Homent
Guide
No-camera elderly sensor vs home camera vs 平安鐘 in Hong Kong
Homent care sensors are US$38 mmWave presence kits, not a medical device and not a 24-hour emergency bell. How they differ from cameras and from HKBN Elder Buddy.
No-camera presence vs a home camera vs HKBN Elder Buddy
If you need someone to call for help at 3am, buy a 平安鐘. Do not buy Homent for that.
Homent care sensors are optional consumer electronics: mmWave presence, no camera, no microphone. USD 38 plus SF Express. You can get a ping when someone is in a room, or when nobody is, inside a window you set (for example 10:00–12:00 in the living room). Fall alerts are optional if you ceiling-mount the kit. They are not a medical device, not a life-safety system, and not a 24-hour response centre.
HKBN Elder Buddy (智老友), with Familyguard Association, is a telco plus 平安鐘 product. Existing HKBN customers could subscribe to a wireless emergency bell with fall detection for HK$268/month in HKBN’s 8 Jul 2025 press release. That stack talks to a 24/7 support centre. Homent does not.
A home camera shows you a picture. It also shows a picture to whoever can open the app. Many Hong Kong elders will not accept that. Many adult children will not want it either.
Product page: care sensors.
Three jobs, three products
| Job | Use | Do not use |
|---|---|---|
| 24-hour emergency, ambulance, someone to talk to | 平安鐘 / HKBN Elder Buddy / equivalent | Homent. We say this in the FAQ on purpose. |
| See the room | A camera you and the elder both agreed to | A hidden camera. Also do not pretend mmWave is a camera. |
| “Grandpa sometimes does not pick up. I want to know if anyone was in the living room this morning.” | Homent care sensor, as a presence window | A camera “just in case.” A 平安鐘 you then ignore because it felt too heavy. |
What the Homent kit actually does
- mmWave presence only. No image, no audio.
- Presence alerts: someone arrived, or nobody did, in a window you chose.
- Optional fall alerts if ceiling-mounted. Still not medical-grade monitoring. Still not a dispatch centre.
- Lives next to the family board. The same app that has pickup and the fridge PDF can carry the ping.
Legal: not for diagnosis, treatment, or medical-grade monitoring.
What a camera does that we will not
A camera answers “what is he doing.” Presence answers “was anyone in that room.” If you need “what,” you need a picture, and you need consent. Homent will not add a camera to close that gap.
What HKBN Elder Buddy does that we will not
- 24/7 centre.
- Two-way emergency call.
- A monthly service relationship, not a US$38 kit.
- Fall detection as part of a 平安鐘, with the caveats on HKBN’s own pages.
If your parent lives alone and the fear is a fall with no one to call, start there. You can still use Homent for clinic pickups and the fridge calendar. The sensor is optional and is not a substitute.
A concrete, honest setup
Grandpa lives alone and sometimes does not answer. You put a sensor in the living room. You set 10:00–12:00. If there is presence, you get a push. That is a “someone should be in the living room” window. When the ping arrives you worry less. When it does not, you call. You do not wait for Homent to send an ambulance. It will not.
Households describing that pattern: Stories.
Price, so you do not mix them up
- Homent Family: free forever.
- Homent care sensor: USD 38 + SF Express. Check the buy page for adapter details.
- HKBN Elder Buddy Love Leader package: HK$268/month for existing HKBN customers, per 8 Jul 2025 press. Confirm on HKBN before you budget.
- Indoor cameras: a wide range. The cost is not the camera. The cost is whether the elder will live with it.
Start only if the job is presence, not rescue: buy a care sensor. If you are unsure, email hello@homent.app and say you need a 平安鐘. We will tell you to buy one.
FAQ
Is Homent a fall-detection medical device?
No. Consumer electronics. Optional ceiling-mount fall alerts. Not diagnosis, not treatment, not life-safety.
Does it use a camera or microphone?
No.
Can I use it instead of a 平安鐘?
No.