The Gen XY Lifestyle
Easy-to-use Smartphones With Large Screens
By John Chan
If long-sightedness is taking its toll on your ability to read the hundreds of lines of text sent by your loved ones daily, one of these smartphones may prove to be a clearer choice.
Let’s face it, many people don’t want to talk on the phone anymore. Communicating with family and friends (especially younger ones) now involves lots of reading and typing on your mobile device. Whether it’s done through good old school SMS or other current, popular means such as WhatsApp or Facebook messaging, having a phone with a large screen that is easy to use is very important. The last thing you want is to be squinting at your handset half the time, while trying to remember where an app is among dozens of application icons. Here’s a small selection of phones that fit the bill — and best of all, they don’t cost a fortune.
Singapore-based iNo Mobile has been making phones for the elderly for some time now. While the company used to focus mainly on basic phones with long battery life, it now has more advanced models which run the Android operating system. One of these is the iNo Easy, which allows you to switch from the standard Android interface to a simplified version, which has large buttons that highlight the most important features such as the phone, messaging app and camera. In addition, this phone comes with an interesting bonus — 100 pre-loaded songs (mainly oldies) in English, Chinese and Malay.
Specifications: 4.5-inch screen; 3G; Wi-Fi; 8-megapixel camera; two SIM card slots; 4GB storage
Price: S$299
Hailing from China, Xiaomi is a relatively new brand that makes Android smartphones running the company’s own interface called “MIUI”. The Redmi model has a feature called Lite mode that makes the phone easier to use for those who want a simpler layout. Instead of a cluttered screen full of tiny application icons, you get large fonts and square buttons so you don’t spend 5 minutes just looking for your phone dialer. And because it’s Android, you get to use all the apps that have been made for this popular operating system. What’s more, the phone is a steal at just S$169. Just take note that there have been reports of unscrupulous retailers selling fake versions of the Redmi, so make sure to to buy from Xiaomi directly or through your telco.
Specifications: 4.7-inch screen; 3G; Wi-Fi; 8-megapixel camera; two SIM card slots; 4GB storage
Price: S$169
The Samsung Galaxy Note may be the most well-known giant-screen smartphone around, but for those who don’t want to spend big bucks, there are other options. From the same company is the Galaxy Grand 2, an Android phone with a 5.25-inch screen. Like the other models mentioned so far, the Grand 2 also has a simplified interface, called Easy Mode. This gives you large fonts, buttons and shortcuts to the most commonly used features, making it easier to use, and more forgiving to the eyes.
Specifications: 5.25-inch screen; 3G; Wi-Fi; 8-megapixel camera; two SIM card slots; 8GB storage
Price: S$538
Bonus Tip:
If you are not in the market for a new phone, it’s also possible to make your current Android or iOS smartphone easier to read just by increasing the font size. Here’s how:
Android smartphones
Go to Settings > Display > Font size and choose a bigger font.
Apple iPhone
Go to Settings > General > Text Size and move the slider till you get a font size you’re comfortable with.
*Do note that some apps may still require you to adjust the font size within their own app settings.
