How do I set up a phone or tablet for an older relative?

Most difficulty with a new device comes from visual clutter and small text rather than from any inability to use it. Reducing what is on screen and increasing what can be read solves most of it in half an hour.

What you'll need

• The device
• The person, present (optional)
• Somewhere to record passwords (optional)

Step by step

1. Set it up with them, not for them.They will need to know how it was done. Doing it together also reveals what actually causes them difficulty, which is often not what you expected.
2. Increase the text size and enable bold text.Settings, Accessibility, Display. Larger text and higher contrast make an enormous difference and are the first thing to change.
3. Remove everything unused from the home screen.Leave six or eight apps they actually use, in a consistent order. Visual clutter is the main source of confusion.
4. Turn off most notifications.Constant unexplained alerts are stressful and cause accidental taps. Leave messages and calls; turn off the rest.
5. Set up emergency contacts and medical information.Both iPhone and Android have an emergency card accessible from the lock screen. It is genuinely important and takes two minutes.
6. Set up a way to help remotely.Screen sharing through a video call app, or a remote support option. It turns a long phone conversation into a two-minute fix.
7. Write down the passwords and store them safely.Somewhere they can find them and you can access if needed. Being locked out is the single most common serious problem.
8. Talk about scams explicitly.Unexpected calls, texts about deliveries, anyone asking for codes or remote access. Agree a rule: hang up and call you or the organisation directly.

Tips

• Larger tap targets help. Both platforms have simplified launcher options, and some phones offer an 'easy mode' with a much simpler layout.
• Set up automatic backups at the start. Recovering a device is far easier if it was backing up all along.
• Write a short one-page guide for the three or four things they do most, with screenshots. It gets used far more than any conversation.

Common mistakes

• Setting the device up alone and handing it over — They have not seen how anything works and will not know how to fix even small problems. Setting it up together is the point.
• Leaving all the default apps on the home screen — Dozens of unfamiliar icons is the main source of confusion. Six or eight relevant apps is far more usable.
• Not recording the passwords — Being locked out of the account is the most common serious problem, and account recovery is far harder for someone unfamiliar with the process.

Questions people ask