The Cupertino tech giant markets Apple Watch as a versatile device. Much more than a simple smartwatch, Apple Watch not only allows users to monitor their health but also becomes a life-saving device. And Apple has highlighted that the smartwatch’s capability to reach emergency services in life-threatening situations in a new 911 ad.
Apple Watch Series 5 and newer models can be used to make an emergency call to 911 in the United States if cellular service is available. When traveling abroad, the watch connects to local emergency services.
- Apple Watch Series 5 (GPS + Cellular)
- Apple Watch SE (GPS + Cellular)
- Apple Watch Series 6 (GPS + Cellular)
- Apple Watch Series 7 (GPS + Cellular)
New “911” unique video reveals how Apple Watch helped three distressed users on land and in the ocean
The heart touching new “911” ad posted on Apple’s official YouTube channel shares the audio of real calls made to 911 by a paddleboarder getting pushed into the ocean by the strong winds, a farmer with a broken leg in a 21 feet ditch, and a driver in a flipped car which is filling with water.
“These are just three of many incredible stories where people were able to get help using Apple Watch.”
Without using any images or clips of people and the watch, the video runs the audio with locations running in the background. And at the end, Apple writes that “with the help of their watch, Jason, Jim, and Amanda were rescued in minutes.”
How to call emergency services via Apple Watch Series 5 and later
If you are ever in need to reach the emergency service, follow the listed steps to make an emergency call via a compatible watch model.
- Press and hold the side button, under the Crown.
- Three sliders will appear, drag the “Emergency SOS” slider to connect to 911 or emergency services.
- In case, you can not drag the slider, simply press and hold the side button for the watch to start a countdown and make the call the emergency, automatically.
The watch also sends the distressed users location and an alert that they made a call to their emergency contacts. This way more people are informed of an unfortunate incident. However, the feature will not work the watch “isn’t activated, if it isn’t compatible with or configured to operate on a particular cellular network, or it isn’t set up for cellular service.”
Apple Watch also has a “Fall Detection” feature that automatically makes emergency calls for unconscious users after experiencing a hard fall. It has proven to be life-saving for many users.
