New Health & Longevity Technology

News
#1

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Below are some new health and longevity products that were recently announced at CES and other trade shows. If you’ve seen anything else that is interesting in this class of products, please post it below.

Withings BeamO

Called the Withings BeamO, the new palm-sized device combines an electrocardiogram (ECG), oximeter, stethoscope, and thermometer, letting you keep track of your heart and lung health in addition to your temperature.

Source: The New BeamO Is a Stethoscope and Thermometer, and It Looks Like a Game Stick - CNET

The company website: Revolutionary at-home checkup - BeamO | Withings

Xiaomi Smartwatch H1 with Blood Pressure and ECG Monitoring

Xiaomi Watch H1 is now available in China and one of the first smartwatches to feature a ‘Wrist ECG and Blood Pressure Recorder’

Source: Xiaomi Watch H1 Boasts Medical-Grade Blood Pressure and ECG Monitoring - TechEBlog

Prices are about $430 US on Ebay: Xiaomi Watch H1 1.43'' AMOLED Blood Pressure Health Monitoring Bluetooth Watch | eBay

The Xiaomi Watch H1 Website: 小米血压手表

Stelo Non-Prescription CGM by Dexcom

Dexcom has now launched a new CGM product that should be available later this year called the Stelo.

What’s different about the Stelo is its design for Type 2 diabetes patients who don’t need insulin. Type 2 diabetes accounts for 90% or more of diabetes cases, yet these people don’t always have a clear idea of which foods spike their blood sugar and what to do about it.

To start, Dexcom will offer it as a cash-pay product. Sayer didn’t name a specific amount but said the company would “be competitive” when asked about a competitor’s cash price of $800 to $900 per year.

Ultimately, he hopes to gain insurance coverage for the device, but it’s not clear how the price will compare to traditional CGMs.

Source: Dexcom plans to launch new CGM this summer for people who don’t take insulin | MedTech Dive

UltraHuman Smart Ring Air

There were many smart rings at the show, but the UltraHuman Ring Air is the only smart ring that uses fighter jet titanium that I have tested that monitors sleep, movement, recovery, nutrition and many fitness tracking data points. It has a six-axis motion sensor delivering accurate data and is water-resistant at a depth of 330 feet

Source: Ultrahuman Ring Air review | TechCrunch

The Company Website: Ultrahuman Ring | Pricing

Vivoo

Vivoo is a home testing tool that uses urine to diagnose nine important health-related data points. The company calls it a wellness platform that gives real-time data on water, magnesium, calcium, vitamin C, PH, keytones, sodium, oxidative stress and protein. A one-time purchase, which includes four Vivoo tests, is $39. They also offer monthly subscriptions for people who want or need to test more often to monitor these data points regularly.

Source: Vivoo launches at-home digital UTI test at CES 2024 - Med-Tech Innovation

The Company Website: https://vivoo.io/

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#2

Quick thoughts:

  • BeamO - seems that many people, even full large families can use a single one - so cost per person might be different than for other things

  • Home UTI tracker - might be good to have in the quiver for those taking SGLT inhibitors

  • Dexcom’s new CGM - nice thing is that it is supposed to last 14 days instead of G6 and G7s current 10 days (+12 hours grace for G7)

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#3

Do we have independent reviews of the device? Samsung Galaxy watches come with a BP monitor in Europe (not FDA approved so not available in the US), I have one and the BP monitor gives random value that don’t match the normal cuff at all.

#4

I can’t find any reviews of it. It seems the watch isn’t “officially” sold outside of China (from what my quick search suggests). There is a review of an earlier heart monitor watch by Xiaomi and it wasn’t very good or accurate in the heart monitoring: https://www.trustedreviews.com/reviews/xiaomi-mi-watch

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#5

Another interesting device for simple blood pressure monitoring:

The company website:

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#6

Another new device… which I think is amazingly cool, but probably has little to do with longevity … I guess it might save your life if you’re traveling in a remote area and need to communicate with people in a different language…

Vasco Translator E1

One of the most impressive demos I had at CES 2024 was with the team of the Vasco Translator E1, an earpiece that uses AI and an app to translate 49 languages in real time. We tested it with a member of the Vasco team speaking a Polish, my ZDNET colleague Sabrina Ortiz speaking in Spanish, and me speaking in English and the E1 earpiece automatically translated between the three languages in our ear as well as displaying the translations in text on the phone app. There was a slight delay and the translations were about 80-90 percent accurate, but it was remarkable how well it let us communicate across the barrier of three different languages. The product will be released in Q2 2024 and pricing isn’t available yet.

The team already has a product available, the Vasco Translator V4, a handheld mobile device that translates 108 languages and has a built-in SIM card that works in roughly 200 countries and includes connectivity for the lifetime of the device. The V4 costs $389 and it will work with the E1 earpiece when it’s released. My colleagues Kerry Wan and Sabrina Ortiz also demoed a competing product, the TimeKettle X1 Interpreter Hub, and found it to be a little more accurate than Vasco’s products and it worked better in loud spaces. However, in the volunteer work I do in community building and with a youth literacy program, I regularly collaborate with immigrants who speak less common languages that are covered by Vasco (such as Swahili and Persian) and are not covered by TimeKettle, and that’s why I’m more interested in Vasco’s product. Oh, and the fact that the TimeKettle device costs $700 – although it does include two earpieces similar to the E1 as well.

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#8

Samsung Races Apple to Develop Blood Sugar Monitor That Doesn’t Break Skin

  • Company’s mobile health chief discusses plans in interview
  • Health push also includes new Galaxy Ring and future earbuds

“If we can do continuous blood pressure and glucose, we’re in a whole different ballgame,” Pak, Samsung’s mobile digital health chief, said during a wide-ranging interview. “I think that’s where everyone is trying to get to. We’re putting significant investment toward that.”

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-22/samsung-races-apple-on-noninvasive-glucose-checks-blood-pressure-monitoring

Full Story: https://archive.ph/Ti8a3

I love the Apple vs Samsung race! Hopefully in a few years we’ll all have a continuous blood pressure + glucose monitor + ECG integrated in our watch.

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#9

Continuous lactate and ketone levels would be amazing too (but perhaps they will first be like the current CGMs)

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#10

Apple’s banned SpO2 data isn’t especially accurate, and most rival watches aren’t any better. Masimo could change the status quo.

  • Masimo is launching a new Freedom smartwatch and Freedom Band tracker, focused on health tracking.
  • These wearables continuously measure blood oxygen, pulse, heart rate variability, respiration rate, and hydration.
  • Masimo successfully petitioned the ITC to force Apple to sell Apple Watches with blood oxygen disabled, due to an alleged patent infringement.
  • The Masimo Freedom will launch in 2024 with a revamped version of this SpO2 tech.

The Masimo Freedom Band, which has no display, will send all of this data to your phone app, focusing on people who need accurate health data but no other traditional “smarts.” With the Masimo Freedom, Song reports, you’ll get a “fairly basic smartwatch” with notifications, timers, and some apps you’ll control with the touchscreen or the side touch bar.

The Masimo Freedom will launch sometime later in 2024 for a whopping $999, a price that’s clearly suited for people who need continuous health tracking for documented medical conditions — not those who typically buy Apple Watches or the best Android watches.

Masimo announced its new Freedom watch and Freedom Band last week, both using an enhanced version of the blood oxygen (SpO2) tech Apple allegedly stole for the Series 9.

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#11

Interesting - wonder how good that will be

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#12

better be good then, wonder what the band version will cost

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#14

Despite these limitations, the technology has been proven largely reliable and used successfully over the last decade.

Validating the data

In 2017, Altini and a group of researchers, including triathlon coach and multiple-record holder Dan Plews, validated the HRV4Training app against chest strap devices and electrocardiogram methods. The app and methods were independently validated in 2021 in a study that showed high precision for the Oura ring and less reliable results for another app, CameraHRV.

Although this research points toward the strong reliability of the technology, it’s worth noting that the first study involved just 29 subjects, and the second one involved five recruited to perform a total of 148 validation trials. The research also validated the camera on iPhones only, not Android devices. (The app will inform the user if a specific phone is not supported.)

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#15
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#16

I wonder if this might be a good longevity tracker… aging is a chronic condition last I heard…

Guava is designed to help empower people to manage their health and chronic illnesses. Healthcare can be overwhelming. Whether you’re trying to find a diagnosis, get a chronic condition under control, or manage your day-to-day health, Guava has the tools to help ease the burden.

Android

Apple

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#17

I recommend people try this Guava app.

It seems pretty well designed with a simple onboarding process. Start using it and report on your experience, likes and dislikes.

If you know of others like it, please post.

Something like this optimized around longevity and biohacking would be ideal, but until we get it we have to make due…

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#18

Thanks for sharing. Can you import medical records all at once there? (e.g. PDF or Excel spreadsheets)

#19

I’m not sure … I see you can upload the data, but I’ve just installed the app and I’m slowly getting going with it, so will report back when I know more.

In related news:

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#20

Guava

Very good chance I missed something, but I see only limited capability to import values from excel.

First, you have to convert excel to .csv. And then only a date and a limited set of data types are supported. And your data values have to be vertically oriented.

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I didn’t actually try to import anything, the options offered weren’t appropriate.

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