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Apple Watch's fall detection feature fails hilariously on national television

By Alan Friedman

Published: Nov 09, 2019, 10:34 AM

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Apple Wearables

The Apple Watch Series 4 and Series 5 both have a trio of life-saving features. Of course, there is the heart rate monitor that alerts users when their heart is beating too fast; this is often a symptom of a major medical issue including high blood pressure, heart muscle disease, heart valve disease, coronary artery disease, a tumor or an infection (the monitor is actually found on every Apple Watch). The Electrocardiogram (ECG) feature found on Series 4 and Series 5 units looks for abnormal heart rhythms that could be the sign of Atrial fibrillation (Afib). This can cause heart failure, blood clots, stroke, and heart failure.

The third life-saving feature on the Series 4 and Series 5 Apple Watch is the fall detection feature. If the device detects that the person wearing it has had a hard fall, it will sound an alarm, tap the user on the wrist and display an alert on the screen. The watch will display two options; one will dismiss the alert ("I'm okay") while the other will call 9-1-1 ("EMERGENCY SOS"). On the other hand, if the timepiece determines that the user is not responsive, it will automatically call emergency services and the message will include the location of the incident. Once that call has ended, the Apple Watch will message the user's emergency contacts to alert them that he or she has suffered a hard fall and that emergency help has been summoned. It also will give the location of the person requiring assistance.

The Apple Watch was responsible for 47.9% of global smartwatch shipments during Q3

Last night on U.S. network television, the Apple Watch's fall detection feature made an unexpected cameo appearance on The Late Late Show with James Corden. During a bit that is called "Know For Your Row," audience members in a particular row are given easy to moderately hard trivia questions to answer in an attempt to win money for the rest of the people sitting in that section. In the course of playing this game, a woman from Chicago was asked a question about the animated film "Shrek," which she answered correctly; a few seconds after she sits back down, a strange alarm can be heard faintly in the background. "What's that noise?" Corden asks, turning around. As it turns out, it came from the Apple Watch that the woman from Chicago was wearing. Apparently, the act of sitting back in her chair set off the fall detection feature on her smartwatch.

The Apple Watch fall detection feature makes a cameo on The Late Late Show

You might notice more people wearing an Apple Watch these days. Just a few days ago we told you that Apple had 47.9% of the global smartwatch market during the third quarter (July through September). The company shipped 6.8 million units during the three-month period, well ahead of the 1.9 million delivered by runner-up Samsung. Apple grew shipments by 51% on a year-over-year basis indicating that the device continues to show outstanding growth for a product that was first released on April 24, 2015. Apple is even outperforming the industry as a whole, which saw deliveries of global smartwatches rise 42% during the quarter.

There is talk that the Series 6 Apple Watch might include some new health-related features such as a native sleep tracking app and a feature that would monitor the blood pressure of users. The latter would be a most useful addition to the device. And there is always speculation about Apple adding a glucometer that would employ a non-invasive method to capture the user's blood sugar reading; this would be a welcome tool for the millions of insulin dependent diabetics that need a drop of blood to measure their blood sugar before every meal.

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Alan, an ardent smartphone enthusiast and a veteran writer at PhoneArena since 2009, has witnessed and chronicled the transformative years of mobile technology. Owning iconic phones from the original iPhone to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, he has seen smartphones evolve into a global phenomenon. Beyond smartphones, Alan has covered the emergence of tablets, smartwatches, and smart speakers.