How to make Android easy and less confusing for new users

Get a launcher like Necta Launcher, Wiser Launcher and Simple Senior Phone to make your Android experience easy.

If your new to smartphones and find Android confusing, there are things you can do to set up your Android phone so it’s easier to use.

Find Google’s Android operating system to be a little confusing? It’s a complaint by several people new to smartphones, especially older generations. But there are things you can do to set up your Android phone so it’s easier to use.

1) Get a techie to help you out

You probably know someone who is good with technology. In the initial process of setting up, get that person’s help. Some of the stuff below can be complicated, but if they’re around to lend you a helping hand, you won’t need to bother techies later for your phone troubles.

2) Set Up All Your Accounts and Use a Password Manager

The first step is to go to Android’s “Settings” and find “Accounts” in it. Proceed to add every account you have from the options available. Once these are logged in, you won’t have to remember passwords or other details for common apps like Gmail, Facebook, etc.

If you frequently have trouble remembering passwords, get a password manager like LastPass. It will save your login information for different services, and all you need to do is remember only your Lastpass password, nothing else.

3) Change the Launcher to a Newbie-Friendly One

Some companies like Xiaomi make it easy for new smartphone users by including custom launches like the MIUI Light Mode, which is designed to be used by seniors and newbies. If you don’t have that, you can still get some great launchers from the Google Play Store that make Android easy.

The best options are Necta Launcher, Wiser Launcher and Simple Senior Phone. All these apps have a few things in common: apps are enlarged, choices are streamlined and limited, and oft-used tasks (like calling favourite contacts or opening major apps) are brought up front and center. These apps also come with an SOS button so that the elderly can quickly send an alert in case of an emergency.

4) Learn the Basics

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There are a few things you do often on your phone. You make and answer calls. You read and send text messages and email. You use the camera to take photos and look at them. And you check your notifications. Make sure you learn all of these from your techie friend before you let them go. The other parts of using a phone are things you will pick up as you go along. But the basics are important because of their frequency of usage, so you don’t want to be stuck somewhere and not know how to do a task on your handset.

5) Practice and Explore

Practice? For a phone? Yup, it sounds silly, but to get better at anything, you need to do it repeatedly. If your phone usage is restricted to calls and text messages, step out of your comfort zone and explore other bits about your handset, like recording your voice or downloading games from the Play Store. The more you practise using your phone, the more confident you will grow in handling it; and eventually, you’ll be typing faster than teens!