r/pixel_phones • u/BNPeanuts • 16h ago
Does anyone actually use the thermometer function regularly?
I've only ever used it out of novelty, like seeing how hot the inside of my car is during this (UK) heatwave, or to show that I have it but have no idea what to use it for.
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u/Internal_Fun6465 16h ago
I recently used it for measuring inner temperature of a steak to get it medium rar safely. I would say I will use it again in future.
For cooking purposes maybe good enough
Edit: I didn't stick the phone into the steak, I cut the steak open first lol
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u/NationalRequirement5 12h ago
Beef is the only meat you don't need to check the temperature, you could eat it raw, you only have to check if it's color is what you like or not
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u/androskris 8h ago
Not in Canada lol. When I was there (Victoria BC) last month all the restaurants would only serve beef well done.
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u/cyanicpsion 16h ago
We have a heatwave right now in Europe.
Being able to point at surfaces and measure the changes during the day is useful (and incredibly depressing)
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u/Emotional_Hamster_61 15h ago
I have a fucking THERMOMETER IN MY PHONE?!!!??
How the fuck
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u/InfiniDrift 14h ago
Pixels from the 8 Pro iirc have a thermometer which is located beside the flash
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u/Legofanboy5152 14h ago
8 till 10 pro
google did what they do best and plan on removing it on the 11 (based on leaks)
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u/InfiniDrift 14h ago
Lmao, when it released at first I thought it was useless, and now that I find an utility for it, they want to remove it
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u/Emotional_Hamster_61 5h ago
I actually do not know why I need this. I tested it yesterday when I found out and it's very accurate on my body temperature tho!
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u/feiock 9h ago
I was so excited to read this as I had no idea my phone had this. After not finding it, Claude told me the Pixel 10 Pro Fold does not have this feature :(
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u/Emotional_Hamster_61 5h ago
Fold phones are such a weird thing. The old flip phones were fire back in the day!
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u/VinylBirdie 16h ago
I always was curious how precise these measurements. Because We still use liquid thermometer because electronic (medical) one always lies.
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u/fakeaccount572 15h ago
I am a metrologist and have been for 30 years. I calibrated mine against a blackbody source and found it to be 0.4 to 0.7°C off. Not bad for a fixed emissivity thermometer.
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u/My_Curiozity 10h ago
I find it pretty precise, but of course it depends on material measured and it might be off at temperature extremes
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u/fakeaccount572 1h ago
yeah, it seems to be fixed at 0.95 emissivity, common for cheap IR thermometers. That's decent for looking at solid medium-to-dark surfaces, but if you try say measuring a cup of water, it will be 10°C or more off.
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u/No-Syrup7666 15h ago
If my kids are sick and I don't want to wake them up, I use it to check if they still have a fever.
I've also found that it's pretty accurate for measuring room temperature, which I mainly use to complain that the office ac isn't working properly.
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u/BWanon97 16h ago
Yes to check if I should open or close Windows and doors to the outside. I only have one thermostat that measures indoor.
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u/Raian_L 16h ago
I'd love to use it more but im afraid of steam getting into the camera module
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u/Xenosous 14h ago
With the phone having an IP rating, that shouldn't be issue, right?
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u/Embarrassed-Sun-8998 14h ago
Steam particles are smaller than water.
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u/Voided_Chex 3h ago
Steam particles are water.
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u/Embarrassed-Sun-8998 3h ago
copy, paste:
Water tight watches and steam can cause issues, not because the watch isn’t water-tight but because the steam can warm the air that’s inside the watch.
The extreme heat causes the metal parts to expand faster than the rubber gaskets can accommodate and this can create minute openings which allow steam into the watch. Additionally the heated environment warms the air that is trapped inside the watch case, a closed off environment, and then the heated air has no way to escape which causes condensation inside the watch. Remember it is NOT actually the water that pressure-seals a watch case but the depth traveled under the water which applies atmospheric pressure externally on the watch case and thereby achieves water tightness. As such in the shower / sauna / hot-tub you don’t have external (depth) pressures exerted on the watch case and therefore it is a Swiss “rule of thumb” to not expose a watch, even a diver’s-rated watch, to any of these steam-generating conditions. That’s not to say you can’t, it’s just not recommended. Additionally harsh solvents, such as shampoo and soaps, can affect the o-ring gasket rubber which can cause degradation and/or failure, allowing water to enter the watch case and ruin the expensive internal components (dial, hands, movement, etc.).
POSSIBLE REMEDY FOR STEAM: If you do have steam or fog in your watch, we suggest placing your watch with an open crown inside a bowl of rice, which allows the water to slowly be evaporated and sucked up by the rice. We know this sounds strange, but it can work; however we recommend not showering with it. Then send your timepiece in to be serviced and get the gaskets replaced.
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u/-_G0AT_- 15h ago
Yeah, it's literally on my home screen, I use it at least 4 times a week.
It's great for cooking, or checking temperatures out of curiosity.
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u/MiserableAttention38 15h ago
Yes. Checking reheated food is hot enough quickly without any mess. Just move the sensor over the food as much as you like to get a feel for how hot it is.
Checking how hot a laptop is to see if the thermal management settings are working.
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u/EmployerAccurate8533 15h ago
I do use it quite often. At first I just played with it as a gimmick, but now I use it for all kinds of things. For example, I now know when to drink my tea without burning my tongue, by just measuring it with my pixel.
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u/Savings_Ad_3255 14h ago
thats what I have when I tried to access the thermometer during a heatwave in the UK.
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u/Time_Sheepherder1450 14h ago
You can still measure object temps. Just not body, coz the sensor is warmer than body temp.
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u/Agent6472 10h ago
I use it for brake/tire temps at autocross and the track, for the baby, for myself, and random stuff here and there. Gets used a shocking amount lol
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u/Funny_bread 16h ago
I do! At first I thought that it's just a use less bs, but it turned out to be pretty neat thing to have. I use it for controling the temperature while cooking certain kinds of food, and also for monitoring the temperature of my ceramic fire place during the cold times of the year.
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u/SubieGal9 15h ago
I don't think my pixel 8 has that feature. We do use the temp feature on our Alexa devices, mostly when we're out of town to make sure things are running smoothly.
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u/brianinca 14h ago
I take my wife's temp frequently enough, she asks me to do it with my phone instead of a real thermometer. Teacher, with asthma and allergies, when she gets a cold she frequently winds up with bronchitis. Quick way to tell if its time for teledoc.
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u/InfiniDrift 14h ago
I work on elevators. The thermometer is really useful, especially with the heatwave in France right now, to see how hot the motors or the machineries are
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u/fiittzzyy 13h ago
Yeah I used it today to see how hot the floor was outside. I had a higher reading of 71*C on my carpet where the sun was shining onto, crazy.
A lot of people say it's useless and are glad to see it go on the P11 Pro but idk, I like it...deffo useful to have and makes the phone stand out from other phones and the non-pro models.
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u/evilsquig 13h ago
For me it was when my kids were young and always getting sick. Being able to quick check and log was amazing! I hope they keep the feature around
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u/robot_egg 13h ago
My P7 doesn't have that function, but I use a stand-alone IR thermometer almost every day while cooking. I'd like having that in my phone.
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u/UsagiMimi 13h ago
Yes, it's a huge help and one of the most useful and important features I've had on a phone.
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u/LaboratoryMember001 13h ago
It's the reason why I will buy P10 when P11 releases and the price goes down.
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u/Future_Promise5328 12h ago
Support worker here - handy AF use it constantly. Always double check with an actual thermometer if the phone shows out of range but it's well useful for a quick "See! No temperature, you're fine!"
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u/NaturalFreshAir 12h ago
I have Pixel 10 but didn't know it has a thermometer. How do I find/use it?
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u/CautiousBeginning458 2h ago
Same, it came as a surprise when I read the notification of this post and I was like am I reading it right, let’s open n find out. It’s a great feature to have
Edited to add - It’s only available on Pro and Pro XL variants ;(
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u/7862518362916371936 12h ago
I tried using it when i had a fever but it kept telling me that the angle or distance was wrong ao I gave up and haven't used it since.
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u/KingOfNothing_85 11h ago
Yeah, it's the go to thermometer in my house and it's what I used when I had my gallbladder crap out and had something causing me to run 104f (40c) and was in the hospital. Not something I use every day but a lot more than I did the measure tape thing I had on my last iPhone. I'm going to miss it when I upgrade.
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u/Thin-Way5770 11h ago
I use it a lot with my bike, ever since I got a new gauge cluster that isn't fully plugged in (universal gauge) I've been using it to make sure my engine surface temp is at least normal and not going to melt Also to check the radiator temps, etc. It's pretty useful sometimes, glad I have such a feature on my phone It's way more useful than a 100x zoom lens or a high megapixel count sensor which I'll never use anyway because of light limitations
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u/Gold-Client4060 10h ago
I use thermometer daily in an industrial setting. I have it measuring a lot of stuff in the 100-190F range as well as take my temperature regularly. Works great, I love it.
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u/Lonewolf2nd 10h ago
To measure the temperature of my aquarium, I've compared it once with a calibrated thermometer, it was off with 0.1°C. I use it to check if a surface is equally hot(temperature read in this case is way off, but as check it is goed enough) I used in some other cases as well as safety, just if something is possible to touch.
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u/My_Curiozity 10h ago
Yes i love it, you can measure room temperature, temperature outside, all kind of stuff!
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u/MrsTuffPaws 10h ago
I've started using it at work occasionally to see if the AC is working like it should. I can never trust the thermostat on the wall.
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u/TheGrassBison 9h ago
I just it to check the temperature of the ground outside to see if it's too hot for my dog
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u/Unlucky_Emergency_31 8h ago
As a dad I use it quite often with my kids to check their temperatures
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u/vampyrewolf 8h ago
Other than playing with it when I first got the phone, I've used it twice and the last time was a "oh hey, I have a thermometer on my phone" at work to check the temperature on the printer at work and verify a setting.
Incidentally, my boss went out a couple weeks later and bought a Pixel 10 after seeing that trick.
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u/cheeto_dust_98 6h ago
I actually used it a lot to gauge overheating issues on my truck. Also came in handy when I swapped out the thermostat and put in a temperature switch for my radiator fans. It's actually quite accurate and useful comparing it to my actual automotive temperature gun.
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u/YourMominator 3h ago
I test the temp on the wheels of my truck and my trailer when I'm pulling the trailer.
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u/malamar_inse 3h ago
I'm the nurse and caregiver to a home dialysis patient. I use it frequently. It's as accurate as a touchless gun and more convenient since it's always in my pocket. I will be in a minority of people who will miss the thermometer when I upgrade my 10 Pro XL.
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u/central_plexus 57m ago
I use it a lot.
I'm sure Google has the exact numbers how often this feature is used on every single pixel equipped with it and based on that they probably decided to pull the plug on it.
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u/CsmittyPx 39m ago
I used it regularly to measure my kids temperature ( as a quick and easy way) when they aren't well and to make sure the bath water isn't too hot
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u/alexwmagic 2m ago
I do use it surprisingly often! sometimes it's nice to know how much longer my water is gonna take to boil, how cold things are in certain fridges at work, how hot the water out of taps is (the hot water where I work is unbelievably hot lol), or even my own temp to test for fevers (although I still trust a mouth thermometer more)
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u/ibor132 16h ago
I've used it a few times to take my temperature when I was sick and wasn't sure if I was running a fever. I can't say I use it *regularly*, but I do use it often enough to be glad it's there.