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Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
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Breathometer is a portable breathalyzer that analyzes the users' breath for blood alcohol content. The device plugs into an iPhone for display and readout, with the intent of informing the user of their BAC so they can make a more informed decision about whether it is safe for them to drive or not.

breathometer.jpg
The device is available on Indiegogo, a crowd funding platform, for $20. At that price, the Breathometer has an estimated ship date of January 2014 for most funders, though some higher funding levels may get their units earlier.
Breathometer is both a device and mobile app that will transform iPhone and Android smartphones into a breathalyzer. Breathometer provides options beyond informing users of their impaired state and plans to connect to local transportation services to quickly connect with a cab or taxi. Upon launch, Breathometer will be available at Breathometer.com, the Apple App Store and Google Play.

Breathometer will be FDA approved and is patent pending. It is ideal for anyone who enjoys even a casual drink, as just one drink can affect judgment or the ability to drive safely. The company will make Breathometer available in Summer 2013, anticipating that the affordable price combined with a quality equivalent to current consumer breathalyzers will encourage widespread use and help grow the market for such devices.

Article Link: Breathometer Aims to Save Lives by Stopping People from Driving Drunk
 

Schmitty11

macrumors 6502
May 21, 2011
309
0
Imo, if just the bouncer at a bar had this, many drunken idiots could be kept off the roadways. Love the idea.
 

scharf10

macrumors member
Sep 2, 2007
62
0
At the risk of sounding very boring, a good rule of thumb (at least in the UK anyway) is just don't drink if you're planning on driving.

I know some people get away with it, I just don't think it's worth risking it for the sake of a couple of drinks.

A clever device and app nonetheless - good luck to it, as I suppose it could benefit many!
 

Carlanga

macrumors 604
Nov 5, 2009
7,132
1,409
Too high a price for crowd funding project. I have seen stand alone units cheaper than that you can just leave in your car. This should be $10 crowd funded maybe $15.99 MRSP


Imo, if just the bouncer at a bar had this, many drunken idiots could be kept off the roadways. Love the idea.

Bouncers are not cops...
 

BiigBiscuit

macrumors member
Aug 23, 2011
68
0
Too high a price for crowd funding project. I have seen stand alone units cheaper than that you can just leave in your car. This should be $10 crowd funded maybe $20 MRSP




Bouncers are not cops...

The way I understand it is that people are still legally culpable if they knowingly let someone drink and drive. Surely if a person could stop someone from drinking and driving but did not and that individual killed a person or two, surely some blame would fall on the one who could have prevented it by taking their keys away.
 

jsw

Moderator emeritus
Mar 16, 2004
22,910
44
Andover, MA
This idea is hardly unique nor new.

You can go to bed bath and beyond and pick up a 15 dollar portable breathalizer that does NOT require an iphone right now
On the plus side, even if the battery on this is dead and your iPhone is broken, the mere fact that you can successfully plug it into the headphone jack while in your relatively dim car art 2AM means you're at least close to sober enough.
 

WestonHarvey1

macrumors 68030
Jan 9, 2007
2,771
2,187
Anyone who needs this device already went too far, just don't drink before driving, that's it.

Drinking and driving is not illegal (in the US anyway).

However, it would still be a mistake to rely on a BAC measurement. The legal limit is an aid to prosecutors, giving them a "de facto" automatic conviction. You can still get a DUI with any BAC greater than 0. The cops want you to believe in this "legal limit" fiction, though.

In general, an adult should be able to have a single beer or glass of wine at a restaurant and not have to worry about a DUI.
 

bazinga!!

macrumors regular
Apr 25, 2012
101
3
Belgium
That's a false conclusion because some people (asians, some teenagers) are relatively faster drunk than others, therefore it would be wrong to tell people to drink until they've reached a certain percentage of alcohol in their breath.
 

dukebound85

macrumors Core
Jul 17, 2005
19,118
4,096
5045 feet above sea level
Drinking and driving is not illegal (in the US anyway).

However, it would still be a mistake to rely on a BAC measurement. The legal limit is an aid to prosecutors, giving them a "de facto" automatic conviction. You can still get a DUI with any BAC greater than 0. The cops want you to believe in this "legal limit" fiction, though.

In general, an adult should be able to have a single beer or glass of wine at a restaurant and not have to worry about a DUI.

Huh? Open containers are illegal
 

auero

macrumors 65816
Sep 15, 2006
1,386
114
You probably shouldn't be driving if you need a device to tell you if you're under the legal limit. Alcohol affects each person differently so just because you blow a point under the legal limit doesn't mean you should be driving.
 

WestonHarvey1

macrumors 68030
Jan 9, 2007
2,771
2,187
Huh? Open containers are illegal

I didn't say drinking WHILE driving. "Drinking and driving" is a well-understood idiom meaning "drinking prior to and sufficiently proximate to the driving event that alcohol remains detectable in the driver's blood".
 

StarDal

macrumors member
Jul 1, 2009
45
83
I don't think this should be batted away so easily. There's a reason why units are popping up in bars, etc. Sometimes people just don't think they've crossed that line and are surprised that they are. Sometimes due to the fact that the effects just haven't really set on at that point, but they will. Sometimes not until after they're behind the wheel.

If anything, even if you don't use it for yourself, you can block a friend and go "see.. you're not driving". People will blow into it to "prove" they're not drunk and then see the results.
 

dukebound85

macrumors Core
Jul 17, 2005
19,118
4,096
5045 feet above sea level
I just don't understand the need to make a smartphone required. Why not (like existing devices) be all in one? All one needs is an LED that outputs a few digits.

Furthermore, how is one suppose to keep this device calibrated? I know that is the biggest issue with these portable breathalizers. You need to have confidence in the output it gives

To me, this is reinventing the wheel while simultaneously making it more complicated then it needs to be
 

Carlanga

macrumors 604
Nov 5, 2009
7,132
1,409
The way I understand it is that people are still legally culpable if they knowingly let someone drink and drive. Surely if a person could stop someone from drinking and driving but did not and that individual killed a person or two, surely some blame would fall on the one who could have prevented it by taking their keys away.

Not all states have dram shop laws for drunk people. Also, have you gone to any bar? How many people leave a bar drunk each night would have made owning a bar a liability waiting to happen an no one would open one. Most states that have the law give more emphasis to personal negligence since no one from the bar is forcing you to drink.
 

dukebound85

macrumors Core
Jul 17, 2005
19,118
4,096
5045 feet above sea level
I didn't say drinking WHILE driving. "Drinking and driving" is a well-understood idiom meaning "drinking prior to and sufficiently proximate to the driving event that alcohol remains detectable in the driver's blood".

Gotcha. FWIW, after I posted, a few states still have no open container laws...though the vast majority do

----------

Not all states have dram shop laws for drunk people. Also, have you gone to any bar? How many people leave a bar drunk each night would have made owning a bar a liability waiting to happen an no one would open one. Most states that have the law give more emphasis to personal negligence since no one from the bar is forcing you to drink.

I believe that to really combat drinking and driving, some responsibility MUST be placed on the establishment. Afterall, it takes two to tango
 

thedeejay

macrumors 65816
Aug 16, 2012
1,338
51
Toronto, Canada.
Drinking and driving is not illegal (in the US anyway).

However, it would still be a mistake to rely on a BAC measurement. The legal limit is an aid to prosecutors, giving them a "de facto" automatic conviction. You can still get a DUI with any BAC greater than 0. The cops want you to believe in this "legal limit" fiction, though.

In general, an adult should be able to have a single beer or glass of wine at a restaurant and not have to worry about a DUI.
.
Who would use this anyways?
 

WestonHarvey1

macrumors 68030
Jan 9, 2007
2,771
2,187
.
Who would use this anyways?

I suppose it would be useful for peace of mind, especially if you were out trying some new beers or ales with unknown alcohol content.

Not everybody at 0.08 or the old standard of 0.1 is impaired to any real degree. There's some interesting YouTube videos of people testing their driving with objective standards and it really varies from person to person.

If I blew a 0.04, and 20 minutes later saw it drop to 0.03, I'd feel pretty comfortable about driving and not risking a DUI. Theoretically I can still be arrested, but the likelihood of conviction greatly decreases when the state can't prove you hit the per se limit. If it climbed to 0.05, I'd wait longer and test again.
 
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