I have the dubious privilege of getting my blood pressure checked for free when I donate blood (actually platelets) so if you want your blood pressure checked by a real medical professional, check out a blood drive. Your local Red Cross might be a good source of them. (some restrictions apply)
Having said that, getting your blood pressure checked regularly is a good idea and hopefully this device is accurate enough to help.
/showme Anthropomorphized Greater Goods Pro-Series Smart Blood Pressure Monitor that is sitting in chair and taking notes and listening thoughtfully to your heart that is lying on couch and talking about its love and dread of donuts.
Nifty. But we already have at least three working blood pressure meters, so I think I’ll most likely pass. (But in the morning, I’ll make sure that all the old ones still work.)
@JohnQ118 Mine agree with each other, and the readings are within the range seen during office visits, so they’re certainly working well enough. It’s not like the exact same numbers are going to come up two tests in a row, anyway. Exact accuracy in something doing an indirect and imprecise evaluation of a biological element is a fantasy. That said, if mine ever reads >175/110 after a second attempt with a different meter, I’m headed for the ER. (More typically, it’s 115/65.)
Bought one of these from Morningsave () for the same price over a week ago. Seems fine (based on the listing) especially for the price; mine hasn’t arrived yet, however, so I can’t tell you how it is in person!
@werekong asks: “Will it work without batteries, solely plugged in?”
Yes. It will work just plugged in.
I don’t own this particular machine but in general these inexpensive home machines are accurate enough for monitoring trends. If you really want to test one, take it with you to your next doctor visit and compare the result to theirs.
@therealjrn@werekong I do do this also! I am very lucky in that I get my blood pressure monitored every 20 minutes during my 3 hour dialysis sessions three times a week. You all should sign up, it’s fun!
Random interweb Answer: HSA Eligibility for Blood Pressure Machines
General Guidelines
Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) allow you to use pre-tax dollars for eligible medical expenses. To qualify, the item must primarily serve a medical purpose.
Blood Pressure Machines
Eligible Purchases: You can use HSA funds to purchase a blood pressure monitor, such as the QardioArm Wireless Blood Pressure Monitor, as it is considered a medical device.
Letter of Medical Necessity: If you want to purchase a device like the QardioBase Smart Scale, which is not automatically eligible, you may need a Letter of Medical Necessity (LMN) from your doctor. This letter should explain how the device relates to a specific medical condition.
Using your HSA for a blood pressure machine can help manage your health costs effectively. Always check with your HSA provider for the most current eligibility rules.
Try not to use your HSA for as long as possible. Just keep saving into it and if possible, pay for all of your medical bills through your personal savings account.
A friend did this. His roof needed replacing.
So he turned in all of his receipts from the last 5-6 years and got his HSA check and used it to pay for his roof.
@threadstone You are right about not using the HSA, and you certainly mention one benefit, but here’s what few people know.
HSAs are often set up for retirement. When you make contributions, you can invest those contributions within the HSA like you would in a retirement account. So the funds go in tax-free, grow tax-free, and if you use them for qualified medical, dental, vision, and hearing expenses, they come out tax free.
Ideally, keep the money in your HSA (and it will continue to grow) until post retirement. You can then pull out the funds for any purpose, though you will pay ordinary income taxes on it, but better still, you can pay long-term care insurance premiums or Medicare premiums. These are just a few possibilities.
HSA’s are powerful financial tools. I’m not a tax advisor, so always consult with your tax person first.
How large is the cuff? I’m a pretty big guy with large arms, and I can’t find that info anywhere on this page, the manufacturer page or the amazon page.
@bigpolar@cfg83 Buying a larger cuff is difficult unless you have a name brand unit whose manufacturer supplies one. The connections for the hoses are not standardized.
@bigpolar Fifth bullet under the expanded Product Details description over at Amazon:
Will the cuff fit you? Please measure the circumference of your bicep before making this purchase - Our universal Cuff band diameter is 8.75-16.5 in, 22-42cm that when inflated constricts to arms [sic] 7.75-15.5 in. Please note: The fit will affect the accuracy of this product.
I received mine today. I don’t have huge arms. But at the Dr office they use the large cuff. This cuff has lots of room left when I wear it.
I used it once so far. The app setup (Android) is simple. And so is the Bluetooth pairing.
I’m glad I got this device. It is easier than the wrist cuffs. And the phone app is a real bonus. It will be so much easier to show the doctor the history. I used to keep a spreadsheet.
Specs
Product: Greater Goods Pro-Series Smart Blood Pressure Monitor
Model: 634
Condition: New
What’s Included?
Price Comparison
$44.18 at Amazon
$79.99 at Greater Goods
Warranty
90 days
Estimated Delivery
Tuesday, Feb 3 - Thursday, Feb 5
Will this run Crysis?
@yakkoTDI The pixel count on the display seems a bit low.
@yakkoTDI No, but it will probably run Doom because … everything runs Doom.
I have the dubious privilege of getting my blood pressure checked for free when I donate blood (actually platelets) so if you want your blood pressure checked by a real medical professional, check out a blood drive. Your local Red Cross might be a good source of them. (some restrictions apply)
Having said that, getting your blood pressure checked regularly is a good idea and hopefully this device is accurate enough to help.
What’s that pounding in my ears?
This deal got my heart rate up. Be still, my beating heart!
@phendrick not too still, we hope.
@mehvid1 @phendrick Finally, something that LISTENS …
/showme Anthropomorphized Greater Goods Pro-Series Smart Blood Pressure Monitor that is sitting in chair and taking notes and listening thoughtfully to your heart that is lying on couch and talking about its love and dread of donuts.
@cfg83 Here’s the image you requested for “Anthropomorphized Greater Goods Pro-Series Smart Blood Pressure Monitor that is sitting in chair …”
@mediocrebot Notice the body language? The blood pressure monitor is smiling but also put off by your heart. Take heed!
I’ll buy this in a heart beat & i wanna use my January free shipping benefit!
Nifty. But we already have at least three working blood pressure meters, so I think I’ll most likely pass. (But in the morning, I’ll make sure that all the old ones still work.)
@werehatrack “work”(?) but are they ACCURATE (still?) $20 is cheap assurance for a NEW one.
I have two myself that are years and years old.
@JohnQ118 Mine agree with each other, and the readings are within the range seen during office visits, so they’re certainly working well enough. It’s not like the exact same numbers are going to come up two tests in a row, anyway. Exact accuracy in something doing an indirect and imprecise evaluation of a biological element is a fantasy. That said, if mine ever reads >175/110 after a second attempt with a different meter, I’m headed for the ER. (More typically, it’s 115/65.)
/showme flitting-photogenic-calcium
@ikilledkenny3 Here’s the image you requested for “flitting-photogenic-calcium”
Bought one of these from Morningsave () for the same price over a week ago. Seems fine (based on the listing) especially for the price; mine hasn’t arrived yet, however, so I can’t tell you how it is in person!
@Atomizer Did you remember your VMP 10% coupon? I always forget.
Or is that just for SideDeal?
@Atomizer @therealjrn unless the particular item is excluded, VMP has worked for me on MorningSave, SideDeal, and CaseMates.
@Atomizer @phendrick I really need to start rembering. 🎗
@therealjrn I always try it, but it doesn’t work for all items; in this case, it didn’t (and the sale’s still active, you can try it yourself.)
I can’t find any clear info on whether the Android version of the app syncs with Health Connect. Does anyone know?
@phaedrusnyc Yes it does. I downloaded it and have used it.
Okay, ok. I’ll bite your sucker-bait… enough already…
Blood pressure is an important health marker. You should have one of these, or one like it. I bought one and may buy a couple more as sexy gifts.
Don’t forget Valentines Day is coming up @tommytoad0!
@therealjrn @tommytoad0
“Here, for you. And let’s see if we can get those numbers up…”
Can anyone that owns this comment on its accuracy? Will it work without batteries, solely plugged in?
Yes. It will work just plugged in.
I don’t own this particular machine but in general these inexpensive home machines are accurate enough for monitoring trends. If you really want to test one, take it with you to your next doctor visit and compare the result to theirs.
@therealjrn @werekong I do do this also! I am very lucky in that I get my blood pressure monitored every 20 minutes during my 3 hour dialysis sessions three times a week. You all should sign up, it’s fun!
Bloody good deal…
Can I use HSA to pay for this?
Random interweb Answer:
HSA Eligibility for Blood Pressure Machines
General Guidelines
Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) allow you to use pre-tax dollars for eligible medical expenses. To qualify, the item must primarily serve a medical purpose.
Blood Pressure Machines
Eligible Purchases: You can use HSA funds to purchase a blood pressure monitor, such as the QardioArm Wireless Blood Pressure Monitor, as it is considered a medical device.
Letter of Medical Necessity: If you want to purchase a device like the QardioBase Smart Scale, which is not automatically eligible, you may need a Letter of Medical Necessity (LMN) from your doctor. This letter should explain how the device relates to a specific medical condition.
Using your HSA for a blood pressure machine can help manage your health costs effectively. Always check with your HSA provider for the most current eligibility rules.
@browncj7 @therealjrn ooh, a stand-in for @GarbageAI? (Who seems to have been on a virtual vacation for a week or more.)
@browncj7 @GarbageAI @phendrick Yeah, conspicuously absent!
The DuckDuckGo browser now offers A.I. answers, just a button push away!
HSA hint –
Try not to use your HSA for as long as possible. Just keep saving into it and if possible, pay for all of your medical bills through your personal savings account.
A friend did this. His roof needed replacing.
So he turned in all of his receipts from the last 5-6 years and got his HSA check and used it to pay for his roof.
There’s no expiration on submitting receipts.
@threadstone That’s a great hint!
@threadstone You are right about not using the HSA, and you certainly mention one benefit, but here’s what few people know.
HSAs are often set up for retirement. When you make contributions, you can invest those contributions within the HSA like you would in a retirement account. So the funds go in tax-free, grow tax-free, and if you use them for qualified medical, dental, vision, and hearing expenses, they come out tax free.
Ideally, keep the money in your HSA (and it will continue to grow) until post retirement. You can then pull out the funds for any purpose, though you will pay ordinary income taxes on it, but better still, you can pay long-term care insurance premiums or Medicare premiums. These are just a few possibilities.
HSA’s are powerful financial tools. I’m not a tax advisor, so always consult with your tax person first.
@toggyboft I assume everyone knows this.
Likely a bad assumption.
@threadstone Likely
Why should I buy this if I bought the smartwatch yesterday? Just kidding, not really.
@threadstone the smartwatch doesn’t measure blood pressure and this does, assuming you want to know your blood pressure.
How large is the cuff? I’m a pretty big guy with large arms, and I can’t find that info anywhere on this page, the manufacturer page or the amazon page.
@bigpolar
@troy Do you have one handy that you can measure?
@bigpolar
@bigpolar If you are too big, then you may need to buy a larger cuff separately.
@bigpolar @cfg83 Buying a larger cuff is difficult unless you have a name brand unit whose manufacturer supplies one. The connections for the hoses are not standardized.
@bigpolar CORRECTION. The cuff may more custom to the gizmo. I don’t know if there are different size cuffs for these.
@bigpolar Fifth bullet under the expanded Product Details description over at Amazon:
Will the cuff fit you? Please measure the circumference of your bicep before making this purchase - Our universal Cuff band diameter is 8.75-16.5 in, 22-42cm that when inflated constricts to arms [sic] 7.75-15.5 in. Please note: The fit will affect the accuracy of this product.
Is this exempt from state sales tax?
@werekong I got charged my usual sales tax for my location in Texas.
I just noticed the cuff. Very time tunnel/stargate-ee
(I could have done better, but I am feeling tired right now. Must be low BP)
As luck would have it I do own the Omron Platinum BP5450 and can confirm it’s great.
Oh, I should have read further into the description… ah well.
/giphy rocking-gallant-winter
/giphy corny-outgoing-business
/showme corny-outgoing-business
The /showme command is a member feature. Join membership to try it out.
@EnTerr I gotchu
/showme corny-outgoing-business
@therealjrn Here’s the image you requested for “corny-outgoing-business”
I received mine today. I don’t have huge arms. But at the Dr office they use the large cuff. This cuff has lots of room left when I wear it.
I used it once so far. The app setup (Android) is simple. And so is the Bluetooth pairing.
I’m glad I got this device. It is easier than the wrist cuffs. And the phone app is a real bonus. It will be so much easier to show the doctor the history. I used to keep a spreadsheet.