MediPendant is a medical alert system made by Medical Alarm Concepts. The company has been in the medical alert business since 2009, but the team behind it has more than three decades of experience in the world of personal emergency response systems.
MediPendant was one of the first consumer-grade devices to have a two-way speaker pendant, which gives seniors a sense of freedom, mobility and confidence. The company is known for its high-quality, high-tech devices and top-quality customer service.
This review covers the devices in the MediPendant range and available subscription plans to help consumers make informed choices about their medical alert protection.
MediPendant Device Options
Unlike many of the other major medical alert device manufacturers, MediPendant offers just one device: a two-way communication pendant. The MediPendant medical alert device is a reliable, easy-to-use wearable alert device that includes a base station with a range of 600 feet. The pendant has a battery life of two years on standby and a talk time of up to 6 hours. The base station has a backup battery with an estimated life of 30 hours.
MediPendant is usually used as a pendant, but there are other wearable choices, including a belt clip and a bracelet. There’s no smartwatch offering or jewelry-style pendant.
The base station range is something seniors should pay close attention to. A range of 600 feet is fairly average for this kind of device and is good enough for someone who lives in a small house and who rarely goes out into the garden. Those who live in larger properties and are concerned about falling in the yard may want to look for a product with a longer range or consider a cellular and GPS device.
MediPendant Plans
MediPendant offers a simple payment structure. The company has just one device and one monitoring plan with varying contract lengths. The shortest contract is quarterly billing at $104.85 per month, which works out to $34.95 per month.
There are discounts for those who prepay for longer periods. The semiannual billing period works out to $32.95 per month, and the annual plan costs $29.95 per month, which is less than $1 per day. Those who sign up for an annual billing package will receive free shipping and a free lockbox.
Other than the payment for the monitoring plan, the only start-up cost is a one-time shipping fee. The first device is free. Users who want extra devices will need to pay a one-time equipment fee.
Discounts are available for seniors who are members of AARP. These discounts make the annual billing package incredibly appealing for those who have the funds to make that up-front payment. The lack of month-to-month billing, however, may cause issues for seniors who don’t want to pay a large sum up front.
Extra Services Offered by MediPendant
MediPendant’s product range is quite basic. The company does not offer fall detection features or other remote monitoring services. The company doesn’t provide any caregiver monitoring, smartwatches or smartphone apps. There’s also no option for a wall or shower button. It does, however, offer a lockbox as a free gift for annual subscribers and as an optional extra for other customers.
The company allows up to four pendants to be used with a single base station, which makes their services an appealing option for households with more than one senior.
Customer Reviews of MediPendant
MediPendant is popular for its simple devices and good customer service. The system is quite bare-bones, however, and receives criticism for the lack of caregiver monitoring features.
What Customers Like
Customers speak highly of the quality of the speakerphone in the pendant as well as the quality of service from the EMT-certified operators. The contact center has operators fluent in English and Spanish. Some other providers use translation services, which can make it difficult for seniors to communicate fluidly with the operators when they are in distress.
The company is also often praised for its generous policy regarding additional pendants. Up to four pendants can be used with a single base station. There’s an up-front fee for the extra pendants but no additional subscription fee. This means that families could save a lot of money by purchasing extra devices.
What Customers Don’t Like
Customers criticize the lack of extra features, such as a smartwatch-style wearable, remotely monitored smoke alarms, smartphone apps and other extras. While the idea of keeping the device simple and easy to use is understandable, many seniors would like to get more from their monitoring and some value-added services, such as check-in calls, that offer extra peace of mind for seniors.
Another issue that seniors often raise is the lack of month-to-month billing. The overall pricing of MediPendant is quite reasonable, but seniors on a low income might struggle to find three month’s worth of subscription fees at once. Others may be reluctant to sign up for a long-term plan before trying the device.
Who Should Consider MediPendant?
MediPendant is a good choice for seniors who want a simple medical alert device and who don’t need automatic fall detection. It’s also a good choice for households with more than one senior because subscribers have the option of adding up to four pendants to one base station, which could save the household hundreds of dollars in the long-term.
