New card reader appeals to older adults

Many of today’s necessary services, such as healthcare, utilities and banks are urging us to go paper free. This is in an effort to reduce the amount of paper that is wasted on a daily basis. These services are often much faster than their traditional alternative, with faster responses to questions or instantaneous access to a person’s details with that service or company.

There are many fears over internet safety, and some people are wary of moving to internet banking, however card readers are a security measure that many high-street banks have adopted to keep their customers money safe and ensure only they can access it. These card readers require the customer to insert their card and enter their pin, it will then give a unique code that can be entered online to confirm it is not someone else trying to access an account. 

Often these card readers can be quite small, with most just being a little larger than a bank card. One high street bank has now created a card reader specially designed for older customers. The small card readers can have buttons that are difficult to use for those with mobility or dexterity issues. Those who have other personal mobility facilities, such as straight stairlifts in their home, may struggle to hold a device as small as a traditional card reader, let alone operate it.

The new card reader is designed with ergonomics in mind, with textured sides to help grip and a shape that is better suited to fit the hand. A larger screen aids those with limited vision and has also spurred this bank to reassess their high visibility bank cards. These bank cards come in neon colours with large arrows to show which way the chip should be inserted.

Image Credit: Negative Space