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Setting up an iPod touch for 65 year old mother. Need tips and app/podcast suggestions!

  • iPod Touch for mother-in-law. We've just decided to give my partner's mother an iPod Touch, and need your suggestions for apps and podcasts. She is a 65 year old woman, travels often, takes care of her grandson sometimes, and is new to all iPod technology. We also need your tips on how to set it up from afar tonight, and help her with the inevitable questions down the road. I've never had an iPod touch or iPad or iPhone, so I'm new to the app world, but very Apple-fluent. We're doing this in a very short timeframe so all of your tips and suggestions would be much appreciated! App & podcast suggestions: - she is Catholic and would love related content - she travels often, within the US - she likes to read although I'm not sure how much that will happen here - Sudoko type games - games for her grandchild - 2.5 year old boy. She often visits him and does some caretaking, and I bet the ipod will be great for some entertainment and reading games. - she does mostly low-carb eating and might enjoy some kind of cooking-related app that is especially well-suited Logistics: 1. I am setting this iPod up from my Mac. I'd like to pre-load it with apps and podcasts and have her be able to add more from her PC later. I won't sync it to my computer. If she later syncs it to her computer, will those apps be a problem? Or will they just happily stay on her iPod and she can add other things down the road? 2. What are some tips that I can print out for her? I'm going through the http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/ipod_touch_features_guide.pdf and copying the most important info (turning on, typing, connecting to wifi, adding apps). What frequent problems have you seen in new iPod users? Literally any kind of advice here would be very welcome. Thanks!

  • Answer:

    I believe the main problem that you're going to have is that you're going to want Podcasts, new Apps etc. to update automatically onto her iPod Touch, which means that the iPod will need to be set up with automatic syncing. Which means that it needs to be set up on her PC (this is unless of course she has WiFi, in which case both of these things can update without any need for sync). If she doesn't have WiFi, you might need to talk her through setting it all up over the phone - in which case your best bet would be to gift her the apps once she's got it up and running.

barnone at Ask.Metafilter.Com Visit the source

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If your going to spring for an Ipod Touch, you might pay a little more and get an Ipad. It would really come in handy as she gets older and needs to view text and do banking decisions. I am considering getting one for my own grandmother, who is 97 and enjoys bridge and mystery novels in French.

parmanparman

If she later syncs it to her computer, will those apps be a problem? Or will they just happily stay on her iPod and she can add other things down the road? So you download apps directly to the device and then hand it to your grandmother. She should have no problem also downloading apps directly to the device going forward. You'll either set her up on your existing iTunes account or you'll create a new account for your grandmother. Either way, grandma gets an iPod with apps on it. Yay! When she's ready to add a new app, she just goes to the app store, clicks on the app she wants, and then enters the password for the iTunes account that is set up on the device (yours, hers, whatever). If grandma wants to download the app to a computer first, then what she'll do is download the app, then connect the device. In iTunes, she can click on File-->Transfer Purchases, which will then prompt her to authorize the computer for those items (basically she enters the password for the account which you used to download the apps originally). The apps will then transfer to her computer. Then she can sync whatever apps she likes from her computer to her iPod. See also: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1977.

spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints

My Mother (age 63) LOVED playing Words With Friends on an iPod Touch. Mostly she played my sister (has iPhone), along with the moves in the "scrabble" game you can also leave brief messages along with them. It was a great way for them to keep in touch. She tried a few Bridge games, but didn't find any she really loved.

artlung

Good point about the updates. My partner is taking it to her house tomorrow, so she can set up the syncing on her mother's iTunes for specific podcasts. She doesn't have wifi at home, but will in some of the houses she regularly visits. So I assume some of the updates will happen when she's got the wifi running.

barnone

If you set it up at the mother's house, the WiFi isn't necessary for the updates - she can get updates via iTunes, and if you set up automatic sync they'll go across without any input required. I find it best to do all updates via iTunes (even though I've got WiFi) because transferring stuff from the iPod to the computer isn't always flawless (I have found this to be especially so if I have bought apps on the iPod). My suggestion: - Set her up with an iTunes account - Show her how to navigate the iTunes store - Subscribe to some podcasts - Set up the iPod, selecting the auto-sync option - Gift her some apps

djgh

If your going to spring for an Ipod Touch, you might pay a little more and get an Ipad. We'll probably get her a new iPad later this year, but we've got a free iPod touch sitting here and thought it would be a good start. I know the larger form is better - we got my 90 year old grandma an iPad and she loves it. Mom-in-law is only in her early 60s and the iPod size won't be too horrible at the moment. Thanks for the connection tips!

barnone

Rob Rockets

Ooooh, I love this stuff. I'm going through my phone now for suggestions! Words with Friends is a GREAT app. There's also Chess with Friends, which is less popular but still fun...for people who like chess. I really like WeatherHD for weather (it just shows a pretty picture and the forecast for the locations you give it). I like USA Today AutoPilot, which is a cool travel app. You can put in your travel itinerary and it will check for delays and such. It also has a directory of airline phone numbers and hotels etc. For going out and fun stuff, I like Fandango for movies (I don't buy just lookup showtimes), OpenTable for reservations, Yelp! for other restaurant ideas and Starbucks for my need a fix moments. If she's a subscriber to Hulu+ or Netflix, their apps are pretty good. If she can keep her grandchild entertained with those while she cooks or does whatever. I've passed my phone to my nephew while I'm driving to keep him occupied with some Spongebob or something. I'm assuming you're getting her the new iPod Touch with camera. If so, Skype is an awesome must-have. It's more universal than FaceTime. Book apps: iBooks, Kindle, nook, Classics - all do pretty much the same thing Food apps: AllRecipes, Food Network, Epicurious (best bet), Whole Foods (exports recipes to a checkable shopping list!) My nephew loves DoodleJump, Plants vs Zombies, and Bubble Wrap. He's only 4 so he can't play a lot of the games yet (no motor control). Kids also seem to love Pocket Frogs. Games I like: Yahtzee Adventures (just like the game you remember), Battleship (same), Flight Control, Zen Bound 2 From what I've seen, most older folks tend to like their iPod Touch stock features (e-mail, stocks, notes, voice memos) and don't download a lot of apps. If she's anxious about the new tech (some people are) - your friendly neighborhood Apple Store has free workshops for iPod+iTunes (so how to sync, etc) and iPhone (the interface is the same so she can easily sit in on this one). You can find the schedule at http://www.apple.com/retail Support articles she might find helpful: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1296 http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1414 http://www.apple.com/itunes/how-to/#video-sync Hope she enjoys it!

katybird

I may suggest buying a $25 (or so) iTunes gift card and adding it to her account. My mom was squeamish about providing her credit card to iTines, and knowing there was free cash available, she had fun buying some paid apps and even music.

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