This is a story that Apple product manufacturers and marketers had to have loved. This is also a story that will probably make Apple brand loyalists go see? Told ya! It will make the loyalists feel a little better about shelling out so much extra for a product that is essentially the same as so many others. A Facebook post by Gabe Burdett spoke about Apple’s wearable tech and its fall detection feature which according to the post saved his fathers life.
Burdett’s father, an elderly man had had a fall which knocked him unconscious. The watch detected this and called 911 and let emergency services to the location. His father woke up in an ambulance en route to the hospital. Meanwhile, the watch also updated Burdette and his brother about their father's location so they could reach him in hospital.
Burdett’s story was shared on Twitter where a discussion started around the Apple watch, its ability to save potential lives. It was also pointed out that the watch itself was damaged but continued to do its job.
This story inspired a lot of people and some wanted to buy the product for their own use or for the use of their loved ones.
By enabling the hard fall detection feature, this technology has the potential to actually make a difference and to save lives, felt a lot of people.
Another person had a similar story to share about a person falling in the wilderness and his wife being notified about it.
Others also testified to the watch’s ability to detect falls and then call 911 (with a countdown presumably to disable the call if not required or if triggered accidentally).
Many instantly activated the feature in their phones.
Some commentators pointed out the fact that not a lot of people could afford a watch that costs a thousand dollars. Another commentator pointed out that the watch also sometimes points out nonexistent heart problems causing alarm and unnecessary hospital visits.
This commentator pointed out the possible issues related to data mining and privacy concerns when such a feature is activated in wearable tech.
While many said that this technology is great and has potentially life-saving applications, there is always the cost deterrent for many. They were like, well done Apple – now how about making things a bit more affordable for us?
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