On this page I provide reviews of various products that might be of interest to anyone looking for computers for seniors or other software solutions geared towards seniors and other non computer literate people.
First, I want to make a disclaimer so as to be perfectly transparent. I do not own any of the products reviewed here. I did, however, research many websites, including manufacturer and marketer websites, as well as various customer and professional reviews.
If you have any information, comments or opinions, please leave a comment at the bottom of the page.
Product Review – Telikin
(Reviewed 6/9/2015)
Manufactured by Venture 3 Systems in Hatfield, Pennsylvania and MSI in Taiwan.
General. The Telikin family of computers are all-in-one computers. They all have touch screens and come pre-loaded with applications so they are truly ready out of the box. One thing to be aware of is that the applications included are the only ones that can be used. There is no way to install anything else or make any configuration changes. This can be either a positive or a negative.
It’s good that the novice user can’t accidently mess up the software or any of the programs, but at the same time it limits the more computer savvy folks. It all depends on what’s more important to you. It should be noted, though, that the whole point of this computer is for those novices that don’t need or want the extra bells and whistles.
Wireless. All three models have wireless WiFi capability, but the keyboard and mouse are both wired. Mouse? Why would you need a mouse with a touch screen? In my opinion you don’t. I guess it’s included for those people that are used to a mouse and want to keep using one, although it wouldn’t make much sense spending the extra money for a touch screen then. No matter. I digress. I feel it would be a better option to have the keyboard wireless, but that’s not the case. I minor thing, I admit.
Support. Telikin offers great support according to most of the customer reviews I’ve found. They specialize in helping seniors (and anyone that is not tech or computer savvy) so they are patient and don’t use technical jargon. You get one month of their VIP Support for free. After that it’s $10/month, which includes not only tech support but online backups.
Other Reviews. There have been a couple of consumer reviews that claim the Telikin is using old technology and is over priced. In my opinion, the higher price may be justified by the time and effort that went into making this one of the easiest computers to use and secure from both outside threats (viruses and hackers) and from unintentional mistakes by the users themselves.
For a full professional review of the Telikin from ConsumerReports.org, click here: Consumer Reports Review
Specifications/Models. There are three models available. Some of the technical specifications are presented for those interested.
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- Processor – Intel 847 Celeron D
- Memory – DDR3 SDRAM (amount unknown, probably 2 GB)
- Hard Drive – 500GB
- Monitor – 22 inch touch screen
- Operating System – Telikin OS (customized Tiny Core Linux)
- Wireless – 802.11 b/g/n
- Purchase from Amazon:Telikin Elite II. 22 inch touch screen desktop. Price at time of review – $1,079
- Telikin Breeze. 18.6 inch touch screen desktop. Price at time of review – $699
- Processor – Intel Dual Core Atom Processor, 1.8GHz
- Memory – 2GB SDRAM RAM
- Hard Drive – 16GB SSD
- Monitor – 18.6 inch touch screen
- Operating System – Telikin OS (customized Tiny Core Linux)
- Wireless – 802.11 b/g/n
- Purchase from Telikin:
Telikin Breeze
- Telikin Freedom. 15.6 inch touch screen laptop. Price at time of review – $799
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- Processor – Intel dual core 1.8GHz processor
- Memory – 4GB SDRAM
- Hard Drive – 500GB
- Monitor – 15.6 inch touch screen
- Operating System – Telikin OS (customized Tiny Core Linux)
- Wireless – 802.11 b/g/n
- Purchase from Telikin:
Telikin Freedom
Product Review – WOW Computer
This is actually the Telikin Elite II computer (reviewed above) re-branded under “WOW Computer” and marketed by a company called firstSTREET. The specifications are identical.
Product Review – A Plus Senior Computer
(Reviewed 8/23/2015)
Marketed by Computer Tutor Plus, Inc. in Hollywood, Florida.
General. All of the A Plus Senior Computers run Windows 8.1 with an overlay (or “shell”) called Windows Classic Pro, which gives them the look and feel of Windows 7, which many people find easier to use than Windows 8.1. What makes them different from the Telikin is that they are not “closed” systems. That means additional hardware devices and additional software programs can be added to them.
However, this doesn’t mean the user is now at risk of mistakenly messing things up. A Plus Computer executive Dale Dion makes this statement: “There are only 3 icons: for games, email and Google. We turn off all messages so there are no pop-ups or questions for them to answer. We make over 40 “adjustments” to the computer so that it’s extremely easy for seniors to use. It is a fully functioning computer so as they progress, there are no limits on what they can do on the computer. Our initial setup is with just 3 icons, Solitaire so if they are new to a computer they can get comfortable with the mouse, simple email (via Gmail), and an icon to go directly to Google. We include a 47 page illustrated manual that has a 10 step lesson plan so they can, one step at a time, become comfortable with the computer. Lesson one is turning the computer on and off just to give you an example of how basic we get. Finally we offer our own phone/remote connection service so if they have an issue or just a question on how to do something we can easily connect with their computer and help them.”
Service/Support. To begin with, A Plus Computers offer a 30 day money back guarantee with free shipping. All of the computers come with a one year hardware warranty included in the purchase price. A service plan is also available for $19.95 per month if purchased within 30 days of the computer purchase. It provides unlimited phone, remote and email support along with a lifetime warranty. Included with the basic system are maintenance free anti-virus, anti-malware and state-of-the-art firewall encryption that never expires.
Specifications/Models. There are a variety of models available, depending on whether you want a touchscreen or not and whether you want a desktop or a laptop.
Touch Screen Desktops
- Model 9300. 23 inch touch screen desktop. Price at time of review $1199
- Processor – Intel Pentium, 3.4GHz
- Memory – 4GB expandable to 8GB
- Hard Drive – 1TB
- Monitor – 23 inch touch screen
- Wireless (WiFi) – Yes
- Ports – Ethernet
- Other – Webcam, Mic, Memory Card Reader, CD/DVD Reader/Writer
- Model 9200. 20 inch touch screen desktop. Price at time of review $1049
- Processor – Intel Pentium 2.66GHz
- Memory – 4GB expandable to 8GB
- Hard Drive – 500GB
- Monitor – 20 inch touch screen
- Wireless (WiFi) – Yes
- Ports – Ethernet
- Other – Webcam, Mic, Memory Card Reader, CD/DVD Reader/Writer
Touch Screen Laptops
- Model 7300. 17.3 inch touch screen laptop. Price at time of review $1199
- Processor – AMD Quad-Core A4, 1.9GHz
- Memory – 4GB expandable to 8GB
- Hard Drive – 500GB
- Monitor – 17.3 inch HD LED
- Wireless (WiFi) – Yes
- Ports – Ethernet, HDMI, 3 USB
- Other – Webcam, Mic, Memory Card Reader, CD/DVD Reader/Writer
- Model 5100. 15.6 inch touch screen laptop. Price at time of review $699
- Processor – Intel Pentium, 2.4GHz
- Memory – 4GB expandable to 8GB
- Hard Drive – 500GB
- Monitor – 15.6 inch HD LED
- Wireless (WiFi) – Yes
- Ports – Ethernet, HDMI, 3 USB
- Other – Webcam, Mic, Memory Card Reader, CD/DVD Reader/Writer
Non-Touch Screen Desktops
- Model 8300. 23 inch all-in-one desktop. Price at time of review $949
- Processor – AMD E2-1800 Accelerated Processor, 1.75GHz
- Memory – 4GB expandable to 8GB
- Hard Drive – 500GB
- Monitor – 23 inch HD wide screen
- Wireless (WiFi) – Yes
- Ports – Ethernet
- Other – Webcam, Mic, Memory Card Reader, CD/DVD Reader/Writer
- Model 8200. 20 inch all-in-one desktop. Price at time of review $849
- Processor – AMD (model unknown), 2.6GHz
- Memory – 4GB
- Hard Drive – 500GB
- Monitor – 20 inch screen
- Wireless (WiFi) – Yes
- Ports – Ethernet
- Other – Webcam, Mic, Memory Card Reader, CD/DVD Reader/Writer
Non-Touch Screen Laptops
- Model 7100. 17.3 inch laptop. Price at time of review $899
- Processor – AMD Turbo, 1.9GHz
- Memory – 4GB expandable to 8GB
- Hard Drive – 500GB
- Monitor – 17.3 inch HD LED
- Wireless (WiFi) – Yes
- Ports – Ethernet, HDMI, 3 USB
- Other – Webcam, Mic, Memory Card Reader, CD/DVD Reader/Writer
- Model 3100. 15.6 inch laptop. Price at time of review $549
- Processor – Intel (model unknown), 2.58GHz
- Memory – 4GB expandable to 8GB
- Hard Drive – 500GB
- Monitor – 15.6 inch HD LED
- Wireless (WiFi) – Yes
- Ports – Ethernet, HDMI, 3 USB
- Other – Webcam, Mic, Memory Card Reader, CD/DVD Reader/Writer
Hello Larry, I was wondering if you had any current information regarding the Pointerware software shell. I did some online research after reading your prelimary references in a couple of comments. It looked promising to me, but it also looked like the company the developed it may no longer be in business.
If that is the case, have you looked at any other similar software intended to simplify the complexity of computer interface for seniors?
Thanks, Greg
if my husband wants to go to our home town news paper will he be able to do that and what ever else that he would like to look up are you able to do all that on this computer ,
Hi Judith,
Thanks for stopping by. The answer to your question is “it depends”. If your home town newspaper has made their paper available online and accessible from a standard web browser, then yes. To be 100% certain, you would have to call them up on the phone and ask them. Then, if that is good, whether it’s free or not also depends on the newspaper and whether they decided to charge for that access or not.
Hi LThompson,
You did a great review of the Teliken computer. Actually this is the first time I’ve heard of the brand. My attention is just towards the more common like Dell and HP and I have not used any other brand. Teliken seems like a good brand except that it is kind of pricey. Is it specifically made for seniors? Are the features geared towards easy use for seniors? At this time, I am not in the market for a new pc as i just purchased a new one barely 3 mos old. So later maybe. Thanks for your informative review.
Hi Rebecca,
Thanks for taking the time to have a look at my site. I know I have neglected it for awhile – too many things going on right now – I guess you would call that “life”. Ha. In your case, since you already purchased a new computer, you might be interested in a software-only solution called PointerWare. It’s from a company of the same name that sells a software program that insulates the user from most of the complexities of a standard computer system and presents a simple, easy to use interface. Like the Telekin, it’s designed for anyone that doesn’t want to know all the ins and outs of running a full blown computer, which can include seniors and anyone else that is not computer literate and doesn’t want to be. I have yet to review it on my website but feel free to check them out.
HI Larry,
I can’t seem to find much info on the A Plus Computers for seniors, other than here and their website. Would you recommend the A Plus (Model 9300) over the Telikin Elite II? It’s for my mom. She wants simple as can be, but I also want her to have the more reliable computer of the two. Thanks- Nate
Hi Nate,
I’m sorry it has taken me so long to reply, but better late than never I say. As far as the A Plus 9300 vs Telikin Elite II, I’m not sure I can give a flat statement saying “here, this is the best one for you”. It mostly depends on you and your mother’s situation and what you’re specifically looking for. They each have their stong points. I think they are both very simple to use, which is a point in their favor. I have not found any information on overall reliability on either one, so that’s tough to answer. In my opinion, I think it comes down to the most basic difference between them, which is that the Telikin is a closed system that cannot be modified and the A Plus is actually Windows 8.1 with a special shell, allowing other programs to be installed.
I did come across another possible solution. It is a software solution called PointerWare from a company of the same name. I have not done a formal review on it yet, but you can take a look at it on their website at http://www.pointerware.com. That would allow you to purchase whatever computer you want and just install the Pointerware software to simplify the operation of the computer for your mom.
I hope this helps. Good luck and happy computing.
–Larry
Great that you are providing this information.
Thank you,
Eileen
Hi Eileen. As I started researching this topic, I discovered that there is some good information out there, but not enough in my opinion. I hope the information I provide will be found useful and helpful.
The Telikin Elite seems pretty legit. I mean you cant go wrong with that. It has all the performance you need. And if you like downloading movies and music to my computer than a 500 gigabyte hard drive is more than enough I am sure of it. Pretty good reviews here, although I never heard of Telikin, the inside of it sounds pretty amazing.
Thanks for stopping by, Brandon. Before researching this, I was like you, I had never heard of Telikin. The concept is brilliant but some people feel that the hardware is not keeping pace with the times, resulting in a system that is over priced for the technology. There may be some truth in that, but there is also the opinion that the price reflects the time and effort that went into making a nearly completely secure and easy to use system.
LThompson,
Thank for this usefull and briliantly readable articles for not only seniors. I found it a bit helpfull in despite of I am not senior. Just thinking about buying it as a present for a Christmas to my Grandmother.
Moreover, I would like to give a recommendation for the first all in one computer with the touch screen: my friend have this PC in her work office and she is fully satisfied with it. the Touchscreen is better source if you think about it as the more interactive screen.
Good Luck with creating websites, and again Thank for qualities which Your web offers, I am looking forward to next visit soon. I am not fluent so I apologise for a grammatical mistakes I´ve created.
I Wish You a Good Luck and Progress! 🙂
Hi mat’a. Thanks for stopping by. Don’t worry about your English and grammar. It’s better than some people I know whose native language is English. I appreciate the feedback and comments. The touch screen is definitely more interactive. But believe it or not, there are some people that don’t like them. Reasons range anywhere from arthritis in the shoulder making it uncomfortable to keep reaching up to the screen to purely personal preferences about fingerprint smudges on the screen. I believe it’s important to have choices to meet the needs and wants of the most people. Soon, I will be reviewing a total software solution for those people that may already have a computer but don’t use it for all the usual reasons of complexity or intimidation, or perhaps want to purchase a standard computer at a lower price then apply the software solution.
Hi Larry, this is brilliant. I did’t even know they did computers specifically targeted at seniors. I’ll have to point the old father at this and see if I can’t get him in action and on line.
Well done with this it’s a great little site with good content and good information.
Thanks for stopping by, Lee. I was just as surprised as you when I first learned of computers made specifically for seniors. I think the overall demand for them is low enough that they just don’t seem to appear on most people’s radar, including retail outfits. Some people find them a little pricey, keeping them from purchasing. Check back in a week or so and I will post a review of a total software solution that uses an existing computer.
I’m not sure whether I would like to go for a touch screen laptop. I would be concerned that I would get too many finger marks all over the screen. Not only that, there is the issue of posture. If you are spending your time leaning forward reaching for the screen every time you do something, you are going to have bad posture and you will get a stiff neck. This is the big problem with the whole touch screen thing. I mean, with a tablet or phone that you only use for a few minutes at a time, fine. But for a computer that you are going to sit at all day, no way.
Do you use a touch screen laptop yourself?
Hi Marcus. I tend to agree with you on touch screen laptops. You asked if I have one, and the answer is ‘yes’, but I rarely use the touch screen, preferring to use the mouse most of the time. That being said, there are a few people out there, particularly from my mother’s generation, that just can’t seem to get the hang of using a mouse. For them, a touch screen would be a better fit.
I thoroughly enjoyed your site :). It has very helpful and informative information. You targeted your audience well too.
I will be back to see this page again for sure.
If you could go to my website and leave a comment that would be greatly appreciated as well. If not then thanks again for the information.
I’m glad you liked the site, Levi. I hope to add more information and more product reviews in the coming weeks. Time is the enemy of us all. 🙂 I have more hardware products to review as well as some software solutions. Come back and visit in a couple of weeks and check them out.
First time I’ve heard of the Telikin brand. Are these computers recommended for seniors in particular because of any of the features (for example, larger text/buttons, simpler interface etc.)? I see that there is good customer support though which is a bonus. I’m looking for something to suit my elderly mother-in-law, without being too overwhelming. What makes the Telikin computers special over other brands?
Thanks for the interest, Jolie. The Telikin company makes these computers specifically for seniors and anyone else that is not computer savvy and really don’t want to be. They feature touch screens with a fixed menu on the left side of the screen with large easy to read buttons. The other significant feature is that it’s a “closed” system. By that I mean you cannot alter it or add or remove programs. The programs supplied with the Telekin are the only programs you can use. Telekin provides free updates to their software and programs for life. The only real negative I’ve found is that some of the hardware components are a tad behind the times rather than being state of the art, so some people feel the system is over priced for what you get. The other side of that argument is that the price is simply compensating for the time and effort to make a “newbie” proof system.
Hello Larry,
My love of everything techno gives me the energy to read about every product I see.
I like the sleek look of the Telikin computer system but I agree with you, if it is touchscreen what is the mouse for.
What I don’t like is you cannot modify the current software within the system, does it send you updates?
Does the computer have USB ports or any other com ports to provide for any kind of downloading or uploading?
Just some questions and food for thought.
San
Hi San. Thanks for stopping by and checking out the Telikin. Being a closed system, Telikin supplies automatic updates, for life I believe. Technical specifications are not easy to come by, even from Telikin’s own website, but from what I can dig up, it looks like there is memory card reader slot and at least 2 USB 2.0 ports. I saw another review that stated you have limited access to the file system – only to the point where you can save and retrieve documents. Again, this is for the user’s own protection, so critical system files can be touched. Stop by anytime, San.
–Larry
Arg. I hate it when I make a type-o error and don’t discover it until after I post it. 🙂 In my previous reply I meant to say “…so critical system file can not be touched”.
Hello, Larry. The first thing I noticed on your site is that you have a very clean a simple Theme. I have learned that a Theme image is very important to a website’s content.
I like the way you wrote a Disclaimer concerning you not owning the products, but that you did your research on them prior to your promotion of the products.
You gave the specifications on all the products, which is very important information for the visitors to have. On your H3 Tag: GENERAL=Break your paragraph around 50% to create white space. For this paragraph, I will start a new paragraph at “It’s good that the novice…..this is just my suggestion, make paragraphs no longer than 4 to 5 sentences, then start a new paragraph.
Check on all your images, most of them when it’s clicked will just show the image again. If you don’t know how to do this. Go to my Profile Page, I did a blog on linking and unlinking texts and images. Your site looks good, just take care of these issues, Larry.
Thank you, Mr. Smith. Your comments make a lot of sense and are greatly appreciated. I will definitely look at making the suggested changes.
Hello, Larry. I enjoyed reading your content on computers for seniors. Since I am a senior, this is right down my line. (-: I am sure visitors to this site will also enjoy the content written on this subject. Nice job, Larry.
Hi Prince. Thanks for stopping by and taking a look. I appreciate the comment. Us seniors have to stick together 🙂 … if for no other reason than to share our “senior moments” with each other. –Larry
This information is very helpful. My parents are really struggling keeping up with things. They have an old computer but they seem to always delete or move programs. Just last week my mom managed to delete her browser. It sounds like they could use one of these computers. I will talk to them about maybe making the switch next time I see them.
Hi Tanya. I’m glad you stopped by. I know exactly what you mean. Before my dad passed away, he would call me 2 or 3 times a month needing help. It was usually due to a mistake on his part – deleting something he shouldn’t or moving an image or document somewhere and unable to find it later. Over the coming weeks, I will be adding more product reviews, so come back and visit again. All the best. –Larry