Can people use it?
What does setup, learning, and daily use require? Where might hearing, vision, dexterity, memory, or technology confidence change the experience?
For AgeTech manufacturers & product teams
Your product has features.
Your product has features.
What will living with it require?
Independent Product Evaluation™ brings the RAFTECH.ORG technology-fit perspective to the conversation about your product: the older adult, the caregiver, and the everyday demands placed on both.
Start with the questions you need answered. Let’s discuss whether an independent evaluation is the right next step.
The evaluation conversation
Look beyond what the product can do.
RAFTECH.ORG’s advisory approach considers usability, caregiver workload, privacy, reliability, and recovery. These are useful starting questions for defining a product evaluation—not a promise that every engagement covers every area.
Who does the extra work?
Who manages accounts, charging, alerts, updates, and troubleshooting? What responsibility moves to the caregiver?
What happens when it fails?
What happens if connectivity drops, power is lost, an alert is missed, or the usual support person is unavailable?
Does it respect the person?
Can people understand the monitoring, choose what they share, and set boundaries that make sense in their home?
What supports the promise?
Which claims have supporting evidence? What assumptions, limitations, or unanswered questions should a buyer understand?
What will ownership require?
How do subscriptions, maintenance, support, and changing needs affect whether the product remains practical?
One product. Two perspectives.
The person using it is only part of the picture.
An older adult may interact with the product. A family member or professional may manage everything around it. A useful evaluation question considers both experiences.
Bring the intended use, the support arrangements, and the realities of the home into the discussion alongside the technology.
Will this technology help the person receiving care while reducing or avoiding burden for the person providing care?
Start with a focused inquiry
Tell us what you need to understand.
The first step is a conversation about your product and the decision you’re trying to make. Evaluation methods, access requirements, deliverables, timing, and fees need to be agreed for the specific engagement.
What does it do?
Share a product link, its development stage, its intended users, and the problem it is designed to address.
What needs a closer look?
Describe the uncertainty: usability, caregiver responsibilities, a product claim, support requirements, or another technology-fit concern.
What can you share?
Identify available documentation, existing evidence, demonstration options, and any practical constraints. Discuss access before sending equipment or confidential material.
Before you inquire
A few useful distinctions.
Is this the family Technology Fit Assessment?
No. This page is for manufacturers and product teams discussing evaluation of a product. Families considering technology for their own situation can explore the Two-Person Technology Fit Assessment™.
Does an evaluation mean an endorsement or certification?
An evaluation should not be presented as a guaranteed endorsement, certification, or regulatory approval. Discuss the scope of the work and any proposed use of findings with RAFTECH.ORG before making public claims.
What does it cost, and what will we receive?
Start by describing your product and evaluation questions. Request a proposal specifying the scope, deliverables, timing, and fees before deciding whether to proceed.
Will the evaluation include hands-on testing?
That needs to be established for the engagement. Ask which methods are appropriate and what product access would be needed; do not assume that a discussion or document review includes hands-on testing.
Independent Product Evaluation™
Bring your product.
Start with the right questions.
Use the RAFTECH.ORG contact form to introduce your product and ask about an independent evaluation.
Discuss your productInclude in your message
- Your name, company, and product link
- The intended older-adult and caregiver users
- The main questions you want addressed
- Your product stage and relevant timing
Begin your message with “Independent Product Evaluation” so the purpose is clear.
RAFTECH.ORG provides technology advisory and educational services. Product evaluation does not replace clinical, regulatory, or other specialist assessments.