Monthly Archives: August 2009

As the average lifespan of a human being reaches that only previously seen in the tortoise family, there are now more active pensioners than ever before and these people need all of the convenience and facilities that younger people are used to. Just because they have seen more years does not mean they should not have access to modern equipments such as mobile phones. The problem with the mobile phone is that it is of course designed to be mobile and this can hinder usage for people who have problems pressing small buttons and for those with poor eyesight. As mobile phones become more sophisticated, they need to cram more features into a small space, and this is beyond the realm for people of advanced years.

I would suggest that the Doro ranged is aimed at people over 70 rather than all pesnsioners, and that it is also perfect for people with specific ailments such as poor hearing and maybe arthritous. Every aspect of the phones has been built with older people in mind and this makes the Doro range almost unique in the mobile phone industry, and we should not discount the size of this market. The potential is huge and I see no reason why the Doro set of phones should not succeed in a world where ‘everyone’ wants to be contactible in times of trouble or just to speak to family and friends when they want to.

I am a good subject for these phones at the moment because I have been more than half-deaf for the past 3 months and have struggled to make and receive calls on my Nokia 6303. Some days I find myself continually having to resort to a wired headset and it has caused me genuine issues trying to communicate with people. Hopefully this problem will be resolved for me with an operation, but for people who have this kind of health problem for the rest of their lives, all of the sophisticated features and miniturisation of new mobile phones will mean nothing. It all means nothing because they cannot use the phones…

Clove leant me two Doro handsets, both with names that are far from easy, and so I thought I would give them a try and hazard a guess as to how useful they would be for the older generation.

The HandlePlus 326i gsm is HUGE! It looks like a toy and at first glance cannot be taken seriously as a mobile phone. Hard plastic is used for the outer covering and the bold white set alongside the large black buttons and bright white numbers makes for a setup that anyone would be able to see quite clearly. The screen is surprisingly small and made of a low resolution, but there is no need for a large screen because the feature set is limited.

The thinking process behind the Doro handsets is exemplified by this phone and the associated contents. The large print manual and stickers that can be stuck on the battery listing favourite numbers (how sweet is that?) show a keen understanding of the needs of the target market for these phones. The list of sensitive features continues- soft touch coating, large buttons, 4 memory keys (A-D), safety lanyard, keylock, easy to read display, call timer and the features just keep coming. The features will not impress you guys, the smartphone brigade, but they are not meant to. They are designed to appeal to your parents or grandparents and Doro has gotten the message over well.

You would never carry around a 326i and use it in the street, unless P Diddy or Paris Hilton decides that they are the way forward, but for people in homes and those of an age who need a phone for emergencies and general use it is close to perfect. This particular phone is design at the very high end of the age range because it is overly large and has almost every feature needed for someone of very advanced years. The volume on the speakerphone and through the ear speaker can be set very high indeed and is not recommended for people with normal hearing. I have never heard such a clear and loud speakerphone in my life, and manufacturers of standard mobile phones could learn a lesson or two from Doro.

The PhoneEasy 345gsm is positively svelt in comparison to the 326i and I must reluctantly admit to taking a shine to it. The manual is about the size of a standard Bible and the box is quite big. Inside is an 850mAh battery (700mAh in the 326i) and this may sound stingy, but remember that the features are quite short and with a small screen there should be little to drain power. Also, the likely target market is unlikely to be texting and calling a lot; “Hi Stan, see U down the pub. Mega LOLs.” It’s not going to happen is it…

The buttons on the 345gsm are simply brilliant. The motion is perfect and again this is an area that other manufacturers could learn from. With so many phones including buttons that have little or no tactile feedback, it is refreshing to see a phone with buttons that you actually want to press. Again we have very large buttons and a small screen, but in a subtle design which works well- the green stripes on the back soft plastic looks really good and if this design were used in a smaller phone, it could have a fairly large market.

Voice quality and loudness are once again fantastic and I found little wrong with this phone. The LCD screen is not great, but the numbers and letters are large and thus once again the target market has been catered for in every area.

I can’t write much about these phones because they do not do much, but they nail the most crucial areas perfectly. With wonderful sound quality, accessible features throughout the software and hardware, and even well written manuals and accessories they are as good as you can hope for if you need this type of mobile phone.

I walked out of Clove with these two phones and wondered what the hell I was doing. Three days later, I have grown to appreciate what they are capable of and the niche in the market they cover. I genuinely like these phones and the 345gsm in particular caught my attention. Doro has filled a huge gap in the market with its range of handsets, and I am glad I got a chance to see what they could do. Guess what my Mum will be getting for Christmas…

The Doro range of handsets are available from Clove.