Vibrating pagers can be misunderstood for something else. At least, this is what happened to me.
I showed a friend my new place a couple of years ago. I lived in a high-rise apartment in a cozy space made ideally for one single person. Every woman loves a good walk-in closet, and I had one. But mine was a storage bin. Full of stuff that probably could be recycled or thrown away. I’m the type that likes to keep the original boxes of things I buy. Also, I have all my seasonal gadgets, every paper document since I was born and every marketing collateral for all the conferences I’ve attended. Call me an almost-there hoarder.
So my friend walks into the closet and glances around. Then she stops and stares without saying anything. It was a strange, small, noticeable move that made me feel something had happened. It’s my sixth sense that I developed from having a hearing loss.
After showing her the place and she left, I felt the need to figure out what exactly triggered her responses. So I walked back into the closet and started to scan around. And there was the evidence.
Lying on the top shelf was a packaging box for a vibrating watch for the Deaf. Although the packaging gave it another meaning. Words like ‘discrete,’ ‘no one will know,’ and ‘vibration’ stood out in large fonts. This has led to a whole other meaning for my friend seeing it for the first time. I’m pretty sure she thought my packaging box was for a sex toy. Instantly, I was embarrassed.
Until then, I had not publicly disclosed or shared my hearing loss with my friends or people who knew me. Products for hearing loss are often branded for people like me living in shame of my hearing loss because I thought my worth was tied to how much I could hear. The goal is to buy products that hide your disability, not embrace it.
Whether it’s a sex toy or not, vibrating pagers offer one key thing: a way of getting your attention. In addition, the motor in the device can be an excellent option for certain circumstances where visual alarms are insufficient.
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Visibility
Visibility is a challenge at times. Especially if you only have one visual alarm for multiple enclosed rooms. The chance you could miss the alarm is high because you are not around to see it. The other option is to purchase a visual alarm no matter where you are. However, this is not an option for many unless you have the money to spend thousands of dollars.
Always There
The device stays with you. A vibrating pager can be helpful because it is always around you, no matter where you are. You are not constrained to one space. You are free to go about doing whatever you want.
Below I’ve shared a list of vibrating pagers for people with hearing challenges which need the support of being aware of things around them like doorbells, telephone ringing, baby cries and many more alerts.
Clip on Vibrating Pagers
There are more options for clip-on vibrating pagers than anything else. If you are new to alerting devices, you should know that the pagers can be a receiver or a transmitter. These pagers alone do not operate by themselves. Receivers and transmitters, made by the same manufacturer, are both needed to work effectively. The transmitter does the technical work of identifying the alerts and sends a message to the receiver to notify. We found several brands that provide complementary devices.
Receiver solutions
- Bellman & Symfon Visit System with Pager Receiver
- Silent Alert Paging System
- Serene CentralAlert Wireless Vibrating Personal Receiver
- Reizen Wireless Vibrating Pager (for doorbell and phone ringing alerts)
- Sonic Alert HomeAware Vibe Personal Pager
- Libra Vibrating Pager (Doorbell)
- Medpage Wireless doorbell with vibrating pager alert
- Signature Series Vibra-Call™ 3 Body-Worn(Silent Call)
Work and public spaces
Instead of the alerting device at home, companies can provide pagers to help Deaf, and hard-of-hearing visitors be notified of fire alarms.
Smartwatch & strap-on pagers
A device next to your skin will help you feel the vibration better. These options will give you the sensory notification that you’ll need.