SOS button triggers calls and text messages with location
Emergency calls are intended to provide security, especially to older people, when they are alone at home or on the move. If you press a button on the watch, saved emergency contacts usually receive a text message with their location and a phone call. Depending on the model and contract, calls can also be made to emergency call centers. Built-in microphones and speakers make it possible to speak directly to someone.
Two recommended ones are also available in Germany
The Swiss consumer magazine Gesundheittipp tested seven watches with an SOS button – together with the SRF TV show Kassenjagd. The test models also included two conventional smartwatches from Apple and Samsung (original test report health tip).
In addition to the emergency call function, the testers tested the battery, comfort and handling. To find out how robust the watches are, they rained them and carried out drop tests. All models in the test survived this without any damage. Four watches perform well overall, two of which are currently also available in Germany: James safety watch B7 and the smartwatch Apple Watch SE 4G 40 mm (around 350 euros).
Model James B7 is ahead
Swiss test winner. The James B7 safety watch can be rented in Germany via home emergency call services. © ilogs healthcare GmbH
The James watch received the best overall grade. It was best in the emergency call function and has a button that is easy to feel. If it is pressed, a chain telephone starts: The watch calls one registered person after the other until one of them answers the call. The watch also recognizes when only the answering machine responds.
According to the provider, the James B7 is available in Germany through emergency call services such as the Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund or German Red Cross. As a rule, customers rent the watch from 30 to 40 euros per month including a connection to the emergency call center. For some providers the costs are higher at around 60 euros and also include a key deposit. In some cases, there are additional one-off fees for the initial setup. If you only want to inform relatives in an emergency, you can buy the James B6 model – for 189 euros plus around 10 euros per month for a SIM card. According to the provider, it is largely identical to the B7.
Tipp: If you want to sign a contract with an emergency call service, compare different offers. What else you should pay attention to can be found in our home emergency call test. Ask the nursing care insurance company what costs it covers.
Apple Watch reliably detects falls
Shortcoming of the James watch: Its fall sensor easily triggered false alarms in the test. The Apple Watch, on the other hand, was able to reliably distinguish between a fall and strong wrist movements. It is not aimed specifically at older people and is a little more complicated to set up than the other good models in the test. When you press the SOS button, the Apple Watch establishes a connection with the emergency services at number 112. It also sends location messages to emergency contacts but does not call them.
The second conventional smartwatch in the test, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 LTE, received an overall grade of “Sufficient” in the Swiss test. While it offered the best phone quality over the watch, the initial setup proved complicated.
Tipp: Smartwatches also analyze sleep, determine fertile days or measure blood pressure. We checked how reliable the values are in the test of smartwatch health functions.
Doro Watch is behind
The loser in the test among the emergency watches is the Doro Watch: its emergency call button only works if you have a Doro mobile phone with you. But even then, the watch did not always forward the SOS call to the cell phone in the test. In the test laboratory, the testers found that if the cell phone is in sleep mode, the alarm is sometimes not triggered.
Tipp: In our test of senior cell phones, we tested how well Doro cell phones and other smartphones work for seniors and people with other disabilities.