Katarzyna Petru
LG has decided to target a very specific group of consumers – seniors who struggle with operating modern Smart TVs on a daily basis. The latest LG Easy TV has already debuted in South Korea and will soon be available in other markets with "rapidly aging societies" – such as Japan and the United States.
Why was Easy TV created?
Anyone who regularly visits their grandparents knows that modern televisions are often quite a puzzle for them. Instead of the simple menus known from the old "tube" TVs, today's Smart TVs offer a maze of applications, icons, and shortcuts. Remotes? Instead of classic numbers – a set of buttons for VOD services and functions that are completely incomprehensible to older people. The result? Plenty of calls to children or grandchildren asking: “how do I turn on my show?”.
QNED for Seniors
In terms of hardware, Easy TV is based on the model LG QNED Evo QNED85A Mini LED 4K, but has been significantly modified. The manufacturer has enhanced brightness and color saturation to make viewing easier for individuals with impaired vision. Meanwhile, the sound has been optimized for clearer dialogues – so that conversations in films or series do not get lost in the background.
The television is available in two variants – 65” and 75”. In South Korea, the prices are 2.769 million won (~£1469) and 3.869 million won (~£2050), respectively. This is slightly more expensive than the standard QNED, but the differences are due to additional features.
What makes life easier with ChooseTV?
LG has greatly simplified the webOS system. The menu is located at the bottom of the screen, not obscuring the content, and the available options are limited to five key features for seniors and favorite apps. Fonts are larger, and the remote control has large, readable buttons – including one huge HELP.
And this is the heart of the entire concept. Pressing it launches LG Buddy – an AI assistant that:
allows family members or caregivers to control the TV remotely,
supports voice control,
enables simple video calls (“call Jan”),
and if necessary, can serve as an alarm function – pressing it three times sends an alert to a loved one.
But that's not all. ChooseTV can remind users to take their medication (the Live Alert function), offers simple memory-stimulating games, and provides a set of navigation aids.
Remote – simpler, yet still advanced
Although the new remote is more intuitive than the Magic Remote, it still has a lot of buttons. Plus points for the large numbers, classic play/pause, and rewind – this is something that is increasingly missing in standard remotes.
Technology That Really Helps
For older adults, technology often poses a barrier. However, LG demonstrates that it can also provide support – enhancing image and sound quality, simplifying operation, and introducing safety features. Easy TV redefines the concept of “accessibility features” and shows that a simple television for seniors is not a step back, but a step towards the real needs of users.
Perhaps in a few decades, we will appreciate that such solutions were created – when it is our turn to be grandparents.
