Voice Assistants are Easier to Use Than Touch Screen Devices

It can be tricky to get used to using iPads or smartphones when you’re not a digital native, like the grandkids are. Where are the buttons? How does it know where I’m pressing? It never knows where you meant to press!

It’a a whole lot easier to just say, “Alexa, do this” or “Alexa, do that.”

Here are some examples...

Medication Reminder

Medication reminders can be set at any time during the day so you don’t forget to take your pills. All you’ve got to say is “Alexa, remind me to take my medicine at 7am everyday.” If needs be, you can set as many as you want so that you definitely don’t forget. The last thing you’d want is to miss a dosage.

Not only can Alexa remind the elderly what medication to take, she can also tell them what they’ve already taken upon your simple command, “Alexa, medicine.” Alexa will then ask you whether you’ve taken your tablets and will then send an email with the answer to the first point of family contact. Depending on the answer, this can then alarm family members and prompt them to ring or send a to-do list.

Date & Time

You don’t have to be a certain age to simply forget what day it is from time to time. And Alexa won’t judge you for it as well if you do. Simply ask her what the date and time is whenever you need to know. It’s more common for the elderly to become a little bit forgetful, so don’t worry about how many times you may have to ask her.

Entertainment

Radio, music or audio books… the choice is all yours! Not only can you keep yourself entertained with these but try asking Alexa to tell you a joke or a riddle too. A quick and easy way of keeping yourself entertained.

It couldn’t be more straightforward. Simply say, “Alexa, play popular songs from the 60s” and you’ll be up dancing round the living room to Martha Reeves straight away.

General Information

Ditch the television guide and ask your new best pal. It can be anything. From what’s on BBC1 at 10pm? Or, who scored for England in the 1966 World Cup Final? She’s got a wealth of knowledge that she’d love to share with you, so make use of it.

Reports

Want to see what the weather’s going to be like in London next Wednesday? Or did you miss the latest game and want to get up to speed on the football results? No problem. Everything from local news and traffic reports through to stocks and shares updates are also available too.

Make Lists

To do lists are so useful. It could be chores around the house or even your shopping list, whatever it is, ask Alexa to remember it for you. Never leave the house feeling like you’ve forgotten something again and don’t forget those biscuits to dunk in your tea from the supermarket either.

Control Smart Home Devices

Smart home meters can be tricky to understand, can’t they? So why not take a step back and just ask Alexa to do it for you? Whether it’s turning on the heating or even turning the oven off after a certain cooking period in case you forget, Alexa is compatible with various home devices to keep you safe and make your life much easier.

Personal Alerts

Alexa is there for you when there’s only you in the house. So should you have an unfortunate fall and can’t quite get back on your feet, you can send a personal alert to your friends and family through Alexa. This is brilliant for keeping you close with your family and a great safety net if something does unfortunately go wrong.

Calls and Messages

Is your Skype not working? Don’t worry, you can still keep in touch with your family and friends via Alexa (providing they too have an Alexa). See what the grandkids are doing at the weekend or ring your loved ones for a quick catch up at any time.

Stay Safe With Better Internet

In rural locations, phone signal isn’t often great and should anything unfortunately go wrong if you’re in the house on your own, then sending for help will prove tricky. That’s why you need an internet connection that you can trust. With ultrafast broadband from Gigaclear you can be sure that you’re getting nothing but the best connection you can rely upon. To learn more about Gigaclear's ultrafast full fibre broadband, click here.