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Smart Stick: Reading errors on iPhone

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Joe Langlee

Although Kinsa has discontinued the Kinsa Smart Stick, we will do our best to you get your Smart Stick working as it should.  If you see an error when taking readings, this article can help.  Below we've shared some troubleshooting steps below for iPhones with a headphone jack and those that don't have headphones.  Be sure to follow the guide for your phone type!

For iPhones without a headphone jack 

Now that most iPhones no longer have a headphone jack if you see an error, you may just need to set up your thermometer and phone in a particular order to fix the issue.  Please make sure you are connecting all the necessary pieces in this EXACT order before continuing on with the steps below.

If the problem persists, follow the steps below:

Audio Settings

Now that everything is clean and connected, let’s check some of your smartphone's audio settings as these can cause setup and temperature reading issues as well.

NOTE: We will be calibrating / setting up the thermometer after checking these settings. If setup was completed once before, don’t worry. Calibrating the thermometer a second time can only help with temperature reading accuracy.

  1. Open your iOS Settings.
  2. Scroll down and tap on Music.
  3. If “EQ” is set to “Late Night”, tap on it and switch it to anything else. You can change this back after the Kinsa setup.
  4. Go back to Music. If “Volume Limit” shows that it is “On”, tap on it and drag the slider as far to the right as it will go. This will turn it to “Off”. You can also change this back after the Kinsa setup.
  5. Go back to Settings, and then navigate to General > Accessibility.
  6. Scroll down to “Mono Audio”. If turned on, switch it to off.
  7. Next scroll to the audio volume balance slider (or tap “Audio Balance” to access it).
  8. Move the audio balance slider to the far left and release it.
  9. Move the slider back to center. It should snap into place once you're close enough. Make sure the slider is completely centered. If it is even slightly off like the first image below you’ll need to try again. The second image is centered.

NOTE: In order for Kinsa to work each time you take a temperature reading:

  • “Mono Audio” needs to be off
  • The audio balance needs to be centered

Update the Kinsa App

Next, let’s update the app in case it is an older version (skip these steps if you just installed the app).

  1. On your phone, go the App Store.
  2. Tap on “Updates” (lower right).
  3. Scroll down to “Kinsa” (if shown) and accept the update if available.

Reboot Smartphone

Finally, we recommend rebooting or restarting your smartphone to clear out any junk settings or glitches that may be causing trouble. 

Now try to take a reading, but remember:

  • Avoid eating or drinking any liquids, exercising, taking showers or baths, or smoking for 15 minutes prior to use, as these activities can cause mild elevations in temperature.
  • Try to keep the thermometer still while you take a temperature.
  • Don’t change the phone volume.
  • Wait about 30 seconds between readings. Kinsa takes its best readings from room temperature, so back-to-back readings can confuse it.

If you still receive an error during a reading let us know right away.  Use the pink ? below to reach us.  Be sure to let us know you've tried the troubleshooting steps in the Reading errors on iPhone article.  

 

For iPhones with a headphone jack 

There are a few issues that can interfere with the setup or temperature reading of your Kinsa Stick thermometer on an iOS device, but don’t worry – we will take you through each possibility until you’re ready to go.

Using about 3 minutes of your time, this is what we will check for:

  • Physical device connections
  • iOS music settings:
    • EQ – Not “Late Night”
    • Volume Limit – Off
  • Audio Settings
    • Mono Audio – Off
    • Audio Balance – centered
  • Update to the latest Kinsa app
  • Recalibrate Smart Stick
  • Reboot smartphone

By checking each of these, we can identify and fix any issues you are experiencing. So let’s begin!

Connection Problems

Sometimes connection problems happen between the app and the thermometer. To be sure there aren’t any, the following tips should be applied.

  1. On your iPhone, double-tap the home button.
  2. Swipe the Kinsa app up to close it.
  3. Next be sure the headphone jack is clear of lint. You can clean the headphone jack by gently using a toothpick to clear it out.
  4. Finally make sure you listen for a ‘click’ when you use any of these combinations of plugging your:
    • Kinsa into the black adapter (setup only)
    • Black adapter into the phone (or Lightning adapter iP: iPhone 7) ((setup only))
    • Kinsa into the phone
    • Kinsa into the extension cord
    • Extension cord into the phone (or Lightning adapter: iPhone 7) 

Audio Settings

Now that everything is clean and connected, let’s check some of your smartphone's audio settings as these can cause setup and temperature reading issues as well.

NOTE: We will be calibrating / setting up the thermometer after checking these settings. If setup was completed once before, don’t worry. Calibrating the thermometer a second time can only help with temperature reading accuracy.

  1. Open your iOS Settings.
  2. Scroll down and tap on Music.
  3. If “EQ” is set to “Late Night”, tap on it and switch it to anything else. You can change this back after the Kinsa setup.
  4. Go back to Music. If “Volume Limit” shows that it is “On”, tap on it and drag the slider as far to the right as it will go. This will turn it to “Off”. You can also change this back after the Kinsa setup.
  5. Go back to Settings, and then navigate to General > Accessibility.
  6. Scroll down to “Mono Audio”. If turned on, switch it to off.
  7. Next scroll to the audio volume balance slider (or tap “Audio Balance” to access it).
  8. Move the audio balance slider to the far left and release it.
  9. Move the slider back to center. It should snap into place once you're close enough. Make sure the slider is completely centered. If it is even slightly off like the first image below you’ll need to try again. The second image is centered.

NOTE: In order for Kinsa to work each time you take a temperature reading:

  • “Mono Audio” needs to be off
  • The audio balance needs to be centered

Update the Kinsa App

Next, let’s update the app in case it is an older version (skip these steps if you just installed the app).

  1. On your phone, go the App Store.
  2. Tap on “Updates” (lower right).
  3. Scroll down to “Kinsa” (if shown) and accept the update if available.

Reboot Smartphone

Finally, we recommend rebooting or restarting your smartphone to clear out any junk settings or glitches that may be causing trouble. 

Now try to take a reading, but remember:

  • Avoid eating or drinking any liquids, exercising, taking showers or baths, or smoking for 15 minutes prior to use, as these activities can cause mild elevations in temperature.
  • Try to keep the thermometer still while you take a temperature.
  • Don’t change the phone volume.
  • Wait about 30 seconds between readings. Kinsa takes its best readings from room temperature, so back-to-back readings can confuse it.

If you still receive an error during a reading let us know right away.  Use the pink ? below to reach us.  Be sure to let us know you've tried the troubleshooting steps in the Reading errors on iPhone article.  

 

 

 

 

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