May Monthly Bulletin

President’s Message

Is it Time for a New Smartphone?

Now is a great time to shop for a new smartphone. It’s mid-year for most manufacturers and they’re past the onslaught of buyers wanting the latest and greatest when new phones first release, and they’re also dealing with slumping sales caused by other potential buyers who plan on waiting until new models come out in the fall.

The easy part is your decision to purchase a new smartphone. Now you have to decide on which OS, which manufacturer, which carrier…and the list of questions goes on.

Smartphones have become an integral part of our lives and few of us can function without one. A smartphone is just another computer…but one we can carry in our pocket or purse that also lets us call people. These devices are no longer simply phones – we do everything with them and in some instances, they can completely replace a desktop computer.

With the top three carriers continually fighting for the most subscribers, the best coverage, or the best 5G signal, you’ll always find one of them willing to make a better deal, but it’s still in your best interests to shop around and find that best deal. You’ll inevitably find the best prices not in the actual price of the phone, but with the wireless carrier you choose. Due to price fixing, carriers are often not allowed to discount the price of phones, but they can give you a deep discount in terms of monthly credits on your bill. This is nothing shady…it’s a great way for them to secure new customers and you to get a discounted, or even free phone. Here’s how it works.

Let’s say you want to purchase a new iPhone 13 and the retail price from Apple is $799. To entice you to switch carriers (something you might be planning to do anyway), some carriers will give you this phone FREE. The only catch is they’ll divide the cost of the phone by 24 ($33.29), then take $33.29 off your bill each month for 24 months. You’re getting the phone free, but you have to stay with the new carrier for two years to receive all the credits. This is NOT a contract…you can leave anytime. But if you do, you’ll owe the balance of the $799 based on when you leave and how much you’ve paid on it. This is a great way to get a new phone free if you’re planning to move to a new carrier, anyway.

Also, at this point on the cellular timeline, don’t even consider a phone that isn’t 5G capable. All the carriers with towers in Tellico Village have either fully transitioned to 5G or will be finishing it soon. In fact, a 6G standard is already in the works.

We’re very fortunate here in Tellico Village, in that all the major wireless carriers work equally well (or poorly) depending on your perspective. They each have their dead spots, it’s unavoidable as the signal from the tower radiates straight out from the tower and we have hills and valleys which can hinder that signal. Also, the antenna inside your phone is a very small target which may or may not do as well as another phone – even from the same manufacturer, in a fringe service area. Some due diligence and research will quickly educate you on which carrier and or phone works best in your part of Tellico Village or the places you often frequent. Select your wireless carrier and phone accordingly.

Above all, remember that your smartphone is an extension of your digital life and keeps you connected to family and friends with calls and texts. I recommend purchasing one of the top brands for performance, durability and longevity. Some of the best names in smartphones this year are the Samsung Galaxy Series, iPhone 13 Series, and the new Google Pixel 6 series. All phones will work…but the flagship phones are always your best choice and usually only cost a little more.

Larry McJunkin, President

April Monthly Bulletin

Aging in Place (With the Help of a Smart Home)

As we grow older, the need for a support system becomes greater, including assistance from family members, caregivers, or even a residence that is designed to accommodate seniors. We’re more prone to reduced vision, less mobility, risk of falls, and more. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could safely and comfortably stay in our homes just awhile longer? Some basic smart home devices can do a lot to make that happen.

Smart home devices such as cameras, video doorbells, smoke alarms, and voice-activated speakers can easily make our everyday life safer, more convenient, and help us continue to be social. But before you run out and buy these smart home devices, become informed…and have a plan.

The Plan – Identify the areas where smart home devices could make your life easier. Maybe discuss this with a family member, or even a friend.

Arrange Tech Support – In addition to providing the installation, ensure someone is available to troubleshoot any problems and keep the software updated.

Organize Controls – It’s best to use one app, and the Google Home app is the best and easiest to use. It works equally well on either Android phones or iPhones.

Emergency Contacts – Some smart home devices can be configured to automatically text or call a relative, friend or any third party, as well as 911.

Smart home devices have reached such a level of sophistication, they can not only provide assurance to a distant loved one that you are in a safer environment but let them communicate with you. If desired, cameras that monitor your home can also provide 2-way communications with your family members and should you fall, and your voice can even trigger an alert on their phone. Some devices you should consider are:

– Home security cameras for communication or for monitoring who is coming and going.

– Video doorbells that let you answer your front door from the comfort of your smartphone, wherever you are in your home.

– Smart lighting for dark hallways and entryways, automatically lighting up as you enter the area when it’s dark.

– Smart plugs with timers that can ensure devices like coffee makers and fans are automatically turned on and off at appropriate times of day.

Most smart devices are simple to set up with a smartphone. They can send notifications when activated, and in many cases, they provide remote-access control. A well-planned system can allow you to be monitored and assisted by a loved one, in emergencies or just day to day, depending on your situation.

The decision to use this technology obviously involves security and privacy concerns. But experts for the aging note that the decision should take into consideration that safety is of the highest importance, and if a person has to be home alone, a way to monitor them is a reasonable solution.

The TVCUC is considering the formulation of a Smart Home Special Interest Group (SIG). This group would be led by an expert in smart home technology and presentations/discussions would focus on choosing, installing and using smart home devices and could also include cord-cutting topics. This group would be an inclusive service to TVCUC members and if you are interested in learning more about smart home technology, please send us an email.

Other Club News

In other news, TAP continues to be active in refurbishing and providing computer systems to needy children in the surrounding local areas. We still need your help for this, so if a new computer is in your future, please consider donating your old computer (and printer) to TAP. As of the end of March, we have refurbished and donated 9,365 computer systems to help 13,819 deserving children and family members. What an amazing accomplishment…KUDOS to TAP!

The TVCUC is always looking for volunteers. If you would like to give back in the form of helping with our club’s educational efforts, or even serving on our board of directors (a board position is currently open), please let us know by sending an email.

Larry McJunkin, President

March Monthly Bulletin

President’s Message

I’m devoting this entire monthly bulletin to a very important topic that affects us all – digitally preparing for when we’re gone. Seldom a month goes by that I, or someone else on the FLS team, helps a member access a deceased loved one’s phone or computer to obtain access to financial accounts and other information. This happened to me again yesterday and prompted me to write this.

Death is inevitable – don’t make it even more difficult for those you leave behind. Here is some basic advice on how to ensure your loved ones can manage passwords, sensitive data, and social media profiles after you die. As we live more of our lives online, it’s increasingly important to enable our spouses or designated family members to access digital information when we’re gone. Follow these steps to make sure this process is less difficult for them.

The first, and by far the most important of these, is a password manager. This contains the keys to all your digital accounts, like banking and credit card information and any other important information. We often remind members how important it is to have a password manager, so please don’t keep putting this off. This is absolutely the single most critical thing you can do to make it easier on your loved one after you’re gone.

While ensuring your partner, or other family members, have access to your financial information is important, don’t forget about social media. Preserving profiles may seem trivial, but our lives are increasingly lived online in places like Facebook, so these accounts are the modern version of physical photo albums, letters, and other keepsakes.

Facebook lets you select a legacy contact who will memorialize your account and keep a pared-down version of your profile active after your death. A memorialized account will show a banner on your profile indicating that you’re deceased, remove your account from public search results, and turn off birthday reminders. Friends will still be able to post messages on your timeline, if you choose to allow it. To set up your legacy contact in Facebook and learn more about this service, click here for more information.

You can also opt to have your Facebook account deactivated after you die. Under Memorialization Settings, scroll down and click Request that your account be deleted after you pass away, and opt in in the pop-up window.

For your Gmail account, Google offers anInactive Account Manager that automatically turns over control of your account to a designated person after a set period of inactivity. To set this up, go to this page, logon, and click Start. Then, decide how long you want to wait before Google declares your account inactive (by default, this is set to three months.) Below that, add or verify your phone number and another contact or recovery email. Google will attempt to contact you multiple times via this number or email before it turns your account over to someone else. When you’re done, click Next and follow the remainder of instructions for other optional actions you want Google to take.

If you have Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) set up on important accounts (and you should have), your loved ones will need access to your phone in addition to your username and passwords to intercept secondary codes. One option is to add a trusted person’s fingerprint or face to your phone. If you have an iPhone with TouchID, you can add an extra fingerprint by going toSettings > Touch ID & Passcode > Add a fingerprint. If you have an iPhone X or above, simply add another Face ID in the same Settings area of your iPhone.

Options for Android phones vary, depending on which device you have, but a quick Google search for your specific device should put you on the right track to make your phone accessible for obtaining the 2FA code.

After you’ve taken the preceding steps, a good portion of your data should be readily accessible to those you leave behind. However, not every service offers an easy way of granting access. Remember to include the login information for any backup service you use. Otherwise, it’s a good idea to get in the habit of saving your work to an external hard drive or flash drive that your loved ones can easily access.

If you have a Windows PC or a Mac, there are many methods you can use to save a backup of your most important files. You can use File History in Windows, or Time Machine on a Mac, to make regular backups that can be easily retrieved by your loved ones.

Everyone needs to have at least a simple will, but do you have one? Do you know you can easily create one online? Services like LegalZoom, and others, let you put everything to writing before it’s too late. Depending on the complexity of your wealth and estate, a simple online will might not be sufficient. It’s best to seek advice from an attorney or credible advisor.

One final option to consider is recording a video. By doing this, you can document all the things your loved one or family member needs to do, even adding viewable instructions. And you can include how-to instructions for the not-so-important things. The possibilities of this are endless and you can easily do it yourself by turning on Screen Share in Zoom or Google Meet and then recording your session.

Most importantly, do something! Don’t wait until it’s too late and your partner or family member is faced with not only losing you but dealing with the burden of trying to access financial and other important information without the proper keys to unlock it. Doing “these” things and having “that” talk are difficult, but they’ll make it easier for someone you love.

Larry McJunkin, President