LifeWatch V - an Android smartphone that monitors your health

Our dependence on smartphones for day to day needs connects them to our lives in various ways. With a new smartphone you also connect your personal health and wellness to your smartphone.

Ever thought that your regular Android smartphone could tell you your body temperature, blood glucose levels and also perform a 25-second ECG? LifeWatch V from LifeWatch Technologies, Israel can.

Aimed at doctors, patients and the health conscious user, LifeWatch V is being hailed as the first 'healthcare smartphone'. It's a leap from the regular 'healthcare apps' and is an attempt to work on the hardware rather than the software, with the use of specific sensors for medical testing purposes.

In many ways, the device is also a combination of the hardware and software that you require to take care of your well-being. It takes your health data and stores it on the cloud. Comparison of previous medical history and tracking your health levels hence becomes viable. It also lets you share the data with any external source via an email or a message. You can hence, share the logs with a doctor.

The smartphone also has integrated apps to set medication reminders, plan your diet and monitor exercise logs. The manufacturer has also come up with a call-centre support to give the user expert medical help when required. Select services such as this and diet and exercise planning are being offered by the company for a premium.

Here are some other medical capabilities of this device:

• ECG: You place four fingers on the sensors of the device on both the sides and it gives you an ECG in 25 seconds.

• Body Temperature: You need to hold the phone to your forehead and the infrared sensor on the back of the device will take your temperature in 10 seconds.

• Blood Glucose levels: The LifeWatch V is claims to be the first ever smartphone that can take blood glucose measurements. The device comes with a dedicated slot for the same. Insert the strip into the slot, prick your finger and the result will be presented immediately on the device.

• Heart rate: Similar to the way it works for an ECG, you need to place four fingers on the phone's frame and the device shows your heart rate.

Besides these, it can also calculate blood saturation levels, body fat analysis and stress levels.

Though the main focus of the device is on healthcare facilities, it also sports a decent set of specifications. It runs on Android 2.3 and boasts a 4.3-inch display, a 5 MP rear camera and a 0.3 MP front camera. Connectivity features such as 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1 and GPS have also been packed into the device.

With a growing concern for health and an emerging market for 'special' features in smartphones, LifeWatch V might actually turn out to be the perfect combination for many users.

There are no details on the availability or the pricing of the device as of now.