Are seniors an "EasyTouch" for Telstra?

Stephen Withers
Friday, 28 November 2008 10:30

Your IT - Mobility

Telstra's eyeing up the senior market with a new 3G phone designed with older users in mind, although anyone that prefers 'just a phone' might see that with the EasyTouch Discovery, there's more than meets the eye.

In a world of ever more advanced smartphones packing in more features than volumes of the old Encyclopedia Britannica, it's always refreshing when a phone that promises to be simple hits the market.

After all, who wants a phone that, at first glance, sounds like it might be big and bulky or perhaps even a bit old fashioned?

But as they say, the simple things in life are often the best, and so Telstra’s new EasyTouch Discovery looks set to be a light touch for who wants form, function and simplicity – while still promising a rich feature set.

Some key features of the EasyTouch Discovery 3G handset are oversized buttons, larger text and higher volume to meet the needs of older customers   – or young people who've sent themselves deaf by overegging the volume levels on their iPods, though we won't mention what might be sending them blind at a early age!

No, seniors are definitely the market Telstra has in mind.

This becomes obvious when listening to Glenice Maclellan, executive director, Telstra Consumer, who said that the EasyTouch Discovery was "designed and tested by Telstra Connected Seniors, a tailored program created to help older Australians learn more about technology and the Telstra Disability Forum."

"Our customers told us that they wanted bigger buttons, bigger font, louder volume and a simple menu, and the EasyTouch Discovery delivers all of this," she added.

But don't be fooled into thinking this phone is light on features. See page 2.