapping software can guide me, but what does K song need my location?” P>
Zhang Xiaolong once admitted in a WeChat public class that in a business environment like this, the majority of users actually have a high tolerance for bad forced experience. Many people think that many things are normal, such as open-screen ads are normal, and the system pushes marketing messages.Information is normal, and it is normal to induce you to click. p>
Therefore, in the design of information technology products, taking into account the physiological aging and cognitive aging of the elderly, lowering the product use and learning threshold is a business issue that most technology companies need to face. p>
The “13th Five-Year Plan” National Plan for the Development of the Aging Industry and the Construction of the Pension System proposes that the supply of elderly products such as communications services and e-commerce, and the technological content of elderly products should be enhanced. p>
In the view of Professor Rao Peilun, there is an urgent need to establish a basic standard for interaction design for the elderly in China. Under this standard, more universal functions with social welfare are explored, and the Internet infrastructure in an aging society is explored. commercial value. p>
Bringing parents into the Internet age h3>
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In addition to mobile phone manufacturers and Internet products, urban communities, nursing homes, libraries, and senior universities also gradually pay attention to the needs of the elderly to learn to use mobile phones, conduct training courses, and organize volunteers to come to help. p>
In contrast, we who are closest to our elders are far from enough. p>
Although mobile phones have successively introduced affection modes for the elderly, in most cases the phones used by elders are old phones eliminated by children, and these convenient voice assistant functions and family guardianship functions have not played their role. . p>
Uncle Li, who is passionate about taking pictures, is now 70 years old. He has been able to shop online and navigate independently through his mobile phone, but his 32G mobile phone that he has used for three years is already very stuck. p>
“You delete those photos that are useless, but I can’t bear it”, because for them, as the body agesSome places can be seen once and less once. p>
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Most people think that “using mobile phones” is justified. Only a small number of young people care about the use of their elders’ mobile phones. Very few young people repeatedly teach the elderly to use software functions. Most elderly people would rather ask their neighbours for advice than to “troubleshoot” their children. p>
Due to the limitation of physiological conditions, the elderly have a lower ability to accept new things. It takes longer to learn and understand a new thing, and the ability to adapt to society and the living environment is weakened. It is also easy to produce inferiority complexes. p>
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So, our first suggestion to young people here is to build Wi-Fi and other infrastructure for elders, and change the elders to a mobile phone with a large screen, large memory and large fonts. p>
More importantly, I hope that young people can take some time to teach them how to pay by scanning codes, pay by transferring funds, clearing memory, and registering for medical treatment. Consider the elders for their clumsiness, forgetfulness, a little more understanding and patience, and also pull them into the Internet to “surf”. p>
Parents have brought us into their world. Now parents also need us to bring them into our world, a world where everything is connected. p>