It isn't cheap, at $399.99 plus a monthly service charge. But on the other hand Wherify's award-winning GPS Personal Locator for Children, just released, is in many respects unlike any other location-based service available today.

Using GPS, digital wireless technologies, and Wherify's patented technology, the Personal Locator is miniaturized, worn on the wrist, and offers a tested and proven safety solution designed to give parents peace of mind knowing they can locate their children, no matter what, 24/7/365. And that can be very comforting considering that a child is reported missing every 42 seconds in the United States.

The general idea is that parents of children wearing the locator, whether at work, home, or traveling, can use the Internet or any phone to quickly identify their children's location within feet, in about a minute. Additionally, in the event of an emergency, either the child or parent can request an emergency 911 response and local police will be dispatched to the spot.

"As parents we've all had that panic feeling at one time or another when we've lost sight of our kids at the park, mall, on the beach, or any crowded area," Neher tells WBT, adding: "Nobody wants to experience that feeling."

"As part of the new product introduction," he continues, "consumers can receive up to two months of free service (up to $100 value) when they order, plus a free set of interchangeable faceplate stickers. The faceplate stickers will allow kids to customize the look of their GPS Personal Locator."

Based in Redwood Shores, California, Wherify has in recent years been successfully developing wireless location products and services for child safety, parental supervision, personal protection, law enforcement, animal identification, and property asset tracking.

The GPS Personal Locator operates on a nationwide CDMA 1900MHz PCS network, and includes a paging capability for non-emergency situations. Wherify is also developing a GPS Personal Locator for Alzheimer's patients, as well as a vehicle locator for additional safety for the family car.

This is wireless technology at its most fundamentally useful. www.wherify.com