Have you got a small child? If so you will be most likely aware that they have an uncanny tendency to get ill from time to time. Now ,like any good parent, we’ve got a digital thermometer. However, like any good self respecting toddler my son despises the thing and will never allow us to actually use it on him. I hear this story being repeated again and again from all parents that have children of a similar age. Why has a better system not been thought of?
That’s exactly what Harry Hu, founder of Wishbone thought. Here is a quote from their website about the origins of the idea…
As a father and a baby product store owner, I know the hassle of taking a child’s temperature all too well and so do my some of my teammates. My parenting experience and the feedback from my customers led me to believe that there is a need for a small, easy-to-use thermometer that measures and monitors temperatures using a smartphone. That’s how we came up with the idea for Wishbone.
The Wishbone is available from this website for £34.99.
Design
The actual wishbone is tiny. It is not much bigger than a £2 coin in surface area. It has three elements to it.
One is the sensor…
The second is the battery compartment which will take two button-sized batteries supplied in the packaging.
The third part is the headset jack for plugging the Wishbone into your phone.
It is moulded from silicone, so is very easy to wipe clean and disinfect (very important when using it with sick children).
There really isn’t that much more to it as the rest of the experience is done through the app on your phone.
The App
So to use the Wishbone you need to download a free Wishbone App from the App Store or Google Play Store. Once you have done that, simply plug in the Wishbone and it will detect automatically. I have tested the device on both my Xperia Z3 and also my OnePlus 2 with no issue.
One you start the app you are given option to use one of three modes; Object Temp, Ambient Temp and Body Temp. When going into to each of these options you will be presented with a virtual button. By pressing this button the app instructs the thermometer to make things happen. After a short while (about 2-3 seconds) you get presented with the temperature in either °C or °F depending on your preference.
This is clearly demonstrated in this video.
You can also save the body temp readings so that if you little one is suffering from a temperature or similar ailment.
I also really like the way that is allows you to measure the ambiant temperature and the temperature of liquids. These mean that I can make sure that my son’s room is not too hot or cold and that when we give him a bath we are not going to bathe him in water that too hot for him.
Summary
I have been very impressed with the Wishbone Smart Thermometer, it is very easy to use and it solves a problem that I, as a parent of a young child, face far too often. So much so that we stopped recording his temperature and we were relying on our gut. I would recommend this to anyone who is having difficulty with the standard style thermometer, especially when it comes to toddlers. It is simple, easy to use and – dare I say – enjoyable too. It has me measuring the temperature of all sorts of things now as it makes it more fun. That can only be a good thing.