Which smartwatches can you trust in an emergency?

Whether or not you take into account them tasteless or highly effective, Apple’s SOS commercials made an actual impression final 12 months, displaying real-world examples of the Apple Watch Series 8 or iPhone 14 saving individuals’s lives via their emergency SOS and satellite tv for pc options. What chances are you’ll or could not know is that different smartwatches and health manufacturers supply their very own emergency options like Emergency SOS indicators, fall detection, dwell broadcasting of your location, satellite tv for pc messaging once you’re out of mobile vary, and so forth. So even for those who’re not an Apple person, you’ll be able to maintain your self secure — for those who make certain to allow these options forward of your subsequent out of doors journey into the woods, mountains, or ocean. Below, we’re itemizing the most well-liked iOS and Android smartwatch manufacturers in alphabetical order, describing the entire security instruments that every model gives. This can assist you determine which smartwatches you’ll be able to rely on throughout a disaster… and which you’ll’t rely on.Apple Watch(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)Sunday Runday(Image credit score: Android Central)In his new weekly column, Android Central Fitness Editor Michael Hicks talks in regards to the world of wearables, apps, and total health tech associated to operating and well being.The Apple Watch Series 8 and Apple Watch Ultra help Fall and Crash Detection. If any Apple Watch on watchOS 9 detects that you simply come to a sudden cease in both context after which stay motionless for 20 seconds (automotive crash) or 60 seconds (fall), it’s going to sound an alarm and get in touch with emergency providers through your iPhone or built-in LTE connection. Car crash detection is enabled by default, whereas fall detection is auto-enabled throughout exercises and outdoors of exercises for anybody aged 55 or older. Go to Settings > SOS > Fall Detection to make it all the time on, no matter your age.Outside of conditions the place the Apple Watch auto-detects an issue, you’ll be able to maintain down the facet button or a “Hey Siri” command to name 911. Your watch will then show your saved medical info in case you are discovered unconscious; additionally, your emergency contacts might be contacted through textual content message after the 911 name ends. You can arrange your Medical ID and record of emergency contacts within the Apple Health app in your telephone. Lastly, for those who purchase the brand new iPhone 14 or iPhone 14 Pro, you get two years of free Emergency SOS through satellite tv for pc in conditions the place you don’t have any mobile protection. This primarily works via your telephone fairly than the Apple Watch, however Apple does say that Crash/Fall Detection alerts are despatched over satellite tv for pc if there isn’t any mobile connection. Overall, the Apple Watch is a good possibility for security options if (A) you even have a charged iPhone with you to relay a name or (B) you pay for the LTE model of the Apple Watch Series 8. The solely actual draw back is that the usual Apple Watch battery is notoriously unreliable, and you do not need your watch dying on you proper earlier than an accident; the Apple Watch Ultra’s 36-hour battery and built-in LTE are way more dependable for out of doors sorts.Fitbit / Google Pixel Watch(Image credit score: Nicholas Sutrich / Android Central)Unfortunately for house owners of one of the best Fitbit watches and trackers, Fitbit and Google have but so as to add any emergency providers or fall detection to those gadgets. The solely exception is the Google Pixel Watch, which gives Fitbit Premium and has emergency SOS help through its Wear OS 3 help. You can test our information on tips on how to allow emergency SOS calls on the Pixel Watch to get began. In Safety & Emergency settings, you’ll be able to toggle Emergency SOS on, then add emergency contacts. Then, in an emergency, you merely faucet the crown 5 or extra occasions, and your Pixel Watch will name 911 and ship automated textual content warnings to your contacts. We even have a information on tips on how to allow Pixel Watch fall detection, however don’t be concerned: it solely takes a couple of minute to look via the “Personal Safety” menu in your watch. Once enabled, your watch will begin loudly buzzing and ringing for those who’re motionless for 30 seconds after a detected fall. After 60 seconds, it will contact 911 with an automatic voice message.In both case, the usual Pixel Watch will want a mobile or Wi-Fi connection through your telephone to succeed in emergency providers. If you personal the Pixel Watch LTE, you’ll be able to contact 911 straight through your wristwatch in case your telephone is damaged or out of juice. The Pixel Watch’s 24-hour battery makes it barely higher than the Apple Watch when it comes to longevity, however nonetheless not very dependable. Also, Google’s current telephones, just like the Pixel 7 Pro, don’t have any satellite tv for pc SOS help, although we have heard that Android 14 will add satellite tv for pc connectivity help for future Android telephones. Perhaps the Pixel 8 will comply with in Apple’s satellite tv for pc SOS footsteps. For now, the Pixel Watch works greatest in emergencies the place there is a sturdy mobile sign. Garmin watches(Image credit score: Jeramy Johnson / Android Central)Garmin watches cater to hikers, climbers, winter sports activities followers, and different nature lovers who might simply discover themselves in hurt’s method. So it is smart that Garmin does a superb job with its security and emergency options, together with instruments that maintain you secure outdoors of emergencies.One of our high Garmin suggestions and tips is to arrange emergency contacts. In the Garmin Connect app, go to Safety & Tracking > Safety Features and enter your title and City/State. Add an emergency contact and ship a request to that individual; they’re going to want to simply accept the request to be able to obtain your emergency information. Then determine in order for you your Garmin watch to name Emergency Services or a particular emergency contact once you set off Assistance.Once all the things is about up, all you should do to name for assistance is maintain down the top-left button for seven seconds till the watch vibrates thrice — or the top-right button on watches with fewer than 5 buttons, just like the Venu 2. This will set off emergency help.Like most smartwatches, Garmin watches depend on a linked smartphone and mobile connection to work; in actual fact, iPhone house owners have to verify Garmin Connect is open within the background, and the watch is synced to it, or else emergency calls will fail. The connection is barely extra dependable for Android telephone house owners, fortunately.The Garmin InAttain Messenger and Garmin Explore app (Image credit score: Michael Hicks / Android Central)The solely exception is the Garmin Forerunner 945 LTE, which has built-in LTE help for restricted makes use of like LiveObserve, Live Event Sharing, and Spectator messages. It does not help typical telephone calls, nevertheless. Using LiveObserve is definitely a preventative security characteristic. You can broadcast your location in real-time throughout a hike, so if one thing had been to occur, your family members might see your precise GPS location the place you stopped (or the sign stopped). Garmin additionally sells GPS handheld gadgets just like the GPSMap 67i or InAttain Messenger that hook up with an InAttain satellite tv for pc subscription and allow you to ship SOS messages to Garmin’s 24/7 International Emergency Response Coordination Center while not having a smartphone. But Garmin’s watches can solely function distant entry to InAttain gadgets — that means you will want each gadgets, plus a pre-paid subscription, to get SOS calls. Depending on the extent of your InAttain subscription, you’ll be able to have it ship your satellite-backed location to your family members each 2 or 10 minutes. You may ship limitless check-in messages and a set variety of customized messages like, say, “A bear ate my leg. I’m by the big tree.”With or with out InAttain, Garmin watches are dependable in an emergency due to their constantly lengthy battery life, guaranteeing they’re going to nearly by no means die on you. It’s simply unlucky that Garmin does not supply extra watches with LTE help, leaving you dependent in your telephone or making you spend lots of on a second InAttain-compatible gadget.Samsung Galaxy Watch(Image credit score: Nicholas Sutrich / Android Central)For the most recent three Galaxy Watch fashions operating One UI 5 based mostly on Wear OS 4, Samsung gives emergency SOS, emergency contacts, and exhausting fall detection. You can open your Galaxy Wearable app, sync your watch, and go to Watch Settings > Safety and Emergency to search out these options and activate them. You can press the top-right Home button 5 occasions in your Galaxy Watch 6 or Galaxy Watch 5 to set off an emergency SOS name. You’ll want to enter the Wearable app and set off a countdown of 5–20 seconds so you may have an opportunity to cancel the SOS for those who make a mistake; in any other case, it occurs instantly.Also, within the Galaxy Wearable app, you’ll be able to change the SOS from 911 to a private quantity, select whether or not or to not share your emergency with contacts, and make your medical info, like allergic reactions and blood kind, accessible to first responders in your telephone and watch. Compared to the Apple or Pixel Watch, the Galaxy Watch collection is extra dependable for battery life, lasting 40–50 hours for the standard mannequin or 80 hours with the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro. Samsung additionally sells its watches with LTE help, that means you’ll be able to depend on them in case your telephone dies — however provided that you purchase a mobile mannequin upfront. Which watches don’t have any emergency calling or fall detection?As of mid-2023, these smartwatch or health tracker manufacturers don’t have any dependable emergency providers or fall detection: AmazfitFitbitFossilMobvoi TicWatchWithingsXiaomi Mi BandAlthough Google introduced that it could convey emergency SOS calls to Wear OS 3 in May 2022, that solely applies to Samsung and Google up to now. Other inventory Wear OS watches just like the TicWatch 5 Pro and Fossil Gen 6 do not but present the identical choices of their Safety settings. It’s additionally disappointing that Google hasn’t introduced fall detection and SOS calls to Fitbit, prioritizing Pixel Watch customers’ security over Fitbit customers’ security.Otherwise, it is not too stunning that a lot of the greatest health trackers do not have these options. They’re designed to be affordably low-cost, with no mics or audio system for emergency calls. They might ship an automatic message to 911, but it surely’s not clear if one thing just like the Amazfit Band 7 would have the processing capability to measure fall detection. We can solely hope health manufacturers make this extra of a precedence sooner or later. Choosing the proper smartwatch for emergency optionsApple, Garmin, Google, and Samsung all supply a reasonably dependable possibility for emergency providers. It simply will depend on what sort of emergency you are apprehensive about.If you do not spend too lengthy in remoted corners of nature with no cell sign, then easy SOS calling and fall detection are most likely all you want. You should purchase a smartwatch with LTE performance as an additional measure of safety in case your telephone is useless, broken, or unreachable, and all you may have is the watch in your wrist. Since Garmin’s last-gen LTE watch does not do conventional calling, you will need an Apple, Google Pixel, or Samsung Galaxy Watch.But for those who dwell or steadily journey to locations with poor reception, it’s your decision satellite-backed emergency instruments to go along with your watch. Currently, your solely two choices on that entrance are Apple (for emergencies solely) or Garmin (for satellite tv for pc messaging, LiveObserve, and emergency calls).