Best smartphones for your parents
In this day and age, everybody needs a smartphone, especially our parents or grandparents. And, while they don’t do much with their phones compared to us younger folks, they still need it. The biggest reason would be communication. Parents and grandparents who live far from their families need a smartphone to feel closer to their families. After all, one video call from a grandkid can be enough to make grandpa or grandma’s day!
Another reason aside from staying connected with families is a smartphone is an easy source of entertainment. It keeps them occupied while they enjoy a quiet down time. But, a lot of time, a smartphone just helps make their life easier.
It is obvious how a smartphone is a convenient tool. Older people like our parents and grandparents, use it to communicate not only with us but also with their doctors. Among other things, a smartphone is also a good tool for keeping track of their daily schedule and medications, stimulating their brains, and keeping up with everything that’s going on!
With that said, let’s get into some of the best smartphones for our parents and grandparents!
iPhone SE: The smartphone that keeps things familiar!
When picking out a smartphone for the older members of your family, you should get them something that they can easily learn or something they are already familiar with. This lessens the need for them to invest so much time in a learning curve and take in all the technical gestures and commands needed to operate a smartphone. But, at the same time, you still want to get them something modern and capable. So, we’re starting with something simple, and that is the iPhone SE.
When this phone came out, everybody wondered who it caters to. The most common answers are minimalists and old people. This is because the iPhone SE is one of the best smartphones that provide the absolute bare minimum. A screen with a decent resolution, a slim and small package, a good camera, and great performance with the latest Apple processor equipped. But that’s not all it came with. The iPhone SE also came with familiarity which is great for the older folks who still hold on to their iPhone 5s or iPhone 6 but are in a dire need of an upgrade.
The iPhone SE is old-fashioned in looks but young at heart. It has the familiar look and hardware that a senior person is accustomed to but has the power and is new enough to keep up with the newer models out there. This means that your parent or grandparents will get the upgrade and won’t have to go through a tough learning curve!
However, one downside of the iPhone SE is the small display. At 4.7 inches, this can make it hard for old people to navigate through the screen and enjoy the content. But, other than that, it’s all good!
The iPhone SE 2022 is priced at 31,990 pesos for the 128GB storage variant and 6 thousand pesos more for the 256GB storage variant.
iPhone 13: The best modern smartphone!
Calling it the best might be a little bit of s stretch. But, we can all agree that this smartphone is great! The iPhone 13 is one of the well-rounded smartphones out there at the moment. It mixes a good balance of performance, features, and modern design. This is good if we want our parents or grandparents to keep up with the times. And, unlike the iPhone SE, the iPhone 13 has a bigger screen while keeping a smaller footprint at the same time.
However, for older people, the iPhone 13 requires a learning curve. This is because, unlike the iPhone SE, the iPhone 13 adapts the newer design and favors the use of gestures in place of a good old home button. Thankfully, iPhone Operating System or iOS is easy to learn. It is light, simple, and user-friendly.
This makes the iPhone 13 one of the easiest and best smartphone to recommend getting for your parents or grandparents.
The iPhone 13 starts at 50,990 Pesos for the 128GB variant.
Samsung A53 5G: For the parent who prefers an android
While an iPhone is almost always an easy recommendation, not everybody fancies, an iOS device. This is where android steps in with its cheaper but competitive options. And believe me, there is so much to choose from in the Android side of the smartphone world that it’s not even funny.
But we still have to make a recommendation right? Well, Samsung just happens to make some of the best android smartphones in the market, and their latest in the A-series lineup is something worth considering. That is the Samsung A53 5G
The A53 5G provides an excellent and large screen, great options for memory capacity up to 256 GB, amazing cameras, and a big 5000mAh battery capable of 25W fast charging. To top it all off, the phone comes equipped with 5G support. That just makes sure that your mom or dad gets to keep up with the latest tech development!
The official prices for the Samsung A53 5G is 22,990 Pesos for 6+128 GB variant. 23,490 Pesos for the 8+128GB version and 25, 490 Pesos for 8+256GB variant.
But, if you’re aiming for something cheaper, then get its younger sibling. The Samsung A33 5G, which you can get for as low as 18,990 Pesos.
Nokia G20: The OG smartphone battery champ
Compared to the other phones on this list, this one is cheaper. It’s also perfect for your parents or grandparents because of some key features.
One of these is its claimed 3-day battery life. Nokia is able to pull it off with this smartphone because of AI assistance when you enable the adaptive battery feature on the phone. This is perfect for when your parents or grandparents keep forgetting to plug up their phones to charge. Strong battery life is also good for long hours of entertainment and video calls with loved ones.
Another great feature of this phone is its dedicated Google Assistant button. Virtual assistance for your old folks is literally at the tip of their fingers. With one press of a button, then can call, open apps, or do other functions without the need to fully navigate the UI of the phone.
Aside from these features, the Nokia G20 also comes with the best features that we want for the older members of our family. That is a hefty amount of storage capacity, a big display, and good cameras. And, aside from these, the Nokia G20 also comes with more!
It also features a simple, elegant, and durable design. It also brings a clutter-free stock android experience, a spatial surround-sound audio system, and 2 years of promised software updates.
The price of the Nokia G20 starts at around nine thousand pesos. Definitely WAY cheaper than the other recommendations.
So, which one should you choose?
At the end of the day, the decision is up to you and the person you’re giving it to. But if they won’t be the one choosing and it is all up to you, consider the best one that your budget can afford. Also, take into consideration how the person uses a smartphone. This is so that you can choose a phone with the right specifications to serve them well. Among the recommended phones, I would pick the iPhone 13 or the Samsung A33 5G. I think that they are the perfect package for older smartphone users.
But, If you’re bad at surprises like me, the fool-proof plan is to take them for a stroll in the mall and find out together the gadget that they prefer. You can also help them browse for options online!
The perfect phone for your parents or grandparents won’t begin and end with the recommended phones in this article. Thankfully, there are a lot of great options available to you right now. A lot of smartphone manufacturers offer phones with great value for money, so you are spoiled for choice when choosing the perfect smartphone for your parents.
Gian is nerd, a big one. He is fascinated by technology and how it improves our day-to-day life, and if you happen to meet him, he’ll most likely geek out about the tech you’re carrying. He tends to find it hard to stop talking when asked about things that interest him, so he writes about it all instead.