MobileHelp

One of the least expensive options for mobile alerts and cellular communication. 

The “at-home” service from MobileHelp is pretty standard. You get all of the equipment that has a decent range and pretty good coverage as far as monitoring. 

Active seniors or individuals with disabilities usually have to pay a premium to get equipment and coverage that allows them to venture out by themselves. 

The biggest value with MobileHelp is the plan that combines both home and mobile coverage. It’s one of the cheapest monthly fees for this type of service in the industry. 

It’s still decent monitoring, and if you’re on a fixed-income this plan could help you keep your mobility and safety.

Features

MobileHelp offers some decent monitoring, but stands out in value with their mobile protection and the added bonus of all plans being cellular.

The plans are clearly laid out on their site, but here are the basics.

• MobileHelp Classic (At Home Only): The plan is as stated only for in the home, but it does come with cellular service. Most other providers only provide a land line in the home and charge extra for the cell communication—MobileHelp includes it standard. This could be huge if you want to “cut the cord” and save money on your other monthly bills.  

• MobileHelp Duo (At Home & Away From Home): This is the combined mobile and at home plans together. You get both the base unit and equipment for home use as well as separate GPS and wearable tech for outside the home.

• MobileHelp Solo (At Home & Away From Home): The last plan is unique. It’s all of the mobile equipment setup to work both in your home and on-the-go. You don’t have the typical base unit, just the mobile gear. Great for seniors who move around a lot.

The equipment that you wear is some of the most thoughtful in the medical alert system industry. 

For instance, there is a “watch-style” wristband that won’t draw attention like a pendant might. It’s also easier to access in the event of an emergency. 

A big drawback is the need to carry around two devices. While what is seen on the outside is discrete, you will have to pack a gadget about the size of a garage door opener for everything to work right (it weighs right at 3oz).

This isn’t ideal, but it could be the trade off for having such a low monthly cost.

The bracelet/wristband is waterproof. You don’t have to take it off to bathe or swim. That said, if you are too far away from the mobile communicator the button won’t work—and it is not waterproof like the wearable tech.

With any mobile plan you have GPS tracking available. Depending on the situation, this could be a lifesaver and help your family’s peace of mind. 

All plans come with two way voice communication. That means your connection is better than pretty much any land line based company (as long as you have good AT&T cell service in your area).

A huge plus are the loose terms and no initial fee structure. 

You won’t pay for equipment.

You won’t pay a “setup fee”.

You don’t have to sign a contract. You can prepay for a year and save some cash, though.

The base unit for the “At Home” plan is bulky. But if you cut the cord and get rid of that answering machine, it will fill that void nicely.

If you don’t have cell reception, there is no way to use this service. A strong AT&T signal is required on all their plans.

As far as home safety and senior resources, there are a few guides and whitepapers on their site. Frankly, they seem a bit unimportant and irrelevant to their target audience. 

An article titled “10 Fall Prevention Tips for Seniors” is the exception and has some tips that come from the experience of their monitoring service.

The price is right and the tech is doable.

Support

MobileHelp offers customer support primarily over the phone. They have a toll-free number and an online form which you fill out and will receive a call back from one of their representatives.

Business hours for customer support is 8am-8pm EST Monday-Friday.

The option to chat with support also pops up on their website and lets you know that they are available. 

MobileHelp has a small section of How-to's, User guides and FAQ’s on their site as well.

Monitoring

MobileHelp uses a U.S. based 24/7 emergency monitoring service. MobileHelp does not own or operate the monitoring center.

Once an alarm goes off, a call is placed to the monitoring center and a representative will decide if family or emergency services need to be notified. 

All of MobileHelp’s home and mobile alert systems run off of cellular connectivity and therefore doesn’t require a land line. Service is through the AT&T network which may not be available in all areas.