Withings Smart Blood Pressure Monitor review

Withings is best known for its wireless weighing scale but the smart blood pressure monitor is much more specialised. To use it you’ll need an iOS device.

The devices consists of a Velcro-fitted cuff that fits around the arm, a fairly heavy battery pack and a cable. To use the device you will need to download the free Withings app from Apple’s App Store. When the cuff is plugged in, the app prompts the user to run a test. The cuff inflates and deflates automatically, and records the wearer’s blood pressure and heart rate. These are displayed on the screen but, if you sign up for a free Withings account, they will be recorded online automatically. The readings can then be viewed on the web and graphed to show trends (including differentiating between morning and night readings, which can be important).

You can get the app to put together an email for your GP with your latest readings. If you have a Withings scale you can see weight trends alongside blood pressure trends.

The app and cuff worked well in our tests, and we found them easy to use. The cuff became very tight when active – painfully so – but in our experience this is normal with such devices. The website was a little slow but it also worked well.

We also asked two GPs to test the device. They agreed that, while it wasn’t as accurate as a hospital-grade model, it was good enough for home use and it’s certainly a useful device for keeping a regular eye on any trends in your blood pressure.

The main downside of the Withings Smart Blood Pressure Monitor is its price (£120). It is great to be able to easily measure your blood pressure at home, and do all sorts of clever things with the results, but a less flashy digital blood pressure monitor costs only £20 from Amazon. For most people, that will be much better value.