Apple is currently embroiled in a patent dispute with health technology company Masimo over the blood oxygen sensor in its latest Apple Watches, and now Masimo CEO Joe Kiani has gone on record saying that Apple's sensor does not is reliable and that consumers are “better off without it.” he”.
The comments, made to Bloomberg TV (via 9to5Mac), come after Apple disabled blood oxygen monitoring on the Apple Watch 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2, so those devices can remain on sale while they are sold. solve legal problems.
“Apple is disguising what it offers consumers as a reliable medical pulse oximeter, even though it is not,” Kiani told Bloomberg TV. “I really believe wholeheartedly that consumers will be better off without it.”
Unsurprisingly, Kiani says the technology Masimo produces is superior. The CEO also said that he hasn't spoken to Apple about resolving the patent dispute, so it seems like this particular story still has a long way to go.
Sensor accuracy
Kiani's criticism centers on the fact that the Apple Watch's sensor for measuring blood oxygen levels, known as a pulse oximeter, does not perform continuous measurements. Rather, it only takes readings intermittently, which limits its usefulness in detecting problems like sleep apnea, according to Kiani.
For its part, Apple says that intermittent readings and random manual checks are perfectly fine for what the sensor is designed for, and that checks against high-quality reference data are more important to ensure accuracy than recording readings throughout. The day and the night.
It's worth noting that Masimo's pulse oximeter technology has been approved by the US Federal Drug Administration (FDA), meaning it officially qualifies as a medical-grade device in terms of quality. data.
Apple doesn't have that approval, but maintains that its watches are still useful in terms of health tracking. As 9to5Mac notes, an academic study has found that the Apple Watch sensor can detect reduced blood oxygen saturation “reliably” and is “sufficiently advanced” to be on par with medical-grade technology.
