�Help, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!� If you watched TV at all during the 90’s, you no doubt remember those old Life Alert commercials featuring an elderly woman shouting for help. The idea behind the device being advertised was that with a press of the button you could have assistance brought to your home. Well the companies ZTE and Softbank have teamed up to bring an update to that classic gadget.
No, this isn’t actually another Life Alert product, but it sure reminds me of one. This small device is about as simple as you get, with a button, and a pull-ring as the only real methods of input. A press of the button sends out emails to a pre-programmed selection of friends and relatives. This tells them exactly where you are and that you need assistance. How does it send the information? Well the gadget is actually a dumbed-down cell phone, and uses the data connection to transmit messages.
The pull-ring will activate an audio alarm to alert the people in the area that you need help. Not a very high-tech feature, but an essential one nonetheless.
My grandmother has one of these and it really gives us peace of mind when she's home, but we have been searching for the perfect PHONE for her for when she goes out! We weren’t looking for anything fancy, but just something for her to keep by her side should she need to contact anyone while she was out of her house. We found TracFone’s SVC (Senior Value Cell) plan. We bought the cell phone – a Samsung T155G – for $20 and pay under $7/month for the minutes. It has a large, readable screen, and large buttons as well. Great for what she needs it.
Honestly, the SVC really is a great deal. I think other ones may be overly simplistic or overly complicated. The emergency button really is great too! My mom has one with her everywhere she goes when she's at home.