Ondo - Thermometer 4+

Disappointing

App is buggy ... doesn’t always see the headset and has to be restarted periodically. And the readings are inaccurate. I mean way off like 15 degrees. Great concept but right now it’s a toy. Maybe an updated version will be better.

Developer Response ,

Hi Mike2567,
We really appreciate your very constructive feedback. We are still working hard on trying to improve Ondo. We will look into the problem with the headset recognition that you have experienced.
I am surprised to hear about the accuracy problem that you have found. In our very extensive testing we have found that it should be accurate to within one or two degrees. It does require that the positioning of the earpiece and the microphone is very stable - even a tiny movement will cause quite a big temperature change.
We are currently working on a version that will utilise the iPhone onboard speaker and microphone which will hopefully be more robust and considerably more convenient!
Thanks again for taking the trouble to let us know your experience.
Best regards,
Simon

Disappointed even mediocre expectation

I really hoped to have found something that would have SOME degree of reliability. I set it up EXACTLY as described/pictured. Then experimented with various distances between the mic and ear bud-(ironically it appeared to hold more accuracy when the two were closer as opposed to further apart, which I thought given the sound wave methodology would have been just the opposite). I found that if I didn’t move anything after calibration it would hold +-2 degrees F. for a good bit. But then if I moved anything, particularly the card with earbud setup the only way to get any accuracy was to recalibrate. So if I have a thermometer close enough to use for calibration, and can only get semi-accurate readings after moving anywhere by recalibrating it doesn’t do a whole lot of good...all I have to do is look at the calibration thermometer. I have to say I really had high hopes as there isn’t anything I’ve found that will accurately measure ambient room temperature. Hard to understand because you know there are built in safety mechanisms to shut things down if it starts to overheat. I’ll consider my purchase a donation to your research project, that way I won’t feel cheated $$wise, but I hope you’ll notify me if you do come up with something that actually works in realistic conditions.

Developer Response ,

Hi Skykevver,
Many thanks for your detailed feedback. Firstly can I apologise for the frustrating time you seem to have had experimenting with Ondo. Can I try and respond to your comments:
- You are quite correct that in theory the longer the distance that the sound has to travel between the speaker and microphone then the greater the timing change for a given temperature change. However we have had to keep the distance very small to minimise disruption (noise) to the signal as we are using high frequencies which are at the limits of the hardware capability.
-This does mean that a very small movement of the microphone or speaker will make quite a big change in the temperature reading (this is perhaps what you are experiencing when you the card). While the elastic bands provide a relatively easy way to hold the ear piece and microphone, they are not really as secure as they should be. You may not want to do this with your own headset but we have found that adding some plasticine or blu-tack holds them much more securely (on our test parts we actually stick them down with super glue but I'm sure you would not want to do that). I am still hunting for somebody to create a 3-d printing design that could double as a holder for the headset and also for Ondo.
I really do appreciate your feedback as we have put a great deal of time into developing this product and know that it is still a long way from the convenient phone thermometer that we planned. We are still working hard to try and make Ondo work with the onboard phone hardware and will of course (if we ever get there) let you know via a free upgrade on the appstore.
Thanks for your interest in Ondo (and contribution to our research budget).
Simon

OK, I appreciate the effort put into it.

Calibrated just like they said. It worked good. Only thing I don’t like is you have to have the headphones attached all the time to get the temperature. Maybe there will come a time when you don’t have to attach headphones. I appreciate the effort they went to to get this app it it was well worth the 199 to support them.