Galaxy Watch Active 2 users in South Korean can now measure blood pressures with the Samsung Health Monitor App.
The South Korean giant has finally started rolling out the blood pressure monitoring support to the Galaxy Watch Active 2 in South Korea. It came with support for monitoring heart rate and ECG. However, the device lacked support for monitoring blood pressure, which is now rolled out. A few months ago, Samsung had announced that the monitoring blood pressure support is going to be added as the feature and now it is rolled out as it was cleared by the South Korean drug safety agency to monitor the blood pressure. Read along to learn more about the feature.
Blood Pressure Monitoring in Galaxy Watch Active 2
There have been talks about Samsung releasing Galaxy Watch 3 later this year. But it’s not stopping the company from pushing out updates and support for their existing line from smart watches.
High blood pressure is known to cause significant increases in the risk of brain, kidney, and heart diseases. By allowing you to track blood pressure from Samsung Galaxy Watch, it will help you manage heart health via the Samsung Health Monitor App.
Samsung first announced the feature earlier this year. Back then, Samsung confirmed that ECG tracking on device Galaxy Watch 2 will come “within the third quarter of this year.” That is likely one of the most anticipated upcoming additions to the impressive Galaxy-branded smartwatch. The firm was less clear on when these features might expand outside of South Korea though. It awaited clearance from South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.
Do you know prescribed time to test for accurate blood pressure?
Samsung Health Monitor App
To enjoy the new feature, one must have the Samsung Health Monitor App installed on both: smartwatches and smartphones. The App is compatible with Galaxy smartphones running on Android 7 and also newer devices. In South Korea, Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 customers have already started receiving software updates that allow them to install the Samsung Health Monitor App.
“The Samsung Health Monitor App has the potential to help millions of people around the world who are affected by high blood pressure,” says Taejong Jay Yang, Corporate SVP and Head of Health Team, Mobile Communications Business at Samsung Electronics. “This is one of the examples of how Samsung is integrating its best-in-class hardware with the latest software innovations to innovate mobile experiences.”
How does it work?
Are smartwatches going to replace bulky sphygmomanometers? As of now, the solution is a clear no. Though the new Blood Monitoring feature within the Galaxy Watches sounds cool, you’ll still need a standard cuff to urge it calibrated. This is due to the sensor on the Galaxy Watch that cannot read the blood pressure. It uses a pulse wave analysis technique to detect the change in Blood Pressure. The app uses the initial reading and change to determine the current reading. Users can track the blood pressure when they want and may even prefer to share the readings with doctors.
While the app doesn’t entirely remove the requirement for traditional equipment, it makes it tons easier to stay track of blood pressure and share the data with health personnel. You can check your blood pressure whenever you want to, without having to hold around cuffs.
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ECG feature to roll out in Q3
Though Galaxy Watch Active 2 has an ECG sensor, Samsung is battling permissions and software support to form it functional. The company has announced that the blood monitoring via the ECG sensor is going to be available within the third quarter later this year. Compared to ocular counterparts, the ECG sensors are more accurate and reliable. The upcoming update will help bridge the hole between Samsung’s Galaxy Watch line-up and Apple Watch. It might even give an upper edge to the previous since the latter lacks the blood pressure monitoring feature.
Reference: www.theverge.com
