Is the blood Oxygen sensor mostly a gimmick? After you have checked it a couple fo times dos it really tell you anything on an ongoing basis?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Is the blood Oxygen sensor mostly a gimmick?
- Thread starter vapourtrails
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Low readings could be a sign of a health problem such as sleep apnea, COPD, respiratory infection.
You may or not not see anything that is cause for concern with 1 or even 5 readings. However, the app does a good job of monitoring in the background. And over time, it can provide a good baseline of your current state of wellness, which can be of benefit to your doctor.
I use an app called Widget Wizard on my phone and have it set where it shows my current saturation average.
I also have a watch app called WHealth that displays easy to read graphs of all kinds of Apple Health data an saturation is part of my list. I can easily see my daily stats from the wrist, instead of having to get my phone, open the health app and open respiratory (until I saved respiratory to favorites).
I use an app called Widget Wizard on my phone and have it set where it shows my current saturation average.
I also have a watch app called WHealth that displays easy to read graphs of all kinds of Apple Health data an saturation is part of my list. I can easily see my daily stats from the wrist, instead of having to get my phone, open the health app and open respiratory (until I saved respiratory to favorites).
Nope. Taking a random reading is kinda fussy and useless and not a signal of anything. Where it excels is when it does several readings in the back ground over time. Mine average about 95-100 with an average of about 98. If your numbers are significantly lower it might be time to ping you dr for professional tests.
As said above in other posts, the real important feature of this is watching the trend. And over time it will go down. I have COPD at age 69, and have seen my saturation slip on hospital measurement systems from 99 down to about 96 In 4 years. Moreover, my problem is at night, so the idea of it being able to take random readings at night is invaluable. In addition, if it slips to under 95 quickly and then goes down a percent per day is a sign that you’ve got Covid, According to the medical sources. Your saturation goes to hell quickly with Covid. So no , it’s not a gimmick at all if you’ve got any type of lung condition or disease.
Hi All,
My ”later adopter“ research - hope it helps. Happy for others to critique my take away conclusions
Is oxygen meter accurate?
My ”later adopter“ research - hope it helps. Happy for others to critique my take away conclusions
Is oxygen meter accurate?
- Accurate, if sitting still – Below Utube link = compared with medical grade o2 finger sensor ($40)
- However – can easily get unsuccessful readings – if moving etc.
- However – only GET SNAPSHOTS – Not constant readings
No. I like being able to periodically check and see how healthy my respiration is going. If it drops below 90%, I might think twice about certain things / otherwise good to consider checking myself and watching for anything further that might require medical attention. I love my physical health and wellbeing so this is great.
If you want to know what I would say is a good example of a 'gimmick', look no further than the 2020 iPad Pro's LIDAR scanner. Source: have the 2020 iPad Pro. 6 months on after release, including iPadOS 14, and LIDAR still has absolutely nothing to show for it besides the IKEA app and some games that are locked behind Apple Arcade paywall. I'm gunna come out and say it, but really, in its current form, the LIDAR scanner is truly useless. It may as well not be there. It doesn't even have its own dedicated app or anything else to showcase it, unlike blood oxygen in the S6
If you want to know what I would say is a good example of a 'gimmick', look no further than the 2020 iPad Pro's LIDAR scanner. Source: have the 2020 iPad Pro. 6 months on after release, including iPadOS 14, and LIDAR still has absolutely nothing to show for it besides the IKEA app and some games that are locked behind Apple Arcade paywall. I'm gunna come out and say it, but really, in its current form, the LIDAR scanner is truly useless. It may as well not be there. It doesn't even have its own dedicated app or anything else to showcase it, unlike blood oxygen in the S6
Both times the Blood Oxygen reading failed he was moving his arm and wrist. How hard is it to stay still for 15 seconds?Hi All,
My ”later adopter“ research - hope it helps. Happy for others to critique my take away conclusions
Is oxygen meter accurate?
- Accurate, if sitting still – Below Utube link = compared with medical grade o2 finger sensor ($40)
- However – can easily get unsuccessful readings – if moving etc.
- However – only GET SNAPSHOTS – Not constant readings
Yep, Twitter is full of morons claiming it's unrealiable:
"First they made unreliable EKG (does not come even 100 miles close to Kardia accuracy), now even more unreliable and untested spO2. Apple just give up and stay out of health unless you do a lot of research and have top scientists."
I will never use AliveCor's products:
1) They keep a copy of every ECG you take, Apple doesn't.
2) They sell you a crippled product, you must buy premium subscription (in the US). Resting Heart Rate is a Premium Protection Plan Feature...
"First they made unreliable EKG (does not come even 100 miles close to Kardia accuracy), now even more unreliable and untested spO2. Apple just give up and stay out of health unless you do a lot of research and have top scientists."
I will never use AliveCor's products:
1) They keep a copy of every ECG you take, Apple doesn't.
2) They sell you a crippled product, you must buy premium subscription (in the US). Resting Heart Rate is a Premium Protection Plan Feature...