Chinese over 50 who have experienced the Cultural Revolution are not as good at digital devices as Japanese seniors
I taught my old (grandfather) parents how to use a smartphone kindly and politely, and even though I set up LINE, they didn't use it. Do you have such an experience? The screen is hard to see with presbyopia, the ears are hard to hear, and above all, the hurdle of not being good at "I don't understand" is high. When I started using it, I downloaded various apps without knowing it, and the speed of my experience slowed down visibly, and I no longer like smartphones.
An old Chinese man using a smartphone.China has an image of more digitalization than Japan, such as cashless payments, but not all seniors are mastering smartphones.
The same thing can happen in China, but in reality, they are not as good at handling digital devices such as personal computers and smartphones as Japanese seniors. Those over the age of 50 who experienced the Cultural Revolution were reluctant to use digital devices, and Internet usage was particularly low.
Cashless payment for corona measures There is an urgent need for senior digitalization for future government digitization
Since the spread of smartphones, the number of users has increased by chatting with family and relatives, watching news, and watching videos, and although it has increased even more since the Korona-ka, it is still hard to say that it is still widespread when looking at statistics. On the other hand, cashless payments are already progressing, and in order to prevent infection with the new coronavirus, each person must display a "health code" on their smartphone to prove that they were in a non-infected area. There is an urgent need for the government to take measures for seniors who cannot use smartphones.
Previously, old people used feature phones that were loud and could display large letters. Furthermore, the physical numeric keypad is large, and there is a telephone button for emergency contact on the side. However, full-featured Alipay and WeChat that can display health codes are not prepared for feature phones, which is inconvenient. When it comes to that, there is no choice but to use a smartphone.
Therefore, the Chinese government has opened a large number of smartphone classes for seniors at a culture school called "University for the Elderly" and sent them to learn, while for companies developing standard Chinese apps, a simple menu with large fonts is available. Was prepared. There is no fixed deadline for this, and it is a story about "implement as soon as possible", and apps such as Alipay are gradually implementing it.
Recently released mini app on how to use smartphones for Tencent
An industry group of Chinese smartphone makers has set standards for essential items for senior devices
Under such circumstances, industry groups of Chinese smartphone makers have formulated rules for senior modes. Each company prepares each custom ROM according to it.
The document to prepare senior support with smartphones and mobile phones is the "Mobile Termination Suitable Aging Technology Requirement" announced by the "Telegraph Termination Industry Association", and the members of the "Telegraph Termination Industry Association" are the Chinese government's Chinese credibility ( Information) Huawei, vivo, OPPO, Xiao Mi, Samsung, Honor, etc. are listed in the Communication Research Institute. In other words, there are manufacturers with the highest market share other than Apple. By the way, although not mentioned in this article, the smart TV version "Intelligent Telescopic Aging Design Technology Requirements" was also announced, and TV makers are included here.
Common specifications for smartphones for seniors, which was formulated with the participation of governmental organizations
Now for smartphones, it consists of a monitor, sound control, touch display, sound, remote support, emergency apps, and more details, 13 items and 51 child items. It is said that this will be divided into three levels, and items with the highest importance will be dealt with by custom ROM. All of them are intended to make it as easy as possible for elderly people with impaired visual, auditory, motor and cognitive abilities, and they are required to be able to easily contact emergency contacts in the event of an emergency. ..
Some of the most important level measures for custom ROMs for the elderly are as follows.
[Display] ・ The size of the application icon on the home screen is 11 mm or more in height and width ・ Supports a contrast ratio of 4.5: 1 ・ The screen can be enlarged up to 200% and the displayed contents must not disappear
[Voice] ・ You can adjust the left and right volume of the earphones ・ Follow the rules that unify how to read numbers such as prices and phone numbers when reading by voice ・ Has a text-to-speech function ・ Can be unlocked by wake word ・ Cash by voice Launch app for cashless, camera, screen capture, health code
[Emergency measures] ・ You can use emergency contacts without unlocking. ・ You can check the user's medical information without unlocking.
These are trade association arrangements and are not superficially a must. Also, unlike Japanese smartphones for seniors (for example, "Simple smartphone 4"), there is a physical button at the bottom, and it is not a smartphone with an emergency buzzer button on the back, but the screen is easy to see and simple for seniors. I'm ordering to do it. This document came out at the end of June, and companies are about to implement it, but Huawei's HarmonyOS is already in a mode that is easy for seniors to see, while vivo's OriginOS is inadequate.
Origin OS of vivo where senior measures were not good
In China, if the government does not follow the policy that the government is aiming for, it is possible that the position will get worse. If Apple hasn't joined the industry group and doesn't follow this document, the iPhone may be hard to sell to the elderly in the future.
It is doubtful that a model that has been brushed up for seniors will sell just because it is kind to seniors. A maker called Meizu is trying to sell a simple smartphone without ads and pre-installed apps. Other companies will get rid of all the money they earn from advertising and pre-installation. Since it does not deliver advertisements, it is several thousand yen higher in Japanese yen than competing models with similar specifications, and the media is not good. It seems that Xiaomi, OPPO, vivo, Huawei, and Honor will be working together to take senior measures.
Looking at the models of each manufacturer from the perspective that seniors use smartphones made by Chinese manufacturers again, there is a common habit. Chinese smartphones receive more notifications than the iPhone. On the other hand, there is a tendency to firmly guard against nuisance calls, fraudulent calls, and sales calls. For Chinese, using a Chinese smartphone is more useful in mainland China than it is for Japanese users. In the future, models for foreign countries should also be equipped with a mode for seniors from China.
First, the custom ROM will be updated to test whether seniors (and their families) can master it in China.
Takeshi Yamatani
Author close-up
Freelance writer. He is strong in overseas IT situations centered on Asian regions such as China. He is a method of interviewing from the perspective of local people without relying on statistics, and the reporto that is easy for general users to understand is popular. Books include "China's Internet History: Independence from the World Wide Web" (Star Seas New Book), "New Chinese-Young People Uniting on the Internet" (Softbank New Book), "China S-Class B-Class Theory: Developing and cutting-edge He wrote "Mixed Countries" (Sakurasha). His latest book is "How did Chinese IT counterattack the new coronavirus? Chinese-style disaster countermeasure technology reader" (Shinkaisha new book, link to Amazon.co.jp)
