Blood Pressure Monitors

In addition to the well-known blood pressure measuring devices for the upper arm or the wrist, there are some measuring devices integrated into a wristwatch. These watches have a measuring cuff built into the strap, which inflates for measurement just like conventional devices. Thanks to this cuff, the blood pressure can be determined using the traditional oscillometric measurement principle. Each watch comes with an app provided by the manufacturer, without which these devices cannot be used or can only be used very limited.

Due to their design and measurement method, blood pressure monitors differ in every respect from smartwatches or fitness bands, which are sometimes advertised with the capability to measure blood pressure. Blood pressure monitors work - as mentioned above - with a long-known and proven measurement method. They use an inflatable cuff that temporarily interrupts blood flow in the underlying blood vessel. The blood pressure values are determined by the vibrations that occur in the blood vessel. This oscillometric method of blood pressure determination is used in almost all available blood pressure measuring devices for the wrist or upper arm.

Omron Heartguide and Medisana BPW 300 unpacked

The method that is supposed to measure blood pressure in smartwatches and fitness bands is, on the other hand, completely new. It relies on pulse wave transit time and is, at the current state of technology, not accurate enough to provide real measurement results. Often, the descriptions of the corresponding devices explicitly state that the measurement is not validated for medical purposes. Therefore, this measurement method currently does not have sufficient reliability, especially for people with high blood pressure.

While blood pressure monitors are indeed a niche product, we have taken a closer look at two of the currently available models.

Omron HeartGuide

Omron has been offering the Omron HeartGuide since the end of 2019, a wristwatch with an integrated blood pressure measuring device. The limited watch is currently only available for purchase directly from Omron.

In the elegantly designed packaging, alongside the watch itself, there is the charging cable and the user manuals, which are included as double-sided leaflets in several languages. Additionally, there is also a double-sided illustrated guide included in the package.

The HeartGuide impresses at first glance with its modern look and round shape. However, upon removal, a first criticism becomes apparent: The watch weighs a hefty 120 g, which is significantly more than the average smartwatch. Each blood pressure measurement thus becomes a mini workout. The diameter of the watch is 48 mm with a case thickness of 14 mm, and the strap width is 30 mm, making the device more suitable for a robust wrist. This is supported by the specification in the user manual regarding the wrist circumferences for which it is suitable: between 16 and 19 cm. Therefore, the user's wrist should neither be particularly delicate nor particularly strong.

The strap of the watch is made of relatively unstable rubber. Beneath it is the pre-shaped blood pressure cuff. Very practical is that the cover of the measuring cuff can be removed for cleaning.

Putting on the HeartGuide is relatively difficult despite the pre-shaped cuff, as the strap above it is very flexible and tends to slip off. Additionally, the longer part of the cuff should slide somewhat under the shorter part when putting it on, so that both parts overlap slightly. This is also difficult to accomplish alone.

To use the watch, the manufacturers app Omron Heart Adviser is necessary. Without an initial pairing with this app, no measurements can be taken. Once paired, measurements can also be started without the app. Unfortunately, the connection did not work with all mobile devices in our test. Additionally, registration with Omron is required to use the app.

Unfortunately, the measurement with this watch does not simply go unnoticed in the background. The measurement position with the watch at heart level must be exact, as well as the body posture; otherwise, there are often measurement errors or the measurement does not start. Since the display is directed away from the body in the correct arm position, it is unfortunately hardly possible to check whether the measurement position is correct and whether the measurement starts. After a few measurements, however, one generally gets the hang of it, and the measurements work flawlessly. They are also relatively comfortable, as measurements are taken already during the inflation of the cuff. However, taking the correct posture for measurement in public often leads to questioning looks, as it appears somewhat unnatural.

In our test, the measured values sometimes deviated significantly from the comparison measurements with a blood pressure monitor. Unfortunately, we could not identify the source of error, as the measurements were taken under the same conditions.

The watch offers 100 memory slots for one user in its internal memory. Thus, a transfer to the manufacturers app can also occur only from time to time. However, saved measurements cannot be removed from the memory. This is important to know if you lend the watch to another person so they can check their blood pressure once. The value of the other person will inevitably appear in your own history and distort it.

The battery life is stated to be 48 hours with ten measurements daily. In our test, we conducted slightly fewer measurements. After two days, there was still sufficient battery life left. Assuming a charging break every two days, the watch can indeed be used continuously.

The Omron HeartGuide offers additional functions such as a pedometer, sleep monitoring, or notifications, which brings it a bit closer to a smartwatch. However, the latter are hardly noticeable and can only be activated to a limited extent. The pedometer counted significantly fewer steps than the smartwatch comparison model. Sleep monitoring would be a nice feature, especially in connection with blood pressure. However, the size and weight of the watch make it very uncomfortable to wear at night.

Thus, the HeartGuide is certainly suitable for measuring blood pressure in everyday life. However, it is unfortunately not completely inconspicuous with this device either. It remains questionable how meaningful blood pressure measurements taken in between without sufficient rest are. The additional functions are nice, but they fall short of the functionality of cheaper smartwatches.

With a price of 549.00 euros, the Omron HeartGuide is not only the most functionally extensive but also the most expensive blood pressure monitor known to us.

Medisana BPW 300

The Medisana BPW 300 is another wristwatch with an integrated blood pressure measuring cuff in the strap.

Upon opening the packaging, the size of the watch is immediately noticeable. The square case measures a proud 4 cm x 4.6 cm and is 1.5 cm thick. The strap must provide sufficient space for the internal cuff and is therefore also quite wide at 2.7 cm. The watch is suitable for wrist circumferences between 13.5 and 21.5 cm. The weight is slightly above that of a larger smartwatch at 65 g.

Putting it on is also difficult with an average wrist circumference. The integrated cuff is located in the longer part of the strap - that is, where the holes for fastening are also found. When putting it on, a part of the cuff must now slide under the other part of the strap - the one with the buckle. This is really difficult to accomplish alone and requires a considerable amount of dexterity.

The E-Ink display corresponds to the size of a wristwatch. The numbers are shown in white on a black background. Unfortunately, the brightness of the digits is rather low, making it not very easy to read in the dark. However, the digit size is sufficient to read the numbers well in good lighting conditions. An exception is the display of the day of the week and date, which is shown small at the top of the display. You have to look closely to recognize it. When the display changes, for example, before a measurement or when retrieving the memory, the screen blinks and then briefly goes black before the new display is visible. It requires a moment of patience - the watch is not defective!

On the side of the watch, there are two buttons. One starts (and possibly stops) the measurement, and the other is used to retrieve the last measured value. This then shows the last measured pulse, the systolic and diastolic blood pressure values, but without indicating the date and time.

The measurement can be started using the mentioned button. In the accompanying VitaDock+ app from the manufacturer, an automatic measurement interval can also be set. More on this below.

When a measurement is started, the screen blinks first, and then a message in English appears indicating the correct measurement position. After another blink of the display, the measurement starts - without checking whether the measurement position has been correctly assumed. Therefore, measurements in incorrect arm positions are also possible. If the watch detects an error (for example, movement during the measurement), an English error message appears on the display, which is not always understandable. Among other things, the message "Measuring inappropriate" appeared, which translates to "Measurement inappropriate." Unfortunately, it cannot be determined from this whether the measurement was faulty, whether the blood pressure might be outside the measurement range, or whether there is another problem.

The measurement itself is relatively pleasant, as measurements are already taken during the inflation of the cuff. After the measurement ends, the display blinks again - this time twice in a row. Then the measurement values are displayed. The values can then be transferred to the manufacturers app.

Unfortunately, it remained unclear to us whether automatic synchronization of the watch, referred to in the app as "Sugarwatch," is possible. We were asked every time we opened the app whether the watch should be synchronized. The synchronization takes a few seconds even without new measurements being transferred. Without synchronization, the previously existing data in the app remained grayed out.

We could only choose the automatic measurement interval during the initial setup of the watch. Unfortunately, this setting could not be found in the app afterwards. Another tester was able to make the setting afterwards. There may be differences depending on which smartphone the app is operated on.

In addition to the blood pressure monitor, other Medisana devices can be connected to the app.

The battery life is very positively rated, as it can be charged using the included USB cable (without power adapter). The five days of battery life stated by the manufacturer with two measurements daily were easily exceeded. Even after six days, the battery of our watch still showed two out of four bars. It was only empty after nine days. However, we did not measure daily anymore.

The user manual or manuals are included with the watch as leaflets in several languages. Overall, the description of the operation is rather meager. However, some images illustrate the operation of the device. Unfortunately, there is no further information on how to use the app beyond the initial connection of the watch.

Overall, the BPW 300 blood pressure monitor is a very large wristwatch in retro design that corresponds to the specified basic function. The measurement accuracy specified by the manufacturer is good. However, this can only be achieved if the watch is used correctly, meaning in the proper measurement position. It should be noted that a quick blood pressure measurement, as possible with the device, cannot yield resting values. A comparison with the values normally measured at home while sitting and in true rest is difficult. We would kindly describe the function of the manufacturer's associated app as something that takes getting used to.

In terms of price, the Medisana BPW 300 blood pressure monitor is significantly above the usual blood pressure monitors at 349.95 euros.

Newgen Medical BPW-100

Pearl also offers a wristwatch with an integrated blood pressure cuff. We have also researched this watch:

Both visually and in terms of the specified technical data and functions, the watch resembles the Medisana watch like two peas in a pod. The only difference is that the case color is black instead of silver. However, the associated app did not connect with the Medisana watch for us. We could not determine whether this indicates a difference between the two watches or if the Pearl watch's app simply has issues. The few reviews for the watch and app are devastating, which is why we opted out of a personal test. We suspect that Medisana took the same watch as Pearl and integrated it into their own app. The Pearl watch has been on the market since 2019. While it is significantly cheaper than the offerings from Omron and Medisana, it still costs nearly 200.00 euros, which is relatively high.

In the meantime, there are also such blood pressure watches without medical product approval, such as the KU5 Pro from Kumi. No medically usable measurement results are to be expected here.

Hybrid: Huawei Watch D

Huawei presents the Huawei Watch D, a real smartwatch that also offers blood pressure measurement with an integrated cuff. Since it is a real smartwatch, it far surpasses all other devices mentioned here in terms of functionality. This watch is not cheap, with a selling price of around 400 euros, but it certainly offers the best price/performance ratio here. (Photo: Huawei)

Update September 2024: The Huawei Watch D2 is now available. According to media reports, which also tested the blood pressure measurement, it is unfortunately not very accurate. A specialist magazine reports generally high measurement values, while another reports high systolic and low diastolic measurement values.

Kardena CARE Air and Kardena CARE Air 2

The German manufacturer Kardena offers watches with "Air" in the name, which stands for the micro airbag for blood pressure measurement. The watches are marketed as health watches, but they do not have approval as a medical product. The Kardena Care Air 2 was released in January 2024.

Sources:

By Horst Klier. This article is medically reviewed. Last updated by Horst Klier (09/2024).
Information on the website and within the app cannot replace a consultation with a doctor, but can certainly complement it.

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