With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, access to a pulse oximeter can be useful because it can be used to measure a person's blood oxygen levels immediately. However, you may find yourself in a situation where a pulse oximeter is not available. In such cases, you can simply and conveniently use the SpO2 measurement on your iPhone.
Unfortunately, COVID-19 is still affecting the lives of millions of people around the world. With health systems in many countries under heavy load, you may not be able to afford an emergency oxygen meter due to an imbalance of supply and demand.
With blood oxygen levels being an important indicator of how bad COVID is, oximeters have saved millions of lives worldwide. Thankfully, there is a way for you to measure your blood oxygen levels easily using your iPhone without any external accessories.
Top 5 App to measure Oxygen concentration (SpO2) on the best iPhone and Android today
Blood Oxygen App
Blood Oxygen App is an app that can be used to get information about your oxygen saturation and heart rate. The application has a simple user interface and is very easy to operate even when using it for the first time. It received an overall rating of 4.6 from 7,000 App Store ratings, while it's an early access app on Android. Blood Oxygen app is free to use and without any annoying ads.
It is available for Android, iPhone and Apple Watch. So if you don't have the latest Series 6 Watch, then you can use it as a replacement on your Apple Watch SE or other models.
CarePlix Vitals
CarePlix Vitals is a brand new app that is making the news in India. It was developed by a Kolkata-based startup and can be used to measure blood SpO2 levels, heart rate and breathing rate. The developers say that they have put advanced AI algorithms into the app to improve detection accuracy.
Currently, CarePlix Vitals does not charge for your oxygen saturation detection. However, it only works after you create a free user account and does not provide Facebook and Google SSO buttons. This app was previously available for Android and iOS, but now it has been removed from Google Play.
Pulse Monitor
Another popular blood oxygen monitoring app for smartphones is Pulse Monitor, which detects SpO2 levels and heart rate. It automatically saves the collected data to a digital log so you can track your oxygen levels over time.
However, this app works with a limited number of devices with built-in sensors, including Galaxy Note4/Edge/5/7/8/9, Galaxy S6/7/8/9/10 and variants their addition. But that also means it can give more accurate numbers than smartphones with dedicated sensors.
Apple Health app
iPhone owners can use the built-in Apple Health app as a blood oxygen saturation monitor. In the app, go to Browse > Respiratory > Blood Oxygen > tap Add Data.. Here you can add various data like oximeter reading, date and time. You can view this information as a graph to analyze your health.
The Health app can automatically populate blood oxygen data if you own an Apple Watch Series 6 that comes with an SpO2 sensor. You can find Bluetooth-enabled pulse oximeters like those from Nonin and iHealth that can sync data with the Health app.
Pulse Oximeter Tracker
This pulse oximeter monitoring app is available for Android devices running version 4.3 and above. As the name suggests, it can only be used to monitor your SpO2 levels and heart rate after measuring them with an oximeter. You can add blood saturation data along with the date and time tracked. Over time, you'll see trends in your blood oxygen levels and heart rate.
How to measure blood oxygen levels and heart rate with iPhone
Follow these step-by-step instructions to measure blood oxygen levels and heart rate with your iPhone:
Step 1: Open the CarePlix Vital app on your iPhone and sign up for the free service.
➤ Download – CarePlix Vitals
Step 2: On the main page, tap Scan Vitals.
Step 3: A calibration window will pop up. Place your index finger on the camera so that your finger covers both the camera sensor and the flash.
It will display the signal strength below the small camera window. Make sure you are covering the entire part for accurate results.
Step 4: Wait for the scan to start. Once the scan starts, it displays real-time blood oxygen levels, heart rate, and breathing rate. Do not drop your finger in the middle of this process.
Step 5: Once the scan is complete, a window with your measurements will pop up. You can save the results on this screen or start a new scan.
During my testing, the app seemed very accurate. With the app, my SpO2 and heart rate were 98 and 81 respectively. Using a suitable oximeter, my SpO2 and heart rate were 98 and 80 respectively. That's an error of less than 2%.
Of course, results can vary from person to person and condition, but it's still a useful way to measure your oxygen levels. With the current situation, this application can be useful for millions of people around the world.
After a number of scans (exact numbers not mentioned), the app can also provide you with 'key analytics' based on the results history. This can be useful for detecting high heart rates and other ailments. CareNow says heart rate and PPG (equivalent to electrocardiogram) are active and will be available on the app soon.
How to measure SpO2 on iPhone
With the sharing on how to measure SpO2 on iPhone that we mentioned above, it will help you partly proactively check your health to best prevent COVID-19.