GetSafe, a company once known for its home security solutions, has switched gears and is now in the medical alert business. Operating as part of the Bay Alarm Medical Group, GetSafe’s first medical alert offering, the GetSafe Medical Alert Starter ($24.95 per month), is an at-home system that uses cellular technology to connect you to a live 24/7 emergency response agent. It delivered quick response times and clean two-way audio in testing, but it lacks some of the features that you get with our Editors’ Choice, the MobileHelp Classic, such as mobile and web apps and medical advice services.

Design and Features

The GetSafe Medical Alert Starter kit comes with a base station, a voice-activated wall button, and a wearable lanyard button for $79. The base station is the same device that comes with the Medical Guardian Classic and LifeFone At Home systems that we reviewed a few years back. It measures 2.8 by 5.0 by 5.0 inches (HWD) and can be placed on a desktop surface or hung on a wall. In the center is a 2-inch round gray Emergency Call button with Braille lettering, and above it is a Reset button (also with Braille). In the upper left corner is a speaker, and below the Emergency Call button are a microphone and status indicators for power, cellular connectivity, and alarm activity. The GetSafe base station uses a cellular radio and AT&T’s 4G LTE service to connect you to a 24/7 emergency response center.  

The white voice-activated wall button measures 3.7 by 3.7 by 2.5 inches (HWD) and has a 2-inch red Emergency Call button, a speaker, and a microphone. It comes with a red pull cord that you can attach to the bottom of the device. To initiate a call to the response center you can press the button, pull the red cord, or say “Call 911, Call 911” (you must say it twice). Once connected, you can speak with the live agent directly through the device. The button comes with mounting screws for hanging it on a wall and is powered by two C batteries.

The pendant is a small black-and-white disc that is 1.5 inches wide and can be worn as a pendant necklace, or on the wrist like a watch. It has a built-in non-removable battery that is rated to last up to five years, after which GetSafe will send you a new replacement pendant. It is waterproof and can be worn in the shower or out in the elements.

Other available accessories include a standard wall button ($35), additional voice buttons ($75), additional pendants ($25), a smoke detector ($80), a lock box ($30), and a Vial of Life packet ($8.95) that makes all of your vital medical information available to first responders.  

The Starter kit has an upfront cost of $79 for the hardware and a $24.95 monthly monitoring fee. By way of comparison, a Medical Alert No Landline system will cost you $27.45 per month if you pay for a year upfront. There are no hardware fees, but you don’t get any wall buttons. Likewise, a similarly equipped MobileHelp Classic system will cost you $49.95 upfront and $22.90 per month, but the wall button is not voice-activated. GetSafe offers fall detection for an additional $10 per month, but it doesn’t offer any mobile or web caregiver apps or any of the medical care services that you can get with the Lifefone At Home and MobileHelp Classic systems.  

Installation and Performance

Installing the GetSafe base station for first use is easy. I removed the back panel, made sure the backup battery was seated properly, turned the power switch to On, and replaced the back panel. Once I plugged the power adapter in, it took around 15 seconds for the cellular LED indicator to go from blinking red to solid green, indicating a cellular connection.

The voice-activated button was paired at the factory and worked right out of the box. All I had to do was plug in the red cord and hang the button on a wall. Pairing the pendant was as easy as pressing the pairing button on the base station and pressing the pendant button for a few seconds.

The GetSafe system delivered fast response times (the time it takes for a live agent to respond to a button press or voice command) in testing. Its average response time of 31 seconds is a few seconds faster than what we saw with the MobileHelp Classic (36 seconds), and more than 15 seconds faster than the Medical Guardian Classic.

The voice-activated button worked well, as did the pendant, which had no trouble initiating a call from every room in the house. Two-way audio was clean, and the live agents were always professional and friendly. 

Conclusions

With the GetSafe Medical Alert Starter kit, you can get help from a live emergency response agent without lifting a finger. It’s the first system we’ve come across that offers voice-activated calling, and it’s very easy to install. Moreover, it delivered fast response times and clear two-way audio in our testing. That said, if you want a medical alert system that offers additional services such as medication reminders and online caregiver tools, the MobileHelp Classic remains your best bet and our Editors’ Choice.