Despite Louise Eddy having nine children, 36 grandchildren and 37 great-grandchildren to keep up with, she misplaced her cell phone at some point and has yet to recover it.
All in all, not a huge loss for the Utah native. She never enjoyed the phone's configuration and struggled to operate it. Plus, she has a GrandPad instead.
For more than a year, Eddy has used the mobile tablet from the Hopkins-based company of the same name so she can browse the internet and share photos with her family and friends. Because the tablet's design is specifically for seniors — including a left-to-right swipe feature, stylus pen for touchscreen accuracy, large and colorful icons plus built-in 4G wireless connectivity — Eddy's become much more attached to it, and thus, less likely to lose it.
Eddy is among millions of older adults across the country investing their money into new technology. By 2030, American adults age 50 and older are expected to spend $120 billion on tech, according to AARP, with older adults wanting to use tech for online shopping, banking, entertainment and health monitoring.
Seniors and technology aren't exactly synonymous terms, but the growing level of comfort among older adults in using technology is translating to new tech companies, including some in Minnesota. GrandPad Inc. is one of several making headway in consumer technology for older adults.
Eddy's daughter Helen works for the company and introduced her to the tablet, which has been a life-changer for the 85-year-old. She previously used her home computer just for email and shopping on Amazon but now does that with her GrandPad, along with reading the news, listening to music, making phone calls and sharing videos with her family.
"It's just amazing, and it's very simple to do," she said, "because technologically, I'm not real good."
Minnesota in the middle