Kohler Unveils a Camera For Your Toilet (techcrunch.com)
- Reference: 0179837854
- News link: https://mobile.slashdot.org/story/25/10/20/212258/kohler-unveils-a-camera-for-your-toilet
- Source link: https://techcrunch.com/2025/10/19/kohler-unveils-a-camera-for-your-toilet/
> The Dekoda is [2]currently available for preorder , with shipments scheduled to begin on October 21. In addition to the hardware purchase fee, customers will need to pay between $70 and $156 per year for a subscription. If you're uneasy about the privacy implications of putting a camera right below your private parts, the company says, "Dekoda's sensors see down into your toilet and nowhere else." It also notes that the resulting data is secured via end-to-end encryption.
[1] https://techcrunch.com/2025/10/19/kohler-unveils-a-camera-for-your-toilet/
[2] https://www.kohlerhealth.com/dekoda/
Let me guess... subscription / remote processing (Score:4, Insightful)
Who in their right mind would give their personal health information to a corporation that also has their billing information and can associate the two?
It's a matter of time before the database is cracked or sold (or, more likely, access is discretely rented). Then you try to get insurance, or it becomes part of employment background checks, or it's used to target you with yet more advertising.
If it could run locally and had a single upfront price, it might be an interesting health tool. As it likely really is, it's nothing but a privacy nightmare.
Re: (Score:2)
>> Who in their right mind would give their personal health information to a corporation that also has their billing information and can associate the two?
> I would. I take care of myself, and expect that device will show it, it just like it does show in my bloodwork. In effect sending a message to health insurers of "hey, this is a gold customer, offer him a great deal to keep him!".
That could go bad for you really fast. Plenty of people who "take care of themselves" develop conditions they have no control over. Indeed pretty much everyone eventually.
Re: (Score:2)
> Who in their right mind would give their personal health information to a corporation that also has their billing information and can associate the two?
Well, we all do this all the time. After all, our doctors, labs, and health insurance are all for-profit entities that have our very private financial and health info that we somehow trust will be secure and not misused.
The bigger question is whether this technology exists and whether it works. I use ColoGuard to detect colon cancer, but there is substantial published research to support its effectiveness. Does such published research exist for this camera-based method? I imagine detecting blood is doab
Re: (Score:2)
> Well, we all do this all the time. After all, our doctors, labs, and health insurance are all for-profit entities that have our very private financial and health info that we somehow trust will be secure and not misused.
Doctors and labs have to comply with HIPPA rules. I'm not sure if it applies to Kohler, but if they are serious they would comply voluntarily anyway. I don't sense seriousness here though.
Pass (Score:3)
> "Kohler has launched the Dekoda, a $599 smart toilet camera that analyzes users' waste to track hydration, gut health, and detect potential issues like blood."
Um. No thanks. And, by the way, I think most people can manage to see blood and know what "normal" movements look like.
> "and a fingerprint sensor to identify who's using the toilet,"
Right, because we wouldn't want people to lie or something.
> "customers will need to pay between $70 and $156 per year for a subscription."
Of course. No modern purchase would be complete without an endless "service" revenue costing the consumer thousands of additional dollars!
> "It also notes that the resulting data is secured via end-to-end encryption."
We are REALLY concerned about the poo data being intercepted between the toilet and your servers. We are not at all concerned about your servers being hacked, or the data being shared or misused or any silly thing like that.
Re: (Score:1)
"I think most people can manage to see blood "
This isn't intended to be in favour of this gadget but most people can't see blood in their urine or feces but it's there and detectable in a lab.
Which is why you submit samples to the lab for such things as colorectal screening.
Re: (Score:2)
> "This isn't intended to be in favour of this gadget but most people can't see blood in their urine or feces but it's there and detectable in a lab."
Yeah, but my comment is in reference to a "camera". How is that going to detect blood better than my eyes? A camera isn't a lab instrument :)
I am sure future models might actually have fancier sensors that could do more. But, really, how is this silly toilet better than just pointing your smartphone in the toilet and using some app?
Re: (Score:2)
> "and a fingerprint sensor to identify who's using the toilet,"
This is so that it associates the data with the correct person, when multiple people use the same toilet.
> Of course. No modern purchase would be complete without an endless "service" revenue costing the consumer thousands of additional dollars!
If there was no subscription and no cloud, this could be a good product. But that would require a nearby toilet hub (computer) that could do the computations. If this hub were a general purpo
Hell to the no! (Score:5, Funny)
There is no way I'm going to have a poop camera. Just imagine the cops getting a warrant.
The prosecutor at a trial. if the jury will observe the screen the defendant clearly had corn the day before the incident clearly linking him to the crime. I'm sure there will be a NCIS or whatever with that plot soon.
just wait for the scam calls saying you need to fl (Score:2)
just wait for the scam calls saying you need to flip the camera
Gonna get hacked (Score:1)
And people are gonna pay to watch you poop on the dark web
What next? (Score:2)
Ahhh, a special Facebook group for everyone who owns one of these cameras and has a subscription to support it. Quizzes, contests, prizes!! More! Kids, get your parents to buy one of these cameras. Loads of fun! No home should be without one. Oh, I forgot. This is in America! No home should be without two or three or more of these cameras.
Special product announcement! New camera specially designed for your cat's kittylitter tray. Don't have a cat? That's OK, just get one for your boyfriend.
Re: (Score:2)
You're joking but latest cat litter machines have cameras. Here from Petkit [1]https://petkit.com/products/pu... [petkit.com]
The camera is useful if you have several cats, so you can then check on them while travelling. Cats might get stuck in a cardboard box or push a door and be stuck in a room. A cat litter machine without camera distinguishes them by weight, but that might not be enough to make sure they are all ok if two or more have similar stature.
Their cat litter includes pH colour indicator so they also help check
[1] https://petkit.com/products/purobot-max-pro-2-automatic-cat-litter-box-with-ai-camera
Re: (Score:2)
Thank you. I am now better informed. (You didn't say it, but I guess that is where the idea came from.)
Re: (Score:2)
>> You're joking but latest cat litter machines have cameras. Here from Petkit [1]https://petkit.com/products/pu [petkit.com]... [petkit.com]
> Thank you. I am now better informed. (You didn't say it, but I guess that is where the idea came from.)
The kittys are not what they seem.
[1] https://petkit.com/products/pu
Holy shit! (Score:4, Funny)
A toilet with a subscription! I shit you not, I did not see this coming.
Re: (Score:2)
You didn't see it coming, cause you didn't have the camera! It is a crappy situation.
Re: (Score:2)
And the price! They must think we're flush with cash.
self-cleaning (Score:1)
What we really need are self-cleaning toilets, using that gecko technology that prevents anything from sticking.
What is the methodology and how is it validated? (Score:2)
Aside from the obvious privacy issues, the concern I have is that this product seems to be positioned as a medical device, but lacks any information about how it is measuring what it purports to measure. What studies support the analyses it claims to perform, and how are its methodologies validated?
It's deeply deceptive to sell a product that claims to track health-related data without disclosing how accurate or meaningful it is. Not only is such marketing exploiting the uneducated public and leading them
Re: (Score:2)
Now that you frame it this way, I'm thinking of Theranos and their wild claims of how they'd do blood analysis.
GIGO? (Score:3)
Is this another example of GIGO (Garbage In, Garbage Out)?
It's still missing the obligatory AI to mis-interpret the results.
To be meme-complete, the collected data should be permanently recorded on the blockchain.
Re: (Score:2)
SISO
enshittification (Score:1)
subject says it all
American Dad predicted (Score:2)
[1]Project Toilet Cam - American Dad [youtube.com]
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzIUd70kY2g
They didn't name it ScatBot (Score:1)
What a wasted opporunity.
Only for toilets? (Score:2)
> smart toilet camera that analyzes users' waste to track hydration, gut health, and detect potential issues
Can it be attached to an F-18? Because someone apparently has some really, really bad [1]intestinal issues [truthsocial.com] that need analyzing ...
[1] https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115398251623299921
IoShit (Score:2)
Literally.
I see a competition in the future (Score:2)
Assuming that the poop shots can be easily accessed and posted to sites that vote on the best turd, it may turn turd wars into a viral sensation
No paid subscription! (Score:2)
Sorry! you did not pay for the flushing option!
Shit posting at it's best... (Score:2)
All I can say is that I'm glad I didn't have to write the firmware and do the beta testing.
Re: (Score:2)
> All I can say is that I'm glad I didn't have to write the firmware and do the beta testing.
Hardware and Software can also be a problem.
You want just the right amount of firmware.
Fingerprint sensor? (Score:2)
Uh, where exactly am I sticking my finger?
They should talk to Xerox. I'm sure they have a large catalog of butt prints from drunken office parties we can use for identification.
Stool Scan (Score:2)
The Japanese already did this - [1]https://mainichi.jp/english/ar... [mainichi.jp]
It scans the poop with a laser instead of taking a photo, and it sounds like processing is done on the device and results sent to a smartphone app.
Still ridiculous, but sounds like a more elegant solution than a wifi-connected camera if you're really interested in cataloguing the shape and texture of your bowel movements for some reason.
[1] https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20250717/p2a/00m/0bu/009000c
Enshittified shitter turns to shit (Score:2)
No saw that coming except the AI camera that was watching your screens, and eavesdropping on other household noises and conversations to sell you... shit, of course.
Smart Pipe (Score:1)
So, does this make Kohler a registered sex-offender?
Get a check up (Score:2)
You don't need a camera or some service contract. Just meet with your doctor on a regular basis (typically every three years, more frequently as you get older)
"Thank You." (Score:2)
"Thank You, Master."
"Insufficient sample, may I please have another?"
But do you really need an AI to tell you that your crap is too hard or too soft and that you are bleeding from your ass?
Being On The Curve (Score:2)
Someone in corporate was reading articles about enshitification and was not clear on the concept.
But aen't you glad I didn't say "being on the cutting edge"?
OK, that's it, the End Times are Upon Us. (Score:3)
This is Peak Stupidity. Paying for the privilege of having your poop photographed and analyzed in your toilet.
I want my old timeline back. The one without social media, interconnected thermostats and such, and cameras to analyze your poop.
Re:OK, that's it, the End Times are Upon Us. (Score:4, Insightful)
"This is Peak Stupidity."
No, peak stupidity will be requiring it or your health insurance will go up 30%.
Incidentally, my old employer did exactly this. Required annual blood tests or your rates went up. They used the data to promote the "health" of their work force, not for your benefit. What a piece of shit company they were. National Instruments for those interested.
Re: (Score:2)
Whenever they wanted me to take a drug test, I said "OK, which ones do you want me to test?"
Companies have a lifespan, just like people (Score:2)
> This is Peak Stupidity.
For a toilet manufacturer, yeah, pretty much.
> the End Times are Upon Us
No, it's just the end times for Kohler as they telegraph to potential customers that the engineers have left the building and its now run by the idiots in marketing. No company lasts forever. The inspired leadership there at the beginning eventually ages out. Boeing, Disney, etc. Kohler is no different.
Re: (Score:2)
Actually there are markets where these might be reasonable. (MIGHT, I'm not real sure of their capabilities.) The ones I'm thinking of are pretty niche, though. Generally hospitals or care homes. (But they probably couldn't pay the costs.)
Re: (Score:3)
>> This is Peak Stupidity.
> For a toilet manufacturer, yeah, pretty much.
TFA shows the camera clips onto the rim of your existing toilet, below the seat; it's not a toilet with a built-in camera - not yet anyway. In any case; seems super dumb. Also, it has a fingerprint reader at the toilet-rim level - yuk. Sure the reader is on the outside, but sill below the seat at rim level.