COVID Tests via Smartphones: Researchers Say It’s Cheaper than PCR Tests—But is it Accurate?

COVID-19 tests via smartphones developed by scientists from the University of California are cheaper than PCR tests.

COVID Tests via Smartphones

According to a news story by Gizmodo, there is a new COVID-19 testing system in town that would need your smartphone, along with some lab equipment, which touts itself to be an alternative for the more expensive PCR tests.

Scientists from the University of California in Santa Barbara developed the new COVID-19 testing system that involves a smartphone in the process.

Aside from its intriguing inclusion of a smartphone to get the COVID-19 test result, it also comes at a cheaper price, according to the published paper of its researchers on the JAMA Network Open.

smaRT-LAMP COVID Smartphone Test

The new COVID-19 testing system, which uses smartphones to get results, goes by the name "smaRT-LAMP."

However, it is worth noting that the new system does not exclusively use a smartphone, a few basic pieces of equipment still come into play.

But the camera of your mobile device and an app installed on it plays an important role in this COVID test.

The users of smaRT-LAMP are required to install an app called Bacticount on their mobile devices. Not to mention that it could only work if your smartphone has a working camera.

So, if you're settling with a phone that still fails to sport a snapper or has a broken camera, you'll need to buy a new one to use this COVID test system.

But, if you are on a budget, getting a brand new smartphone might make it more expensive than getting a PCR-Test instead. However, you could use your smartphone for all sorts of things like gaming, taking photos, and endlessly scrolling on social media apps.

Smartphone COVID Test: How it Works

The Bacticount app needs access to a smartphone camera as it uses the built-in lens to detect any pathogens from the saliva of a person.

According to a report by the The Guardian, the system additionally needs a small hot plate, a cardboard box, and an LED light.

The saliva specifically needs to be loaded on the hot plate, wherein a reactive solution would be added after to show any viral RNA. The whole process is dubbed as LAMP or Loop-medical Isothermal Amplification.

It would then be covered up by the cardboard, and at the same time, the LED light should be placed on top of it.

That's when the smartphone's camera comes in, wherein it captures the top of the box to detect any color reactions, which suggests that the person is positive.

The Guardian further noted in the same report that the researchers tested 50 patients using the smartphone test, and it matched the PCR test sensitivity.

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Teejay Boris