Looking for a smartwatch for my elderly mum… any suggestions?

Seeking Advice
1

Hello everyone,

I need some help. I’m looking for a smartwatch for my elderly mum that meets these criteria:

  1. Simple to use and can easily make calls to family, especially in case of a fall.

  2. Reliable. She’s housebound, so no need for GPS, but it should be able to connect to a phone or network to make calls.

  3. Should have an option to call emergency services if needed.

  4. Budget-friendly (under £150).

Optional: Fall detection would be great if possible.

Thanks in advance for any help!

2

  1. Does it need to be connected to a phone, or should it be able to make calls on its own (like having LTE)? Also, what phone do you have? That will limit your options.

  2. It’s better to go with well-known brands. The cheaper ones often use third-party apps, which can cause issues with connectivity.

  3. See point 1 for the answer.

  4. Most watches that offer features like these are usually above your budget.

If you have an iPhone, your best option would be an Apple Watch—get the most recent model you can afford.

If you’re using Android, a Pixel or Samsung watch could work, though I’m not sure about other brands offering fall detection. These two have LTE, so they can make calls even without being connected to your phone.

Note that fall detection isn’t always reliable on these watches—so a dedicated service for that might be a better choice.

3

@Noor
Thanks for the advice!

She has an Android, so I was hoping to connect the watch to that, but I’m also open to getting one with a SIM card. Fall detection isn’t a must, but I just want a basic watch with simple call functions.

4

@Sky
Fall detection is unreliable on most watches—don’t rely on it.

Both the Pixel and Galaxy watches have emergency call features. Also, features like abnormal heart rate monitoring and resting heart rate tracking could be useful.