“Easy to Use” Still Isn’t Easy Enough

Most technology is designed for people who already understand technology.

We assume users can unlock a phone, dismiss notifications, find the right app, choose a contact, and recognize the video-call icon. For many elderly people, those “simple” steps are real barriers.

That is why I started building MiNonna.

Staying close should not require technical skills

Video calls help grandparents see their grandchildren grow up and let families remain close across cities and countries.

But the experience is only easy if you know how to navigate a smartphone. Otherwise, a device capable of connecting you to the world may still require someone standing beside you to operate it.

MiNonna starts with a deliberately small promise: an elderly or non-technical person should be able to begin a video call with one tap.

A trusted family member creates a private group, invites relatives, and selects Grandma’s default contact. After that, Grandma simply taps MiNonna and the call begins.

No contact lists. No menus. No tiny, ambiguous icons.

The family handles the setup so Grandma does not have to handle the complexity.

A phone that rings when it matters

A second problem is surprisingly common: Grandma accidentally leaves her phone on silent or vibrate.

For most people, a missed call is inconvenient. When a family is checking on an elderly relative, it can cause real anxiety.

MiNonna therefore offers an optional Always Ring Out Loud setting. When enabled by the family administrator, an incoming MiNonna call can ring audibly even if the phone is on silent or vibrate.

It is not intended to override someone’s preferences indiscriminately. It is an accessibility option for families who know silent mode is more likely to be accidental than intentional.

A private circle of trusted people

MiNonna is built around private groups rather than an open contact network.

This makes communication simpler, but it could also make it safer. Telephone scammers exploit uncertainty and can call vulnerable people directly through the traditional phone network.

Potentially, a family could give Grandma a Wi-Fi-connected phone without a SIM and use MiNonna as its main communication channel. She could still video-call trusted relatives, while ordinary scam calls could no longer reach that device.

This would not suit everyone. Removing a SIM affects mobile connectivity, regular calls, and potentially access to emergency services. Families would need to evaluate those trade-offs carefully.

Still, the idea is important: technology for elderly people should be safer by design, not merely easier to use.

Digital access is not digital inclusion

Giving someone a smartphone does not automatically include them in digital life.

If they cannot confidently operate it, understand what it is asking, or distinguish a genuine interaction from a scam, they remain excluded—even while holding the device in their hand.

That exclusion becomes more serious as family conversations, banking, healthcare, public services, appointments, and everyday social life move online.

The answer cannot simply be to ask elderly people to learn interfaces that were never designed for them. We need to build interfaces around their needs.

MiNonna is a first step: one tap to call, a ring that can be heard, and a secure circle of trusted people.

Innovation does not always mean adding more features. Sometimes it means removing every obstacle between a person and the people they love.

For decades, the technology industry has asked elderly people to adapt to its products.

MiNonna asks what technology would look like if it adapted to them.