No social media. No online chats with friends, no emails to manage. Google searches when we have some doubts or curiosities? No. We could live without a smartphone? Ours is not just a hypothetical question: we have tested the Salvavita Phone SLV30 GPS Speaker Of Beghelli and, to do it right, we decided that we would not use a smartphone alongside the mobile phone designed for the safety of older people. We had to try living without an always connected smartphone, to test this life-saving phone — in name and functionality.
An experience that we do not want to repeat: we have verified that we are a little too connected to be without internet on your phone. But the Salvavita Phone didn't really take us to the days of the very first cell phones. Although it is useful especially for calls and SMS messages, in the time spent with this phone we have been able to appreciate several technological innovationswhich can help a lot in emergencies, but also those with hearing problems.
Life without a smartphone: our test of the Salvavita Phone SLV30 GPS Altavoce by Beghelli
We test dozens of phones every year for our tech reviews. Of all types: those that cost less than 200 euros and those that cost more than a thousand, from every manufacturer, in every format. And the truth is that, by and large, they all do the same things. Of course, the quality of the camera, the speed of the processor or charging — all features vary based on the price.
But they remain smartphones, they are connected to the internet, which allows you to chat, watch and post on social media, and search for information. And again: load the navigator maps in real time, play online games (most of them now), use artificial intelligence, even connect the laptop as a hotspot. In the reviews, we don't write if they know how to do these things, but how well they can do them.
The Salvavita Phone SLV30 GPS Altavoce by Beghelli simply is different. No access to the web, which radically changes the use we make of it. A decision that Beghelli made consciously: this device is aimed at a different audience from those, like us, it is always connected.
Yet, to review it properly, we cannot use it next to the smartphone: it would only be half proof. This made our tests turn into something other than a simple review. Almost an anthropological experiment: Can you live without your smartphone?
This didn't stop us from testing, however seriously the Loudspeaker feature, the real novelty (although not the only one) compared to the other Salvavita Phone tested by our colleague Erika, whose review you can find below. But we hope you will forgive us if, between one tested function and another, we also tell you about our experience away from the web.
Calls and SMS: our life without 5G
With a clamshell design that reminds us of our childhood (but which, as we will see, hides modern technologies), the Salvavita Phone SLV30 GPS Speaker by Beghelli limits our communication possibilities to two: call someone, or send a SMS.
The big keys don't make it all that complicated adapt to writing the letters one at a time, like we did on our parents' cell phones as children (our first phone had T9). Calls are simple, in fact the clamshell design seems excellent for phone calls. And the ability to memorize two speed dial numbers and accessing the address book makes operations even easier.
For an elderly person, who has never used chat and social media, these two ways of expression are enough and more than enough. But by asking several retirees we know (and having our parents do some informal surveys), I'm right there are few who don't use WhatsApp at least for a family group.
Indeed, we have found that Millennials and Generation Z they tend to archive the simple SMS as if it hadn't even arrived (unless they have an iPhone, which opens the message with iMessage). And they assume that one call from a relative or friend in their thirties is an emergencyand not a test of a Beghelli Salvavita Phone.
The safety features and Altavoce technology of Beghelli's Salvavita Phones
The habits of the always connected generations, the “smartphone etiquette”, make it difficult to communicate only with SMS and calls. But the truth is that this phone is not aimed at us. Rather, we will be the ones receiving calls and texts from seniors we know. And what do we know safer and more comfortable with the Salvavita Phone SLV30 GPS Altavoce by Beghelli.
The phone, which you can charge with the supplied base but also via a USB-C on the side, has a 1000mAh battery. Which a smartphone would consume in a few hours, but what instead it lasts weeks on this phone.
This way they can easily call if they need help. In particular, by pressing the Vitasaver button on the back for two seconds, they can send a SMS to 9 different contacts. Contacts will receive the emergency alert and a precise GPS location, which they can click to search on their smartphone's navigation app. Furthermore, a call to your contacts will automatically (and in order) be made to ask for help or information. And fall detection allows them to be contacted even if the person loses consciousness.
Also interesting is the possibility of connect the phone to the Salvavita Beghelli bracelet — which however must be purchased separately. And you can also save the most important ones on your phone medical informationin order to facilitate possible rescue operations.
The speaker function
This version of the Salvavita Phone also has a feature designed specifically for those with some hearing problems. By connecting the headphones included in the package via the AUX 3.5 cable (which we would like to return to smartphones too) and pressing for a the yellow button for a couple of seconds Speakercan amplify room noises.
We tested listening to a podcast and TV at low volume, and while the audio quality isn't stellar, the sound is very clear and quite loud. For those who have particular problems, it is better to contact specialists and use appropriate hearing aids. But this remains a low-cost, high-utility option for those who simply are a little hard of hearing due to age.
The simplicity of a phone that doesn't need to be smart
As soon as we turned it on, the Salvavita Phone SLV30 GPS Altavoce by Beghelli seemed like a return to the past. But little by little, we discovered that it is there a lot of technology behind it. In addition to the functions GPS, fall detection e Speaker, the modernity of the device can be seen in the details. Like the aforementioned USB-C (which several flagship smartphones didn't use, until last year) and the nanoSIM.
But it also has other interesting features, although not exactly cutting edge: the torchthe calculator, wakes up e calendar (not synchronized in the cloud, of course) and the radio FM. For those of us who can't live without podcasts and audiobooks, it's not enough, but it's better than nothing.
Not having all the distractions of the web — which we had access to via the PC anyway, but which we tried to use only for work — helps in some cases. We certainly passed hours of greater concentration to write (we say this in case someone in the editorial office reads it). But even reading or watching a movie, without any incoming notifications, is definitely better.
However, as soon as the tests were finished, we had to recover messages on Telegram and WhatsApp, notifications on social media, records on online games and streaming apps full of content to recover. We couldn't live using only Salvavita Phone SLV30 GPS Altavoce by Beghelli. But we really enjoyed discovering the technologies that can help an elderly person who is “satisfied” with an unconnected phone. It may not be smart, but it is full of intelligent solutions. And above all, it helps older people feel more confident: just hold for the Lifesaver button for two seconds to get help in case of emergency.
You can find more information on the Beghelli website.
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