For those who have started using smartphones, apps and WhatsApp at a late age, the popular app can be a bit more difficult to handle. With them in mind, here we tell you seven adjustments to adapt WhatsApp to older people .
Of course, your grandfather may not need all of the adjustments, or none at all. Choose the ones that apply to you, and don’t be afraid to appropriate any of them if you wish. In the end, what we are going to see are different settings to make WhatsApp less messy or easy to use.
The letter, very big
It is common for older people to find it more difficult to read small text on the mobile screen, especially if it is a relatively compact mobile. The WhatsApp font is not tiny, but the default setting may be somewhat smaller than desired to such an extent that it forces them to strain their eyes unnecessarily .
The good news is that the application itself allows us to change the size of the texts from its settings , being able to make them larger. If this larger size is still not enough, you can also change the size of the entire system , in the Android settings.
- Enter WhatsApp settings
- Tap on Chats
- Tap on Font Size
- Choose Large
Notifications for important chats
If mobile notifications are not controlled for people of any age, and we already know that not all of them are equally important. Not even on WhatsApp, some conversations are more important than others and therefore your notifications should be adjusted to reflect this.
IN XATAKA MOBILE
WhatsApp notifications to your liking: so you can only receive notifications of the chats that matter to you
Basically, the idea is that only important chat notifications sound , and that a very active group does not mean that grandpa’s mobile is constantly demanding his attention (unless that is what he wants). From the WhatsApp settings you can silence the groups or make them ring with a more subtle tone (or not ring at all), although it is probably best to use custom notifications for the most important chats.
- Enter WhatsApp settings
- Enter the important chat or group that you want me to notify
- Tap on the top bar
- Tap on Customize notifications
- Brand Custom notifications
- Adjust the notification tone and vibration to your liking
Chats easy to distinguish from each other
Another thing you can do to help an older person know better who they are talking to is to customize the backgrounds of the chats , so that they are not all the same. This is totally up to the consumer, but you can choose, for example, different colors to distinguish different chats, or even a personalized photo of each person.
- Enter a chat
- Tap on the menu button ⋮
- Tap on Wallpaper
- Choose a color or custom photo for each chat
Above all, the main thing
WhatsApp chats are automatically reorganized by putting those chats with new messages at the top, and this can be somewhat confusing as more important, but less frequent chats may be “buried” .
The solution is as simple as pinning chats , a useful feature whereby you can put a handful of chats always at the top of the chat list, even if there are other chats that have more recent messages.
- Make a long touch on the chat conversation that you want to pin, so that it is selected.
- Press the thumbtack button at the top.
Shortcuts to chats
Another very useful way to facilitate the use of WhatsApp for seniors is to create shortcuts to the main chats in the Android launcher , so that they can go directly to this chat without first opening WhatsApp and finding the chat in question.
In a way , WhatsApp chat shortcuts are the equivalent of speed dial keys , something many older people will be more familiar with than the concept of opening the app and entering the corresponding chat.
- Enter the chat you want to create a shortcut for
- Press the menu button ⋮
- Click on More
- Click on Create shortcut
- Follow the prompts to add it to the home screen
WhatsApp photos, on WhatsApp
If your grandfather likes to take photos, it is likely that he will be confused by the fact that the photos he takes on his mobile are mixed with videos and group photos, various memes and animated GIFs in the mobile gallery app. It’s better if WhatsApp photos stay on WhatsApp . except those that he wants to save manually.
- Enter WhatsApp settings
- Tap on Account
- Uncheck Media file visibility
WhatsApp, always updated
Finally, WhatsApp needs to be moderately updated, otherwise it will stop working until you do, which can be very confusing for an older person. To avoid future scares, make sure that Google Play is set to update apps automatically (which is normal), as well as that WhatsApp in particular has automatic updates turned on .
- Open Google Play and search for WhatsApp
- Open the WhatsApp tab, if it is not already displayed
- Tap on the menu button ⋮