Withings BeamO <\/p>\n
\ue9d9 \ue9d9 \ue9d9 \ue9d9 \ue9d7 <\/p>\n
Price: \u20ac250<\/p>\n
Website: https:\/\/www.withings.com\/eu\/en\/beam-o\/shopOpens in new window<\/a><\/p>\n Where To Buy: Withings<\/p>\n Every family has a thermometer of some sort. But over the years, it has gone from the traditional under-the-tongue thermometer to a more easily readable digital version. Now health tech company Withings is trying to oust that one in favour of a multifunction device that not only measures your temperature, but records your heart health too. <\/p>\n The BeamO pitches itself as a family care device, a complete health tool that will link in with telehealth services to give you and your doctor an overall picture of your health. It packs four medical grade sensors into a hand-held device. It takes your temperature, while also keeping an eye on your respiratory system through an electronic stethoscope, it measures blood oxygen with a built-in oximeter, and monitors cardiac health through a full one-lead electrocardiogram (ECG). <\/p>\n The key thing with the BeamO though is convenience. The device itself is easy to use, with a single button that scrolls through the various functions, which are displayed on the built-in LED screen. <\/p>\n The temperature sensor is on top of the device, with the ECG and blood oxygen sensor on the right hand side. The digital stethoscope is on the bottom, and a USB C port, which doubles up for charging and for hooking up headphones to hear your heart and lung sounds live as they are recorded, is on the left. <\/p>\n All you have to do is select the reading you want to take and get started. The app shows you how to take the various measurements, and the device will nudge you when necessary, such as the correct finger pressure for the ECG or blood oxygen measurement, or the different areas of the chest recorded by the digital stethoscope. <\/p>\n All the data is funnelled to the Withings app via a wireless connection, building your health data history over time. That can all be sent to your family doctor in a report \u2013 or you can simply keep an eye on the various scores to pinpoint any changes that could indicate an emerging health concern. <\/p>\n That will be particularly useful for the heart and lung sounds. What should a healthy heart sound like? Or a lung? I have no medical expertise, so couldn\u2019t judge it accurately. The recordings in the app just sounded like a pocket dial with a heart beat in the background. If I need to send it on to an expert however, the recordings are there and available over time. And they are automatically labelled according to the area of the heart or lung that it has recorded, which means you need to carefully follow the on-screen instructions. <\/p>\n One of the frustrating things about digital thermometers is the battery life. Many times I have pulled out the trusty in-ear thermometer to discover the battery was running low, or in some cases, the plastic covers it needed were missing. The BeamO doesn\u2019t use the latter, and the former hasn\u2019t been a consideration. Charge the BeamO fully once and you should get up to eight months of use from it. Then it takes only an hour to charge up before you are good to go again. It\u2019s not quite as convenient as swapping a disposable battery out, but it is more easily fixed than discovering the thermometer battery has died at 2am on a Sunday.<\/p>\n