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Use your smartwatch to stay safe from coronavirus germs
Find it difficult to keep up with all the health guidelines hurled around these days? With COVID-19 information coming at you from all sides, it’s downright impossible to remember every tidbit on how you can protect yourself and your loved ones.
Even the obvious health guidelines like social distancing, keep your hands away from your face and wash your hands have all become white noise and unpracticed. Tap or click to learn the three proven coronavirus prevention tips you can trust.
If you’re having a hard time remembering all of the dos and don’ts and find yourself not being as diligent as you should, here are ways your smartwatch can help keep you safe from coronavirus germs.
Wear OS (Google smartwatches) has a new wash-your-hands reminder
Do you often forget to wash your hands? Miss the constant pestering of your attentive mother?
If you wear a Google smartwatch, you’re in luck. Thanks to a feature in Google’s 5.4.0 update for Wear OS, you won’t have any problem remembering to wash your hands. At least every three hours, because that’s how often your smartwatch will alert you.
Part of Google’s clock app, the new feature will also set a 40-second timer to ensure you wash your hands well — CDC recommends a minimum of 20 seconds.
To manually access the timer through a shortcut in the app drawer, click on the timer and the watch will display a three-second countdown then launch the full 40-second timer. Tap or click to see how Apple and Google plan to track COVID-19 through phones.
If you don’t see the app or don’t have automatic updates set up on your watch, you will want to check to see if the 5.4.0 version is available for your device. To check for updates, follow these few steps:
- Wake up your watch
- Press the power button to open your list of apps
- Tap Settings >> System >> About
- Scroll down and tap System Updates
You will either see that your watch is up-to-date or an update is available. If the latter displays, your watch will begin to download the latest OS version.
Fitbit’s new COVID-19 resource hub
Fitbit is looking to help you stay healthy and connected during the pandemic with its COVID-19 Resource Hub, a new feature in the Fitbit app.
You can search the latest information about COVID-19, book a virtual doctor’s visit with the PlushCare team, or help support COVID-19 related health research by sharing your wearable data.
Fitbit is currently offering a 90-day free trial of its Premium subscription, which will typically cost you $9.99 a month or $79.99 a year. In addition to 40 plus premium workouts, you can find these tools:
- Sleep tracks
- Meditations
- Nutrition tips
- Clean Cues clock face (reminder and timer for washing your hands)
To access the feature, tap on the Health symbol in the bottom left corner of the app. The COVID-19 resource tab is currently available in 16 countries and requires the language setting on your wearable be set to English.
RELATED: DIY face mask can help protect from coronavirus
If you are looking for ways to help you avoid getting sick, any one of these features will make it easier to keep you safe from coronavirus germs. Practice social distancing, keep washing your hands, wear a cloth face mask in public and we’ll make it through this together.
Tags: Apple, face mask, Fitbit, Google, smartwatch, social distancing
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