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Wednesday, January 05, 2005

One-Button Phone For Dialing 911 Only
Does owning this product make you a realist or a pessimist? That's the question we're pondering as a slew of interesting new gadgets make their way to tech sites from the CES trade show this week in Las Vegas.

DesignTech's Guardian 911 Phone which will hit stores in April, is a $140 walking speed dial with only one number programmed inside, and only one button. You charge it in a base station like a cordless phone and then when disaster strikes, you hit the button. Sounds more dangerous than good when you consider that most people will hit the button by accident or forget to charge it. With the tiny speaker, we are assuming you can still yell, "I've fallen and I can't get up." Source: PC World
# Permalink Posted at 1:26 PM 5 comments Email this Link

Comments on this Item:

What am I missing, 140 dollars? You can defiantly get a portable phone for that, and prob get a panic button necklace for less that also.

# posted by Dan 2:33 PM

I agree. It's a total rip off.

# posted by Alice 2:47 PM

How about parents who'd want to give devices like these to young kids who may not be adept at cell phone use yet. It's a great idea - maybe not for adults, but certainly it could be useful for protecting kids.

# posted by Jason in Oregon 10:16 PM

Yes, give it to kids who will probably push the button like mad, or leave it in their bag where other items will be pushing it.
Whereas, getting a cellphone where emergency calls are free and don't even require a network connection (or SIM, depending on the network) can be far cheaper and is far more useful.

# posted by Phil 12:31 AM

Dear Alice and Bill,

After reading your notes about our new emergency phone, I would like to offer a couple of corrections.

1. The 911 Guardian Phone is NOT rechargeable. It uses a primary lithium battery, so it is always ready and can be with the user at all times. Battery life is expected to exceed one year.
2. The panic button is not easy to accidentally activate. There has been a careful balance between ease-of-use and protection against false activations. One must also press the button for more than ½ seconds to activate the system.
3. The sound quality and volume are pretty good. We were also concerned about this and are fairly happy with the way it turned out.
4. We have the additional feature of audio prompts which will greatly reassure someone in a panic situation. When activated the phone announces, “Your emergency call is now being dialed, please stand by.”. Voice prompts are also used for system and battery checks.

Thanks for your interest in our new product!

Best regards,

Warren Bosch
Chief Operating Officer
DesignTech International, Inc.

# posted by Bill 12:40 PM

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