Withings Thermo Review: Virus Pandemic Must-have Diagnostic Tool

One of the easiest ways to detect a viral infection without going to a doctor is through keeping track of your core body temperature. While on a business trip, where access to a doctor is an undesirable luxury, a device that can track developing symptoms is extremely valuable.

The Withings Thermo is not your typical heart rate monitor but instead it monitors your body temperature, and promises to do it in game-changing accuracy and speed. With a viral pandemic looming over the world, I dove in to find out more.

Size of a glue stick

When I first unboxed the Withings Thermo, my first impression is that though it is bigger than the regular digital thermometer, it is more compact than other infrared thermometers that I have used before. A large glue stick is what comes to mind when trying to describe what it looks like.

One great design its body size allows is for the Thermo to be powered by two common AAA batteries. Even though a rechargeable lithium battery would be the more 'trendy' choice, it will also mean needing to discard the whole device when the battery is worn out. The Thermo only needs fresh batteries once in a while, and its product life will not be limited by the deterioration of an internal battery - which makes sense for a thermometer.

Temporal artery temperature: sound science?

The way the Thermo can work so quickly and accurately is attributed to how it measures the body temperature. When I think of temperature measurement, what comes to mind is either by axillary (under the armpits) or under the tongue - both taking time and some sort of inconvenience. The Withings Thermo measures instead the temperature at the temporal artery located on the side of the forehead.

According to a paper on the National Center for Biotechnology Information website, it was found that temperature measured at the temporal artery is deemed accurate within the acceptable range for medical experts, and it is a superior method of measurement compared with the axillary method.

Personally I tested this accuracy by taking multiple measurements, either from the same spot or alternating between the left and right temporal. I found that the readings were usually identical between each measurement, which indicates good repeatability and reproducibility.

Rapid diagnosis

Having used digital thermometers before, I am used to having to hold the thermometer probe either under the tongue or under the armpit for a good 30 seconds, waiting for the beep to show the measured temperature. Thermo transforms the traditional thermometer mechanics by using 16 infrared sensors to detect the temporal temperature, embodied in a small shiny sensor recessed in its body. What results is a temperature measurement that takes only 2 seconds, made even easier as it vibrates to let you know that the measurement is done.

Once the temperature is measured, Thermo will light up a green/yellow/red light to indicate whether the reading is considered as fever or not. The diagnosis takes into account the person's age, weight and height which are entered when setting up the Thermo App on the phone.

Smart temperature logging

The feature that truly sets the Thermo apart from other thermometers is that it is connected. Upon turning the Thermo on for the first time, the LED display shows the user an URL to download the Thermo App. After a simple setup process, the Thermo can be paired to the phone through either Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. Once connected, I was then given the option to add individual profiles, up to 8 users. I registered myself and 3 other colleagues, and proceeded to input the temperature for each person by scanning, swiping a capacitive section on the Thermo to get the right user, and pressing the button to record the temperature measurement in each person's journal.

Initially I had trouble syncing the temperature measured on the Thermo onto the app, since there was no button to do so in the app or on the device itself. But later I discovered that each time I connected the phone to the Thermo via Bluetooth, all the measurements that I've made since the last sync immediately appears in the notification section of the phone and are recorded into the app.

The Thermo app log has further functions to add symptoms, medication taken, photos and comments which advance the temperature log into a full-fledged health journal. According to what is entered in conjunction with the temperature measured, the app also gives suggestions of possible treatments that can help with any sort of illness.

Who is the Withings Thermo for?

When on a trip for work, getting sick is one of the last things that you'd want to go through. But what's even worse is not being sure whether you're sick and how serious it might be - and there's only so far you can go with a feel of the forehead and guess work.

With a Withings Thermo you can get a quick, accurate diagnostic on yourself, and have an app that keeps track of any abnormal trends so that you can take an action early before the symptoms disrupts your plans. Furthermore, the Withings Thermo allows you to track a whole team of people: all without contact and each measurement taking only seconds. This is a health companion and diagnostic tool - perhaps the only one on the market that can keep an eye on the health of a whole team of people on the go.