There's always a coronavirus angle these days: Honor intros new smartphone with built-in temperature sensor
- Reference: 1591273864
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/06/04/honor_play4_pro_ir_thermometer/
- Source link:
In addition to the usual specs, it comes with a seldom-found feature that feels particularly pertinent given the current pandemic. Nestled amid its camera array is an infrared temperature sensor with a range between -20°C (-4°F) and 100°C (212°F).
We asked Honor how it envisioned people using this feature, but the vendor, which is owned by Huawei, declined to comment. However, footage shared by the company to its official Weibo account [1]show actors using the phone to check the temperatures of others, suggesting it could be used as a tool to identify potential COVID-19 infections.
Speaking to this publication, Honor denied any aspirations of selling the Play4 Pro to government and healthcare clients, insisting it planned to stick to its usual bread and butter of everyday consumers.
Specs-wise, the Honor Play4 packs the same Kirin 990 platform that first appeared on the Huawei P30 Pro 5G last year. This chip also featured on the P40 Pro flagship, which hit UK shelves in April.
There's also a solid 8GB of RAM, 128GB storage, and a 6.57-inch display. Accompanying that is a 32MP dual-lens selfie camera. On the back, there's a 40MP primary sensor, paired with an 8MP telephoto lens.
An Honor representative told us the firm has no plans to release the phone outside the Middle Kingdom. That's not a shock – even before the Trump administration [2]imposed its embargo on Huawei, the firm held some handsets back for its domestic customers.
Still, the Play4 Pro is noteworthy as it's perhaps the first unambiguously consumer-focused phone to have an IR temperature sensor. The only other vendors shipping this feature tend to be more focused on the industrial or construction sector, [3]like Bullitt (which licenses the CAT brand) and Hong Kong's BlackView.
Given COVID-19 is likely to continue its rampage into the coming months (if not years), this feature feels less esoteric than it would have otherwise done in more tranquil circumstances. We can't help but wonder if any other vendors will follow suit. ®
[1] https://www.weibo.com/3206603957/J4CW5rtxv?type=comment
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2019/05/15/president_trump_huawei_emergency_ban/
[3] https://www.theregister.com/2018/09/06/bullit_rugged_cat_phone/
Re: Bad News
Sensible.
No we can tell phone zombies and annoying load phone conversation holder to shove their phones up their bums and it can be now classed as medical advice.
Why not, when you travel there you get checked
China has had temperature checks at airports for years now, so having a temperature checking device with you, will allow you to check your self before getting to the airport and then been taken away somewhere. Instead you could self isolate, go and get a test, go to hospital.....whichever is most appropriate.
Is it really the first?
I remember playing with a Caterpillar phone that had a thermal camera in it in a shop well over a year ago. It was a seriously cool feature, although the rest of the phone didn't seem much cop (although it was one of those that's build you make you think that if you dropped it on a concrete floor you worried more about the damage to the floor than the phone - you know, a bit like an old Nokia).
Re: Is it really the first?
Yes I can't find the reg article but can find it [1]on their site .
I can see a forum post but only a post for the budget version.
[1] https://www.catphones.com/en-gb/cat-s61-smartphone/
Way ahead of you - and now behind
I bought a Maplin remote thermometer fifteen years ago, and a Lidl Oximeter four years ago. Unfortunately in the past weeks my dad has thrown them out. Nobody tells you this about dementia, but never leave anything you value lying around. It's all 'clutter'. I think he's thrown out my teeth, again, but I'm not searching through the bins again - facemasks will suffice.
My dad just asked, "What is that co - that thing Boris had?"
"Covid-19?"
"Aye, and what is that other disease that starts with co?"
"Coronavirus?"
"Aye. What's the difference between them? If you catch one can you catch the other?"
I spent ten minutes explaining that Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-Cov-2) is just one of several coronaviruses but this one causes a disease called Covid-19.
"I can't get my head around that. Are there three diseases? "
"No dad, just the one but it has three names and nobody minds which name any of us use"
https://xkcd.com/2275/
It's bin night tonight, highlight of my week. Sadly I'm being serious. Wee bit of exercise, get to nod at the neighbours. It's the closest I get to sex now.
Re: Bad News
The temperature is rectal