Most Helpful Customer Reviews
|
|
36 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not much range, lacking features, January 28, 2007
I care for an elderly parent in home, and needed something to alert me in case they fell or needed assistance while in another part of the house. I had hoped this device would be the solution. My plan was to program it to call my cell phone if my parent ever pressed the pendant alert button.
There were a number of problems from the start. First, the unit was difficult to program. It took several steps -- switching power on and off, speakers on and off, and so forth -- and it balked when I tried to enter the forwarding number. The touch tones just wouldn't register in the base unit. It took several attempts to get the number entered.
Second there were two buttons on the pendant -- one for alert, one to cancel the alert. I would prefer only one button on an alert pendant, so the feeble or elderly won't be needlessly confused or accidentally press the wrong button and think help is coming when it isn't, or accidentally cancel a help call before it is made.
Third the pendant range was very short. It wasn't comforting to think the person wearing it could easily get out of range and the alert button be useless. I found it only worked reliably when the pendant was in the same room as the base unit.
Fourth is the "off hook" behavior of the system. It would be easier if the unit would simply pick up and play a few beeps and the alert message over the phone if someone happens to be using the extension. Instead, the unit tries to make the calls anyway. You get alerted, yes, with a bunch of attempted calls and touch tone sounds, but I think it could have been done better.
I just didn't find it trustworthy enough to use. I sent it back, and opted instead for a low-tech (and much cheaper) simple pendant alarm that's activated by a pull on a string. The only downside to it -- which is true of the Telemergency 700C too -- is that it isn't waterproof and can't be worn or used in the shower. But that's what we're going with until someone comes up with a more reliable and trustworthy and well thought out product.
Update: We decided the against the pendant alarm too, since it might not operate if it gets wet. Instead we bought a Fox 40 whistle and lanyard like the Fox 40 Classic CMG with Breakaway Lanyard (Cushioned Mouth Guard). It's pealess so it works even when wet, and it's 115 decibels loud.
|
|
|
18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great UNIT, everyone who lives by themselves should have it, July 31, 2007
I have purchased 4 of these over the last 5 years or so, and they are just what every senior who lives alone or disabled person should have. They are a bit challanging to get set up and recorded (recommend some help on that if you are technologically challenged and have trouble remembering which remote works what tv, etc) but once set up it is a life saver for sure. My Dad used it and fell down outside in the cold putting bird seed in the feeders and he pressed the buttom which he wore around his neck, as you should, and it sent the machine dialing out and I got to him within minutes. He could have frozen... and another time he couldn't get up out of the tub and reached it and got me again. IT DOES NOT NEED a constant monitoring by some company bleeding your wallet dry month after month. You can program fire dept, EMS, or just start calling the kids one by one til someone picks up and punches in the code to stop it from dialing...and then you can do a speak talk with the person if they are in ear shot of the unit, tho you need to do some dry runs on this part so you don't forget the code or the how to do it process. These are cheaper now than when I first bought one for Dad, then one for Mom, who still wears it. I then bought for mother-in-law, and aunts, etc. When I get old, I will get one. Pendant batteries last a very long time, years...so long as you don't use it all the time. You will get the false alarm once in awhile, (when they roll on the pendant in the nite) but that just means it is working and instills confidence in the unit.
Just buy it and you won't regret it.
|
|
|
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Works.....OK?, May 19, 2007
I purchased this item for my mother in law who at age 82 still lives on her own and can probably out work me. But, She recently developed a heart problem and needed to be able to get help even if she was "mowing the yard". Programming is a bit tricky but not impossible. The first unit I purchased made terrible howling noises while just sitting there. My dear Mother in Law said it was OK she would just turn the TV up louder because it reminded her that it was watching out for her! I returned it..LOL..and got her another one that does'nt howl except a little occaionally. The range of the pendant..The Most Important Part of The System is still a bit of a mystery. The ad says it has a 150' range, while the instructions say it has a 100' range? Anyway she normally only wanders about 50' from the house and it seems to work fine from there. For the money it is a good buy and works as promised. Plus the added security she feels she has while at home alone is priceless!
|
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
