So my old man wants to use Whatsapp and thinks he's capable of using a smartphone (debatable).
Can anyone recommend me a smallish (4") phone I can buy to test the waters. Preferably something I can root as I want to disable as many features (i.e headaches for me) as possible to restrict to phone + whatsapp.
edit: I'm looking for an Android phone (Chinese ok) for less than $200.
Thanks!
Phones measuring 4" inch nowadays can be quite hard to operate. I used to only buy small smartphones but when given to my parents they all complain how hard it is to type or read messages.
I recommend instead buying a phablet, and then customizing it so that it becomes easier to use
Avoid the "curse of Touchwiz" by installing a 3rd party custom launcher so that user experience is consistent across devices. Nova Launcher is great. If you give your old man a Samsung for example, then all they will continue to use in the future is Samsung devices because they become too used to the quirks and limitations of the custom Skin.
Change the icon sizes (increase 15 percent) and text sizes (Large or XL Large)
Install the most commonly used widgets to the home screen, such as power controls, Pocket Weather and maybe a agenda / calendar widget.
Make the homescreen as simple as possible. Some launchers lets you 'lock' the homescreen so that you cannot modify the layout by accident. To do this in Nova, go to Nova settings -> Desktop -> Advanced -> Lock Desktop
I forgot to mention
My old man wants only Phone + Whatsapp + something that easily fits in his pocket. I'm just looking for advice on a model I can buy and happy to take care of the rest. Thanks.
PS: I use Apex launcher and I like your item 4 idea. Something I hada't considered.
5S, 6 or SE. Just leave it stock. Let them do their own thing.
old people aren't even that stupid, ofc he can use a smartphone.
iPad mini. As a user of both iOS and Android, I find Android too intrusive. It's always buzzing, updating, doing stuff. iOS just seems a lot more chill. The apps on the iPad are all pretty well optimised compared to some on Android.
I used to love to tinker, modify, build it myself, etc. Now I am middle aged I just like to turn my stuff on and occasionally do an Apple update.
iPad would be great if whatsapp is available on the iPad. Currently, I don't think it is.
AFAIK, you need a phone to connect to whatsapp.
Why restrict him? Install Whatsapp, install a nice launcher. Put the rest of the apps he "won't" use into a folder that he can touch if he wants, or doesn't have to. I say folder because it'll be out of his view if he doesn't use them. Maybe one day he'll take his time to explore what the phones can do, and learn.
Get him a Samsung S5 or S6. They should be cheap now a days, and still good phones.
Can anyone recommend me a smallish (4") phone I can buy to test the waters. Preferably something I can root as I want to disable as many features (i.e headaches for me) as possible to restrict to phone + whatsapp.
No need to root if you go for any apple device. Mum and dad got iPads are they're very happy with it. iOS is very straightforward and easy to use.
Don't go for anything android. They both have android smartphones and they always come to me asking questions about this and that which really digs my head in. With iOS, there's no need to overcomplicate things such as restricting apps or downloading a launcher.
Find a cheap refurbished iPhone if you don't wanna spend the big bucks. An iPhone 5 or 6 should do the trick.
My vote is for Apple iPhone SE or 6, my son has the SE and it was $399, and I got iPhone 6 off Target eBay for $449. OSI is very easy to use and you can easily hide the apps you don't want.
My dad had a similar requirement - he only wanted to be able to make calls, and use Viber and Instagram to keep up with family and friends.
I bought him a Telstra 4GX Premium - they're only $149 and have a decent, bright 5.5" screen. The larger screen makes text, touch targets and the keyboard bigger. The speaker is pretty loud. I installed a custom launcher and hid most of the shortcuts to avoid confusion.
I bought an unlock code for a few bucks off eBay so he can use on any network - Aldi has a decent low-cost plan that suits his requirements.
Thank you!!! The only response that actually addressed my question.
No worries. BTW there's nothing super special about the 4GX Premium (not a wonderful phone by any measure) but it's perfectly functional and runs Android 7.0 for good compatibility.
It's cheap enough that I don't care if it gets broken or dies in 18 months time, and the reception range is decent.
Dad also has a tablet (Galaxy Note 10) that he uses for reading the news and doing crosswords. It's pretty great for that, but it never leaves the house. That's why he wanted a phone.
I don't think an iPad is a good idea. They're too big to use as a phone (even the Mini), and the 4G versions are too expensive. And they're too easy to break if dropped. They're not any easier to use than a basic Android phone either.
Thanks and I agree. I'm just looking for a cheap phone that does the basics (only interested in whatsapp + phone). He wants to try it out and see 'what the fuss is about'. He just wants something small that fits easily in his pocket but I don't think he realises the trade-offs (yet). So this would be a good start and worst case it's not going to cost a bundle. He def doesn't want a tablet and I'm not even remotely interested in Apple products. I'm pretty expert on installing Android custom roms, and everything else Android so iphone/ipad isn't for me.
I would also like to advise against a small 4 inch screen phone. I'm in my 40's and my eyesight is deteriorating slowly but I find it almost impossible to read the tiny text on my HTC phone without the reading glasses. The 5.2 inch screen on my Huawei phone is just about readable without the reading glasses at least for a few more years. I prefer using the laptop for most internet stuff. I use Skype on the laptop and on the phone as Whatsapp does not work on the laptop.
If I have kids I hope they don't try and do this to me ;)
I taught my parents how to use Google to find solutions to things so they didn't cause 'headaches'.