V-SOS Band alerts

[SushiGirl]

I purchased a V-SOS Band just over a month ago for my elderley mother to wear. She's semi-independent and goes out shopping by herself, but has been known to fall and not be able to get up. She also has health conditions where she can feel breathless and might need help quickly.

We thought that the V-SOS band would be ideal. She could call for help in case of an emergency, and we'd know exactly where she was whether she was at home or out. And the fall detection sounded like an excellent feature so that if she was unable to press the button, we'd still know that she needed help.

However there's one problem which makes the entire product useless - the alerts. There's currently no way to make the app do anything other than pop a notification on the screen along with whatever notification sound is selected. What we need instead is the option to make the phone make a loud sound as if the phone was ringing. And this sound needs to be able to override silent mode and push the phone volume to the maximum.

If my phone is in my bag, or I'm in a meeting or something, I'm not going to see a notification unless I look at my phone. If I'm asleep, I certainly won't notice a notification. The app needs a loud alarm that sounds continually until one of the contacts responds to the emergency. Either that or the device is not fit for purpose and needs to be refunded.

[TJ]

Thanks for your feedback @SushiGirl, anything that can improve the V-SOS band and make it safer for wearers is a plus. 

You can have yourself and up to four other family members alerted at any time when the band is pressed, or a fall happens; upping the chances that you'll be notified. The band also goes into emergency mode, where it displays a traffic light system; letting the wearing know if the alerts been received and help is on the way. There's also the option to tailor the alert notification in the easy to use app. 

Of course I'll make sure to pass along your comments to the relevant team for them to look into. If you have any other question, don't hesitate to get back in touch. 

[SushiGirl]

Any news on this? An incident happened last week where my mother hurt herself on the corner of her car door. She was bleeding profusely and tried to call for help. But the pathetic notification did not alert either of the two people who receive them. In the end a passerby found mum and called an ambulance. If you are going to sell a product then it must be fit for purpose. I am now looking for a replacement product which can alert my sister and I in a useful way. Your product is a big fat failure, due to a silly oversight. You could easily fix this, but you choose not to.

[KevJ]

Is there an update on this problem Vodafone? Why is such an important issue no being fixed?

[SushiGirl]

Once they've sold the device they don't care a jot. Prove me wrong Vodafone!

[Loz]

@SushiGirl @KevJ It's really disappointing to hear this happened and I certainly understand how unsatisfying and frustrating it must be that you or your sister weren't notified by the alert! So I can get this looked into right away and escalated further if neccessary, please contact our team via Facebook at Vodafone UK, or get in touch on Twitter using the handle @VodafoneUK. Don't forget to include the link to this thread, along with your username! 

[KevJ]

Many thanks Loz for replying.

I have followed your advice and have messaged / posted on both mentioned platforms, sadly with the usual no responce.

It's so sad when you buy products from large corps that no one is interested in supplying customer care, just simply a faceless organisation with their focus on spreadsheets and charts.

[TJ]

I'm sorry to hear about the delay getiing back to you @KevJ, we're busier than usual here on the Social Media team at the moment. Has anyone been in contact since you last posted? Did pop your username and link to this thread in your message too?

[redlanddoug]

Has there been ANY progress on this? I recently purchased one of these and can confirm that the alert is useless. All the volumes on my phone are set to max - if someone calls or texts me the whole house knows. Yet if the app sends me an alert, I get a pathetic 'ping' sound and a red box pop-up - guaranteed to be missed! If the band just sent me a text it would be way better.

We urgently need an update to the app so that the alert is LOUD, PERSISTENT and VIBRATES until cleared. This has been complained about for months - please fix it ASAP. There really is no excuse for this.

[Cadafael]

I totally agree, the choice of three sounds is pathetic and these sounds are only made once, there should be the option for the sound alert to repeat many times, perhaps even until the application software has been accessed on the mobile 'phone.
So VODAFONE get this sorted immediately!