Like many senior citizens, my grandfather partook in several of the common pursuits associated with retirees … he played a lot golf and he played a lot of card games. But he was also an early adopter of technology.

Back in the 1960s, my grandfather was the first person I knew to get a microwave oven, a telephone answering machine, a big-screen TV, an automatic garage door opener, an audio cassette component for his stereo system, etc. On the flip side, my parents were decidedly low tech. So as a kid, it was a special event when we visited my grandfather and all his "cool” stuff. But apparently, he was not that unique.

According to a recent study from the Continental Automated Building Association's Internet Home Alliance division, the majority of seniors have home offices, high-speed broadband service and wireless home networks. Moreover, a healthy percentage of seniors have multiroom audio systems and many also have home theaters.

The results of the Senior Housing Study were revealed at a National Association of Home Builders' 50+ housing symposium in May. The goal of the study was to identify the solutions consumers over the age of 50 want most in a connected home to keep them safe, comfortable and living independently in their own homes as they grow older. As the housing market has softened and builders seek out niche markets to weather the storm, constructing active adult communities could be an oasis. According to MetLife's Mature Market research, about one-quarter of all US residents — approximately 80 million consumers — are aged 50 and older.

The surveyors reached 600 seniors who had purchased a new home in the past four years. Of that group, 65 percent lived in active adult communities.

The study reveals that seniors are designing their homes in order to stay active, engaged and in touch. More than half (63 percent) of seniors have home offices in their new homes. Meanwhile 70 percent of active-adult community residents and 65 percent of typical neighborhood residents have broadband Internet access at home. Wireless home networks are found in 45 percent of active-adult homes and in 51 percent of new homes in traditional neighborhoods. Fewer than 10 percent of the surveyed homeowners have no Internet access.

Multiroom audio systems are found in 40 percent of typical neighborhood homes, but only in 29 percent of active-adult communities. Interestingly, 40 percent of seniors who opted not to install audio wiring say they would have gotten it if they could make the decision again.

Home theaters are a much less common amenity, with only 10 percent of seniors saying they have a 40-inch or larger TV linked with a surround-sound audio system

"What the study results reveal is that today's seniors are living full, healthy lives, have no intention of slowing down and want their homes to help them maintain their independence and connection to the world,” said Tim Woods, vice president of the alliance.

I have one final tidbit of anecdotal evidence that today's tech-savvy retirees are not fading into the sunset. I met with a developer who acts as the triple-play service provider (Internet/phone/TV) for his active-adult community. When he was selecting the channel lineup for the fiber-to-the home (FTTH) community, there was an overwhelming request for the availability of high-speed video on demand services for porno movies.