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27 Funny Photos of Older People Failing at Technology

These may be the most endearing internet fails ever.

27 Funny Photos of Older People Failing at Technology

Frustrated young'uns everywhere have attempted to teach their elders how to use today's technological devices. But many people of a certain age are still woefully inept at everything and anything related to smartphones, computers, and tablets. And who could blame them? When they were your age, phones had cords that wrapped around the whole house! Sure, it's annoying reminding your mom that she doesn't have to tag you when she comments on your Facebook post (yes, you'll see it).


But watching older people get tripped up by text lingo or taking an antiquated approach to using modern technology just makes us smile. It is just the most earnest and endearing. Herein, we've rounded up some of the most hilarious photos of older folks failing at technology (and being adorable in the process).

1 | This fella who can't figure out the zoom function

Grandpa Looking at His iPad With a Magnifying Glass Grandparents Failing at TechnologyEric2929/Reddit

One Reddit user's grandfather got sick of trying to learn how to zoom in on his iPad—so he opted to use a magnifying glass instead. Honestly, kudos to him for getting creative.

2 | And this guy who's mastered it

Grandpa Zooming In an Insane Amount Grandparents Failing at TechnologyReddit

If this is how far you need to zoom in order to see your laptop screen, you probably either want to (A) see a doctor or (B) just stick to a desktop computer.

3 | This literal interpretation of copy and paste

Grandma Writes Out Long URLS Grandparents Failing at Technologybraverthanbrave/Reddit

This Reddit user's grandmother didn't just write down the names of her favorite websites. She actually took the time to copy down the exact addresses of her preferred webpages, numbers and all. It's probably time for someone to teach this nice lady what the Bookmark function does.

4 | This very polite Google search

Polite Grandma Using Google Grandparents Failing at TechnologyPush10Ben/Twitter

How adorable is this woman trying to use Google?! According to her grandson Ben (who tweeted the photo), this nan thinks that every search is fielded by an actual person, so whenever she Googles something, she never fails to use polite language when inputting her requests.

Google U.K. was even kind enough to respond on Twitter, saying, "Dearest Ben's Nan. Hope you're well. In a world of billions of Searches, yours made us smile. Oh, and it's 1998. Thank YOU." Guess grandma was right after all—there is a real person somewhere behind the giant search engine who deserves a please and thank you!

5 | This clock that just isn't working

Grandma Confused By Her Phone Screen Grandparents Failing at TechnologyImRachaelGreep/Reddit

Those protective sticker covers that show you a device's time display before it's powered on should definitely be removed—especially before you hand it to an older person.

Apparently, this Reddit user's gran forgot to take hers off and didn't quite understand why "the outside clock [was] always showing the wrong time." Whoops!

6 | This intense stove love

Dad Sends Accidental Selfie Grandparents Failing at TechnologyZDaetwiler/Imgur

This Imgur user's dad has a cell phone equipped with a front-facing camera and a heart feature... that he apparently doesn't know how to shut off. When he attempted to take a photo of his new stove, what he sent out instead was this hilarious photo of his kitchen... with an accidental heart-shaped selfie in the corner.

7 | This incredibly slow-moving selfie

Grandma Sends Selfie via Snail Mail Grandparents Failing at Technologymisstinkles420/Reddit

We have to give this Reddit user's grandma credit where credit's due: Though she ended up sending her grandchild this selfie via snail mail, at least she managed to take the photo in the first place.

8 | This very funny (but not funny) situation

Grandma Using Wrong Sad Emoji Grandparents Failing at Technologylightbulbsoup/Reddit

We can see how the various crying emojis might get confusing, but this Reddit user might want to tell her mourning grandma that it looks like she's laughing at her late dog.

9 | This very backwards situation

Grandma Using Her Mouse Backwards Grandparents Failing at Technology7362243619/Imgur

"My grandma called me over to fix her computer because 'everything moves backwards,'" the caption to this Imgur photo reads. Oh, grams!

10 | This Facebook thread-turned-novella

Woman Reading Printed Facebook Comments Grandparents Failing at TechnologyAlexSteinman/Twitter

Want to catch up on Facebook on your morning commute? Of course you do. No cell phone service on the New York City subway? No problem! Just print out an entertaining comment thread—all 15 pages of it, like this woman who was captured on Twitter did.

11 | This adorable interpretation of "LOL"

Mom Doesn't Understand LOL Grandparents Failing at Technologydenny_mcauliffe/Twitter

Internet slang is like an entirely different language—one that older generations struggle to comprehend. Case in point: When one Twitter user used the acronym lol—short for "laugh out loud"—in a conversation with his mom, she assumed that it meant "love you lots" and replied with "I love you more." A sweet misunderstanding, but a misunderstanding nonetheless.

12 | This iPad case that is not a cutting board

Grandma Thought an iPad was a Cutting Board Grandparents Failing at TechnologyIonnaTrailer/Reddit

You might not want to give your grandma an iPad with a case on it. Why? Well, she might mistake that expensive tablet for a cutting board, like this Reddit user's did.

13 | This wireless phone that just won't charge

Wireless Phone Charging the Wrong Way Grandparents Failing at Technologywhoisthismilfhere/Reddit

If you thought that older people had mastered the landline, think again. For some, like this Reddit user's grandma, determining which side of the telephone is supposed to go into the charging port is not as obvious as you'd think.

14 | This makeshift instructions manual

Grandma With Calling Instructions on the Back of Her Phone Grandparents Failing at TechnologyPendebra/Reddit

Who needs the Notes app when you've got the tried-and-true method of taping physical notes to objects in order to remember how to use them? This note is a friendly step-by-step instruction manual for how to call someone, courtesy of one Reddit user to their grandma.

15 | This headphone jack that's definitely not a screw hole

grandpa putting screw in phone jack grandparents failing at technologyu/endmethanks/Reddit

This Reddit user's grandpa may not understand gadgets at all, but he does understand carpentry. What exactly he was trying to screw in though, we may never know.

16 | This adorable accidental selfie

grandmother funny selfie grandparents failing at technologyLisaTaylor777/Twitter

In typical millennial fashion, Twitter user LisaTaylor777 found this hilarious selfie that her grandmother took and immediately posted it online. It appears as though this selfie could either be an accident or just a case of a grandma not quite understanding her best angle.

17 | This volume-only remote

grandparents television remote grandparents failing at technologyPh0nies/Reddit

We all have that one remote for the TV volume, and the other for the cable box. Understandably, it gets confusing.

So, this Reddit user clearly blocked out the sections of the remote that their grandparents should neverever touch. Hilarious? Yes. Genius? Definitely.

18 | And this one that's "charging"

grandparents with television remote in phone stand grandparents failing at technologyTyreke/Reddit

This Reddit user was wondering why their grandparents weren't picking up the phone. Well, it might be because they have confused said phone with their television remote.

19 | This GIF hater

grandma confused by gif grandparents failing at technologyalexrkonrad/Twitter

Honestly, if we didn’t know what a GIF was, we’d be concerned about an incessantly clapping Steve Harvey on our screen, just like this Twitter user's grandma.

20 | This alleged "beach selfie"

grandma selfie with the beach grandparents failing at technologymaddetective/Reddit

We're still not sure who loves the beach in this equation. This picture of one Reddit user's grandma's hair and a parking lot certainly isn't clearing anything up.

21 | And this selfie to end all selfies

grandpa accidental selfie grandparents failing at technologyReddit

Why the long face, grandad?

22 | This very complicated "screenshot"

grandma taking screenshot using another phone grandparents failing at technologyYue42/Reddit

There are several simple ways to take a screenshot on your cell phone. None of those involve a second cell phone in order to take a photo of the first one's screen, like this Reddit user's grandma did.

23 | This one-sided conversation

grandma texting herself grandparents failing at technologymother-moon/Reddit

One of the great things about online messaging services is that they purposely use different colors to differentiate sent messages from received ones. However, that still wasn't enough to stop this Reddit user's grandma from sending a message on Facebook and then responding to it herself.

24 | This self-made speed dial code

funny grandmother home phone grandparents failing at technologyReddit

The only thing more hurtful than being left off your grandma's Christmas card list? Finding out your picture didn't make it onto her speed dial.

This Reddit user's 80-year-old grandma is crafty!

25 | This failed internet fix

grandparents funny internet fix grandparents failing at technologyImgur

After inquiring into their parents' internet connection issues, this Imgur user was quick to find the root of the problem—a hilarious case of user error.

26 | This very enthusiastic nana

grandma doesn't understand texting punctuation grandparents failing at technologyUTAlan/Reddit

It seems as though this Reddit user's grandma still hasn't quite figured out how to add punctuation to her text messages. That's okay, though; we give her (exclamation) points for trying.

27 | This SIM card installation disaster

grandpa taking phone screen off with penknife grandparents failing at technologyHybridzEU/Reddit

It appears as though this Reddit user's granddad found a new (and much more destructive) way to install a SIM card: with a knife. And for more cackle-worthy content about older generations, check out 40 Common Older People Habits That Young People Just Don’t Understand.

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