Simplify Senior TV Entertainment: Try Out Family-Assisted Streaming
|
|
Time to read 8 min
You hang up the phone with a big sigh. It’s the third phone call you’ve gotten from Mom today, and each one involved troubleshooting her TV. Between complex streaming interfaces on smart TVs, remote controls with a plethora of buttons, and additional devices to juggle, like soundbars and streaming devices, you find yourself asking: What happened to simple TV entertainment seniors could operate with no issues? Just know, you’re not alone.
As modern TVs add more features and roll out fresh software updates, their complexity increases, and the TV your parent enjoys watching for at least four hours every day becomes a huge headache, for both them and you. Tech can lighten the load for caregivers, but lately, you feel like every time you talk to Dad, it’s about a tech issue he needs help solving.
Luckily, there’s an alternative you might not have considered yet. In place of unassisted complex streaming setups, there’s a family-assisted streaming solution you can try: JubileeTV. With a service like this, you can remotely take a look at your parent’s TV screen, switch inputs, adjust volume, and even start playing a TV show or movie for them.
Now, when you get a phone call from Mom — perhaps through the video call feature built into JubileeTV — you can simply connect and chat about your kids, weekend plans, and happy memories. Say goodbye to spending the entire call running through a list of potential solutions to a problem you can’t see with your own eyes.
JubileeTV doesn’t magically simplify existing TV interfaces for seniors. Their TV and streaming services will look like they always have. What’s different is the ability for family members to chime in and help navigate these ever-changing interfaces for their elderly relatives.
The current streaming landscape carries multiple challenges to seniors, but thanks to family-assisted services like JubileeTV, you can make complex technology work in your favor to ultimately simplify the experience for everyone involved.
The Challenges of Making Senior TV Entertainment Simple
Flat-screen TVs may look sleeker and take up less space than the older, boxier TVs that started to disappear in the 2000s, but that simplified exterior doesn’t match its more complex menus, settings, and streaming services inside. Plus, many modern TVs are now “smart TVs,” which means they come with their own unique interface to master, like Fire OS for Fire TVs and so on.
Gone are the days of turning your TV on with a single remote and navigating a simple guide with your remote’s up and down arrows. Now, free trials for different subscription services can turn into multiple forgotten monthly expenses, the menus for every streaming service look different, and streaming sticks, soundbars, and other devices can add extra remotes to the mix.
No matter how naturally tech-savvy you or your parents are, that familiar feeling of frustration can quickly bubble to the surface when a new system update moves everything around. We’ve been there. We know that when finding and playing your parent’s favorite TV show becomes a chore by itself, it can make watching that TV show a less enjoyable experience, and maybe even an experience they end up avoiding.
Across the best streaming services for seniors available today, there’s a wealth of content, both old and new, but if complex TV systems are too big a barrier, you or your parent may end up wasting money on abandoned subscriptions and a TV that stays dormant.
Learning why complex streaming services tend to fail seniors can be a great first step to finding the best solution for making senior TV entertainment simple.
Why Complex Streaming Systems Fail Seniors
Before streaming services and smart TVs took over, the biggest tech challenges with a TV setup were not having power or not having a signal from an antenna or a satellite. Now, if your TV is giving you problems, you have to pursue multiple avenues to find the culprit.
Today’s TV setups are more intricate than they used to be
Is your Wi-Fi network up and running? Do you need to change the input to your streaming stick? Does your Roku TV or Google TV need an update? Or does the streaming app you’re trying to open need an update? With more moving parts in complex TV systems, there are more potential issues we can run into.
What’s more, all of the devices mentioned above typically come with a unique remote. Sometimes, you can control multiple devices with one of your remotes, but that’s not always the case. Having to physically keep track of each remote and remember when each one is needed (and if it’s needed at all) is a constant task.
Plus, today’s remote controls are often just as complex as streaming interfaces, even when a simple, six-button remote would do the trick. Using a voice assistant through a remote to navigate the TV interface is a great senior-friendly tech tip to offer your parent, but the learning curve can be frustrating.
Add in the need to occasionally log into streaming services again, remember multiple username and password combinations, navigate regularly changing interfaces to find, play, and control content, and it’s no wonder why complex streaming systems fail seniors.
Streaming apps need more built-in accessibility features
Here’s the thing: streaming apps don’t need to be this difficult. A lot of the issues older adults face with TVs could be helped by making streaming apps simpler and more accessible for seniors. We’ve learned that age-friendly design elements can “promote independence” and “improve the overall well-being of older adults in an increasingly digital world.”
These design elements could include setting options to enlarge text, boost navigation audio, customize contrast ratios, or even switch from the default complex interface to a simple TV interface designed with seniors in mind.
Unfortunately, it’s up to individual streaming services and TV manufacturers to deliver these built-in accessibility features.
Although new studies are published every day that support the idea that simplicity is key for senior-friendly apps, there’s no telling when TV entertainment apps may create simple interfaces for seniors. In the meantime, there’s a possible solution in family-assisted senior entertainment.
The Power of Family-Assisted Senior Entertainment
We’ve all been there. You’re about to run last-minute errands, cook dinner, or sit down at your TV to unwind at the end of a long day, and then the phone rings. It’s 5 p.m. and Mom’s on the line, describing the issue she’s having with playing a movie she wanted to watch.
Of course, you’re happy to help, but you quickly start weighing the pros and cons of trying to help over the phone or heading over in person. Troubleshooting over the phone would save you a drive and potentially teach Mom how to tackle the issue in the future, but you’re not sure exactly what the problem is, and being there in person sounds like the best option.
Thanks to evolving technology, there’s actually a third option you can consider as well: remote, family-assisted entertainment setups.
You can help remotely via a phone call, but Mom has to be the middleman between you and the TV. With a family-assisted senior entertainment setup, like JubileeTV, you gain remote access to her TV, minimizing confusion and frustration for all. You can take care of multiple common issues in a snap, including:
Navigate a newly updated streaming service to find content
Remotely start content or switch channels
Change visual and audio settings from a distance
Disconnect and reconnect to a wonky Wi-Fi network
Select the right input for a streaming device
You can also remotely favorite apps and organize content within streaming services, giving you peace of mind that Mom’s able to quickly find what she’s looking for next time.
Family Remote Assistance Capabilities for Senior Entertainment
Knowing that you can help with any technical issues your parent runs into, no matter where you are or what time it is, lifts a tremendous weight off your shoulders. Whether you’re at work, on vacation, or driving around, it only takes a few minutes to load up an app, remotely access your senior parent’s TV interface, and play their content, adjust the volume, or simply troubleshoot a problem.
Nothing changes with existing streaming services
One of the greatest perks of a remote assistance service like JubileeTV is that nothing has to change about the current TV setup. Rather, it makes the senior TV experience simpler by giving remote access to already existing streaming devices and services.
There’s no new login information to remember, no new remote to add to the mix, and no new user interface to explore. Everything will look and feel the same when finding and playing content.
Remote navigation can make watching TV more enjoyable
Allowing remote access to navigate changing menus, find and play content, and adjust settings can make the whole TV entertainment experience easier and more enjoyable for everyone involved, whether you’re part of the sandwich generation or you’re a senior yourself.
Trying to troubleshoot technical issues over calls or texts can be like trying to put together a jigsaw puzzle with only verbal instructions. When you can see the pieces in front of you, or on an app, it’s easier to identify and fix the problem.
Multiple family members can help out
Often, assisting with technical issues can fall to the family member that lives the closest or the one who has the most free time. With an app that allows for remote assistance, family members that live hundreds of miles away or have time-consuming careers can feel more connected to Mom or Dad.
Plus, the more people there are to give remote assistance, the better the chances that there’ll be someone around to help out at any time of day.
Implementation: Setting Up Family Remote Entertainment Assistance
Once you’ve decided remote assistance technology is the right fit for your situation, the next step is choosing a product and service. JubileeTV is one of the best, simplest options for senior TV entertainment setups, thanks to easy installation, straightforward use, and multiple ways to stay connected with Mom or Dad from afar.
JubileeTV works with existing streaming devices, so there’s no need to unplug your Fire Stick or Chromecast. Instead, there’s a separate console that mounts to the top of a TV and needs an open HDMI port to connect, along with a few other pieces shipped with the console to power everything.
Once the TV is powered on through the included smart plug, you can switch over to the on-screen instructions that pop up on the TV screen to pair the remote, connect to Wi-Fi, and identify other connected devices. Then, it’s time to move the setup process to the mobile app, which is available via the Google Play Store for Android devices and the Apple App Store for iPhones. Or, there’s also a web-based app option.
Author - Sarah Chaney
About the Author
Sarah is a professional writer who loves talking about technology in any and all forms, and enjoys breaking down complex topics and products in a way that makes tech more accessible for people. When she’s not writing, you can find her streaming an old sitcom, reading a good mystery or fantasy novel, or experimenting with a new recipe in the kitchen.
