Verizon Medical Alert Systems 2023

Last Updated on January 3, 2023

In this review, we will look at the Verizon medical alert systems currently available in 2023. The older Verizon Sureresponse system stopped selling in 2014, but you can find a number of newer medical alert systems that work with Verizon currently. Click here to check out the current top choices.

Here is a photo comparison of five medical alert devices that use Verizon, including the original Verizon Sureresponse system device. We’ve placed them beside each other and common items like a key fob and quarter coins for size comparison.

If you are looking for a medical alert system that works with Verizon, this review will share the top products, how they compare, and their benefits and drawbacks.

A bit on my background, I’ve been reviewing medical alert systems for over 10 years (sample product demos and testing I’ve done). In this review, I share my hands-on test results and research on Verizon medical alert systems, including original photos and video demos of the top medical alert products. If you have any feedback or questions, please let me know.

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Original Verizon SureResponse Personal Monitor

Brief Lifespan of Verizon Sureresponse (2012 – 2014)

Back in 2012, the Verizon product’s concept of having a single speaker device that seamlessly worked both in and out of the home was welcomed with excitement.

Limited battery life. Unfortunately, the Verizon SureResponse system had practical issues. For one thing, its battery life performance was weak. Some customers complained that their devices couldn’t last through a day. The device’s battery life was a short 1.5 days at its very maximum. Contrast that with the LifeFone VIPx’s 16-day max. battery level.

For a mobile device, backup battery life is important. The last thing you want is to push a button during an emergency and nothing happens because the battery has been drained.

High initial cost or Contract. In addition, Verizon’s purchase terms required either a two-year contract or $230 in upfront equipment fees. That made it difficult for customers to get started.

Nice compact size. On the positive side, I find that the Verizon device’s looks, size, and weight are still passable compared to today’s models. At 1.9 oz, it’s close to the 2.0 oz average weight for today’s devices. For a medical alert device, size and looks matter, because it affects the likelihood that a product will be worn on a regular basis.

All of these factors, backup battery life, looks, and contract terms are key factors to consider, and we will revisit them as we discuss other medical alerts that use Verizon.

How LifeFone VIPx (Verizon) Outperforms The Older Verizon SureResponse Model

Newer Verizon medical alert devices have improved on the original promises of the Verizon SureResponse. One example is LifeFone’s VIPx, a mobile medical alert with Verizon connectivity that I have personally tested and reviewed.

Tremendous battery life. According to specifications, the VIPx device has up to 5 to 16 days of battery life. Although initially skeptical, when I tested it out, my VIPx’s battery lasted over 16 days (without the Caregiver App option). That is significantly better performance than the 1.5 days maximum duration of the older Sureresponse.

LifeFone VIPx’s long-lasting battery duration is not just impressive, but very helpful if you or your elderly loved ones do not want to worry about having to constantly recharge your device. Note that battery performance will vary depending on how you use the device and whether the cellular signals in your area are strong.

Life Alert comparison. Life Alert connects through AT&T. It is not recommended because they require a three-year contract commitment, whereas other top companies allow cancellations at will and are less costly. LifeFone does not tie their customers to a minimum term, you can cancel at anytime (1-877-352-1292).

Verizon Medical Alert Systems (Top Choices Reviewed)

In this section, I review the top medical alert systems that work with Verizon services.

Verizon Wireless Medical Alert Devices

LifeFone VIPx (Verizon Edition)

Questions? Call toll-free 1-877-352-1292 or visit LifeFone’s Official Website

The LifeFone mobile voice-in-pendant VIPx is a current medical alert that uses Verizon. If you are looking for a small, mobile medical alert device, this nifty device has long battery life (up to 16 days) and fast, Verizon 4G LTE connectivity built into it.

At a basic level, the Verizon edition LifeFone VIPx, is similar to what the discontinued Verizon Sureresponse alert system was supposed to do. I was able to use this medical alert button both in and out of the home, with the device using the Verizon wireless network. Each time, a live emergency monitoring agent answered my call quickly.

To see how this process works, here is a video of me activating a live alert on the LifeFone VIPx.

 

The entire calling process took 26 seconds from a button push to someone answering the call. Subsequently, I tested it a few more times, and the response time averaged 30 seconds. This is a good average response time when compared to the industry average of 45 seconds.

Best Verizon Medical Alert and Reasons Why

Based on my product testing and research, the LifeFone VIPx (Verizon edition) is my recommendation for the best Verizon medical alert device. As demonstrated in the above video, it provides a good response time, and in addition:

1. It is very small and light. At 1.3 oz, it weighs less than the average 2.0 oz weight of similar pendants. You can also see that it’s smaller than the other Verizon medical alert systems in this photo above.
2. The VIPx provides up to 16 days of battery life, longer than the average 3 to 5 days time duration of other similar devices. I tested this first-hand and saw that my VIPx device delivered beyond 16 days of battery life (without Caregiver App).
3. With LifeFone, I paid $0 in equipment cost, compared to $100 that I paid for the Mini. LifeFone loaned their Verizon device to me for subscribing to their services.

Background Details

A notable advantage of choosing LifeFone is that it is an experienced medical alert monitoring service provider (see full LifeFone review). They are not a cell phone provider that has hopped on the medical alert bandwagon.

The VIPx pendant is a customized version of the Freeus Belle X model, the lightest and most petite mobile pendant on the market that works both in and out of the home. This LifeFone offering comes in 3 colors: silver, white, black.

Companion App

The LifeFone VIPx has an optional companion family or caregivers smartphone app that facilitates an enhanced safety monitoring experience. The VIPx companion Caregiver App offers daily first step motion tracking, location sharing, button press history, and battery level tracking.

Drawbacks

1. One drawback of the LifeFone VIPx is that when you add the Caregiver App, the battery life gets reduced to a 5 days maximum level. This tested true. I was able to get 5 days of battery life after adding the app. While its not as good as the original 16 days max. duration, it still compares well at the upper end of the average 3 to 5 days range.
2. Another drawback is that while I got to use their equipment at $0 cost, I paid for the postage to mail the equipment back when canceling (see official website).

Recommendation

There are pros and cons to every product, and the LifeFone VIPx device is my top Verizon medical alert recommendation for its small size, long battery life, good response time, and low price of entry. Learn more or get started.

LifeFone VIP (Older Model Compared)

LifeFone used to have another Verizon medical alert, the VIP. The VIPx is both technologically more advanced and smaller in size. VIPx has more comprehensive location-tracking technologies, including GPS, wifi and cellular triangulation.

Which is better? In my experience, VIPx is LifeFone’s best mobile device to date compared to LifeFone’s two other mobile devices – the original VIP and the newer VIP Active (AT&T connectivity).

For more information, check out our full review or call LifeFone at 1-877-352-1292 to get your questions answered.

 

Mini Guardian

Questions? Call toll-free 1-800-311-6142 or visit visit Medical Guardian’s website

Mini Guardian is another medical alert that uses Verizon from a leading medical alert company, Medical Guardian.

The Mini is a pint-sized medical alert pendant that will connect product users to Medical Guardian’s emergency monitoring center. In the video below, I demonstrate what happens upone pushing the help button on the Mini Guardian device. The call was connected through Verizon’s wireless network.

 

The response time was 19 seconds in this test call. This is a very fast response time that beats the 26 seconds timing the VIPx delivered in the above video demonstration.

Same Device, Customized Differently

If both devices look similar, it’s because the Mini Guardian is based on the same pendant device as the LifeFone VIPx above. Both devices look the same and are available in the same 3 colors: silver, white and black.

However, the devices have been customized differently. There are three aspects (product, monitoring, and company) to consider as these factors differentiate a medical alert user experience beyond how the physical products look.

Mini Guardian Advantages

In purchasing and testing out the Mini Guardian, what I like best about it is its:
1. super-fast response time. The video above demonstrates a super-fast response time of 19 seconds, which beats out the VIPx’s 26-second performance above and also the average 30 to 60 seconds range.
2. petite profile. Measuring 2.7″ H x 1.4″ W x 0.57″, it is 25% lower in volume than the Verizon SureResponse device that measured 2.4″ x 1.7″ x 0.7″. Here are photos we took to further illustrate this point:

Mini Guardian weighs just 1.3 oz, which is half the weight of Medical Guardian’s previous all-in-one device version, Active Guardian, which weighed 2.6 oz.

3. My Mini subscription included Medical Guardian’s premium MyGuardian dashboard and app features for extra records about the device. In comparison, the LifeFone VIPx includes free email and text alerts, but their Caregiver App costs extra.

Drawbacks

In terms of drawbacks, the Mini Guardian requires an upfront purchase fee. We paid $100 for our test unit (call 1-800-311-6142 and ask for the best price). The Mini Guardian’s battery life of up to 5 days is actually good, but unfortunately, it faces tough competition in the VIPx (up to 16 days).

Recommendation

Questions? Call toll-free 1-800-311-6142 or visit visit Medical Guardian’s website

Based on my product usage and test results, I would recommend the Mini Guardian for people who want an elegant, lightweight neck pendant with Verizon connectivity and a super-fast response time.

If you like to learn more about Medical Guardian, check out our full Medical Guardian review. For more specifics, you can also call their hotline at 1-800-311-6142.

Disclosure: We earn referral fees for qualified purchases and referrals (more info).

Active Guardian

Questions? Call toll-free 1-800-311-6142 or visit visit Medical Guardian’s website

Medical Guardian offers another Verizon medical alert, the Active Guardian. Active Guardian does everything the Mini Guardian does. It also has a cost advantage.

Customers can get started with $0 equipment purchase cost via the company’s Renew Program. Medical Guardian will loan you the equipment as long as you are their subscriber.

What I like best about the Active Guardian is its $0 equipment fee (compared to $100 for the Mini) and good battery life of 5 to 7 days (compares well to the average of 3 to 5 days).

In terms of drawbacks, it is bulkier (at 2.6 oz vs. 1.3 oz for the Mini) and lacks the more advanced MyGuardian app access that the Mini provides. It is also larger than the LifeFone VIP described above and shown in the photo comparisons on this page.

To learn more, check out our Active Guardian review or visit Medical Guardian online. For more specifics, Medical Guardian can be contacted at 1-800-311-6142.

 

Verizon Landline and FIOS In-Home Medical Alert Systems

From a product user’s perspective, if you just need in-home coverage, you also have the choice to use an in-home medical alert system instead of a mobile device. While in-home medical alert systems have more limited coverage, their help buttons weigh less (average of 0.5 oz for a button vs. 2.0 oz for a mobile device) since they do not contain a built-in speaker. These base units will connect through Verizon landlines and other options (detailed below).

Bay Alarm Medical SOS Home Medical Alert

For that, I would recommend checking out Bay Alarm Medical SOS Home medical alert systems.

Questions? Call toll-free 1-855-397-9964 or visit Bay Alarm Medical’s website

Bay Alarm Medical in-home systems work with Verizon landlines and FIOS digital phone line services. If you no longer have a landline, the above Verizon Wireless medical alert devices do not require a landline and they will also work at home.

Otherwise, if you prefer having an in-home system using a landline, Bay Alarm Medical’s medical alert base unit will do that.

In addition, if you prefer an in-home medical alert base unit that does not require a landline, Bay Alarm Medical’s has a non-landline version of their in-home system. It works independently from your Verizon personal cell phone, cell phone plan, or phone line. That’s because it comes ready-to-use with an AT&T’s 4G LTE network connection included, and is available to all Verizon phone customers for the same price.

Bay Alarm Medical Advantages

Firstly, what stands out about Bay Alarm Medical is that its backup battery life tested well. Although the base unit is meant to be constantly plugged into a power source, the backup battery performance remains an important factor in case of power outages.

In my hands-on testing, the landline base unit demonstrated over 32 hours of battery life, and the non-landline unit delivered over 24 hours of battery life. My experience with this Bay unit was much better than other brands I’ve tested, some of which quickly shut down upon a power loss.

In addition, Bay Alarm Medical provided me, a customer, with a free online dashboard, and text and email alerts. They also responded promptly to my emails for customer support, whereas some companies required me to call them for each change or question. Both these factors made managing my medical alert account very easy.

Elsewhere for other metrics, the company did average and better. The average call response time of 39.6 seconds (see video of a test call demo) for their cellular in-home medical alert falls within the average range of 30 to 60 seconds. Their in-home system equipment fee is $0 as the company will loan the equipment to customers.

Drawbacks

Bay Alarm Medical’s in-home cellular medical alert uses AT&T Wireless network connectivity instead of Verizon. Depending on your needs, it may or may not matter (more info).

Although the equipment fee was $0, I paid for the postage to mail it back when I canceled.

To learn more, contact Bay Alarm Medical at toll-free 1-855-397-9964 or get a free quote here. You can order online as well.

 

Verizon Care Smart watch

The closest wearable device Verizon has to a medical alert is their Care Smart watch with GPS. The smartwatch has been designed for seniors for easy calling and texting. The subscriber or caregiver can set the watch up to call or receive calls from 10 trusted contacts through a companion app.

The Care Smart watch has an emergency button that allows subscribers to quickly connect with a designated emergency contact. The GPS location of the watch can be shared with these 10 contacts as well. It comes with a geo-fencing feature that will send out alerts in the watch wearer moves outside of aw designated area.

One drawback is that unlike a medical alert button with monitoring, the smartwatch does not provide access to any emergency response monitoring service, nor can it be set to call 911. The line of help can be set to dial a loved one or caregiver. It is unable to do fall detection.

The Care Smart works well as a communication device that makes it easy for elderly customers to call and text their close family and friends. For texting, there are preset messages and emojis that seniors can conveniently choose from. By limiting the caller list to 10 preset contacts, it also eliminates unwanted telemarketing or robo calls.

The Care Smart watch costs $150 and $10 a month for service. As a comparison, Bay Alarm Medical has a similar SOS Smartwatch that also includes monitoring service. That way, someone will always answer any emergency calls.

Looking Beyond Verizon Medical Alert Systems

In general, Verizon or Verizon Wireless customers are able to use all medical alert systems, even those that work through another wireless network (eg. AT&T). There are no extra cost additions either.

How is that possible?

It’s possible because firstly, most in-home phone-line medical alert base units, regardless of brand, will work with Verizon landlines or FIOS digital (VOIP) service (but not the Verizon Wireless Home phone service). For non-landline or cellular medical alert systems and devices come with their own wireless SIM card and connection that work separately from a cell phone.

For cellular-based medical alert systems, a lot of companies, such as Bay Alarm Medical and LifeStation are using AT&T. These systems come with wireless service included, so customers do not need to use their personal cell phone providers or plans.

What is less common are medical alert systems using the T-Mobile network. T-Mobile used to offer the Moxee Signal, an SOS button device that was only available through the T-Mobile network. However, since 2022, they have stopped selling it. Regardless, seniors looking for T-Mobile medical alert systems can also use Verizon medical alert devices. There is no extra cost or hassle, and Verizon’s coverage is far and wide.

For more medical alert choices, please visit Medical Alert System HQ’s Reviews section .

Does Verizon Offer a Medical Alert System?

Verizon used to offer a SureResponse Personal Monitor with GPS system (2012 to 2014), but it is no longer available. A similar medical alert is the LifeFone VIPx voice-in-pendant device that works through Verizon’s cellular service. Another alternative is the Verizon Care Smart. It’s a smartwatch that allows customers to program in one personal emergency contact for quick calling during emergencies.

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Disclaimer: Our reviews are based on our research and experiences, and this information is shared without any warranties. We advise all readers to do careful due diligence before purchasing. Take time to visit the company’s website or speak with their representatives.