HOME AUTOMATION TO GIFT ELDER PARENTS TO MAKE THEIR LIFE EASIER
What do you gift to people who like to think they have it all and don’t want to change their ways - even if it will make their lives so much easier? Here is a quick list of things that I have either already given or plan to give my parents and in-laws.
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GIFT FOR PARENTS - ROBOT VACUUM CLEANER
This obviously has to be at the top of my list - the ROBOT VACUUM CLEANER. I fell in love as soon as I saw it. Incidentally - I gifted this to my parents early last year - before the pandemic even hit. My mom does not have house help for a really long time - frustrated by their attitude. They stay in a 2 bedroom house and I struggled seeing her doing the work by herself. So last year - for her birthday - I gifted the robot vacuum cleaner. She loved it! And she made all her siblings and friends buy it too. I bought them a basic one - the Eufy 11s version - no mopping, no app. Just a remote - which was extremely easy for them as they find technology and using apps quite complex. I think this is perhaps the best gift I have given that they liked so much. I have created many videos regarding this which I have shared on my channel - I’ve linked to them in the description. I’ve also linked the ones I like the best currently.
GIFT FOR PARENTS - VIDEO BELL & SURVEILLANCE
There are two reasons I would want to gift this - one for my convenience and one for theirs. My parents stay on the first floor with the main door on the ground floor. So every time somebody is at the door, they have to come down to check. With a video bell and surveillance, they can check upstairs and then decide if they want to come down to open or open it from upstairs itself. I would also like to have an eye on what’s really going on in the vicinity - as these days you can never be too careful. All the things we hear happening to seniors and with so many deliveries coming home - I’d rather be safe than sorry. Again i’ve linked to a few I liked in the description.
GIFT FOR PARENTS - LOST KEY OR PHONE FINDER
How often do you or your parents misplace your keys and then spend a few anxious minutes or hours trying to find it? This lost key finder should help. You can also use it on pets. There are a few different variants in this. These use RFID technology - the more advanced ones have GPS enabled and you can locate the items on your app. The other ones just have a transmitter and multiple receivers and when you need to locate something - the receivers will emit light and sound that will help you to locate the item quickly - even penetrating through walls I’m told.
GIFT FOR PARENTS - CAR TYRE INFLATOR PUMPS
Car tyre inflator pumps - This is something new I found that will be extremely useful for my parents atleast. My parents travel a lot - go on long drives and travel across cities. With tubeless tyres these days, even if you have a puncture, if there is air in the tyres - you can last for a while. With these inflator pumps - you don’t have to stop and change tyres in the middle of the road but rather just quickly refill it so that the tyres will last you till the next puncture shop or till you come back home and then can get it fixed.
GIFT FOR PARENTS - WIFI LIGHTS
This is more of a convenience and safety measure than anything else. There are these regular hacks on pretending that somebody is at home - even if they arent. If your parents travel a lot, visit you / your siblings often or are in general out of home and plan to come back late - these lights can be set to turn on at a specific time - even remotely - to give the illusion of somebody being home. The added benefit is that it can be used to change colors and adjust brightness as well.
GIFT FOR PARENTS - PHONE STORAGE
Don’t know how technologically advanced your parents are, but my dad always struggles with his storage. The first question he always wants me to teach him is - Saumya - how do I copy from my phone and paste it somewhere else so I don’t loose my photos. No matter how many times I’ve taught him - keep getting this question. The best option for this is to purchase additional storage. Google storage is available at Rs. 130 per month for 100 GB and iphone storage is available Rs. 75 for 50GB or 210 for 200 GB. I personally use the iphone additional storage - and never have to bother much about it.
GIFT FOR PARENTS - SMART WATCH
Smart watch - parents are the least mobile - especially during the lockdown. Post retirement - they may finish up their house work, relax till evening and then socialize - with little or no movement. I know this trend is changing - but is still the majority behavior amongst seniors. A smart watch with constant reminders for moving is a good gift for them - it can be something basic available for less than Rs. 2000 - which just counts steps without any other fancy readings like sleep monitor, heart rate monitor and so on.
GIFT FOR PARENTS - MEDICAL ALERT SYSTEMS
The other thing I was really interested is medical alert systems - but I was unable to find a good brand yet. If and when I do, I will cover that in a subsequent video.