What type of phone should I buy?

People frequently ask me about which type of phone is better for them to buy.  I like looking at this question the same way I would look at which tool a student would need to be successful in school.  I would start with Joy Zabala's SETT Framework, http://www.joyzabala.com/ .  Here we would look at the student, their environment then the tasks they would need to complete with the tool.  After looking at these items, we would look at the tools.

When trying to find out about the person, the first question I ask, "Who is your technical support?" Do you have children, grandchildren, family members or friends who will be able to answer your questions about your phone?  Then you will want to get the same operating system that they use on a regular basis. If they use iPhones, you want to buy an iPhone.  If they use an Android phone, you will want to buy the same type of Android phone if possible.  Android phones don't all work with the same operating system which means that different phones might have features in different areas.

The next questions I ask, "Do you need any type of accessibility features?" Do you need larger text, text to speech supports, or  do you wear hearing aids?  You will want to investigate the availability of these features on the different devices.  My personal preference is that the assessability features on the iPhones are easier to access and use in the various apps.  

Now we need to look at what tasks do you wish to be able to use with your phone.  Today, there are more apps in the Google Store, (Android Devices) than in the Apple Store. I am not sure if this is significant or not.  I would be more interested in looking at the types of apps one would want to use and then see if they are available. 

I will talk more about favorite apps in future blogs. 

Favorite apps for iPad

On my last blog, I talked about some of my favorite apps for my iPhone.  Today, I will write about a few of my favorite apps for my iPad.

Flipboard is available for Windows, Android, Apple and Blackberry devices. https://flipboard.com/  Flipboard allows you to subscribe to free magazines covering a variety of topics.  You can also create your own magazines where you can clip articles from the internet or from other magazines.  A third option is to follow other people’s magazines.  

Slice https://www.slice.com/  is available for Apple and Android devices or on the web.  Once you register for a Slice account, it will track all of your online purchases. 

Evernote http://evernote.com/   Evernote is available for Android, Apple and on the web.  There is a free version and a paid version.   I will discuss Evernote in more detail on a later blog.  Evernote is basically my brain.  It allows me to create reminders and checklists.  I can create notebooks to organize my notes and thoughts.  I can clip websites to read at later date.  I’ll discuss other free apps that work with Evernote.  

Favorite Apps

There are lots of apps available for in the Apple store and in the Google Play Store.  It is often difficult to determine which apps you need for your smart phone or for your tablet. Today I will discuss some of my favorite apps that I use on my iPhone and why I think they would be helpful for other baby boomers.

1.      AnyList https://www.anylistapp.com/AnyList is advertised as a grocery shopping list.  There is a free version and a yearly subscription option.  The paid version allows you to share your lists with other members of your household and to take photos of items. 

2.    IQNote https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/iqnote-my-quick-note-smart/id784426575?mt=8 or http://goo.gl/uxtNC2  IQNote allows you to take short notes by typing , taking a picture or creating an audio record.

3.    QRReader https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/qr-reader-for-iphone/id368494609?mt=8  or http://goo.gl/RBnTj.   There are versions for the iPad and Android devices. QR readers allow you to scan QR codes on items found at different types of stores.  The scan will take you to the website. 

4.    The Reminders app comes on your iPhone and iPad.  It is a great app to create reminders or use as an extra brain.  I will discuss another reminder/to do apps on another day.

5.     Google Maps is easy to use and helps someone like me who has no sense of direction.  I can use Google Maps on the computer and then send it to my phone.

These are only a few of my favorite apps.  I will discuss more apps on another post.  Have a Great Day.

Hindie Becker Dershowitz

Simple Technology for Everyone

Hello,  my name is Hindie Becker Dershowitz and I have worked with technology in public schools.  I like teaching others how to utilize technology to make their life easier.  This blog will be dedicated to sharing simple tips on everyday technology.  Please stop byby and let me know what you would like to learn. 

I have a Pinterest Board where I save websites that I think would be helpful.  Please follow me at 

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