The advent of mobile phone applications has seen a variety of usages in everyday life: from games to GPS units and apps that can monitor one’s heart rate, there seems to be no end in sight to the extent of innovation possible.
It should be noted that applications designed for medical use are on the rise as mobile technology becomes more sophisticated. The modern cell phone today is comparable to the processing power of a supercomputer twenty years ago. And the inclusion of an inbuilt camera allows the phone to interact with the real world in a variety of new and interesting ways.
The combination of technological innovations as well as the unmet needs of the medical community has led to the genesis of new apps that serve the needs of the microbiological industry. One application that has been recently introduced is the Medixgraph CFU Scope, which can be found in biological labs to count the amount of colony forming units during research.
What Is Medixgraph CFU Scope?
As stated previously, this application is exclusively used in microbiology to count the amount of colony forming units during testing.
Medixgraph CFU Scope is a mobile app that is compatible with iOS 8.0 or later Apple devices. It is unknown if the developers of the app plan to make it available to Android users as well, or if the application will see continued development and iterations at all.
The application works via the inbuilt camera of the cell phone. One simply points the camera where the colony forming units and be found, and the result will appear at the bottom of the screen.
Medixgraph is a boutique software development business that authors software solely for the medical community. Medixgraph CFU Scope is their first application, with the business registering itself as a valid enterprise at the beginning of this year. Not much is known about the company with sparse details available about the firm online.
The full list of requirements in order for the app to run can be found below:
- Category: Productivity
- Updated: Jul 29, 2016
- Version: 1.3
- Size: 4.5 MB
- Language: English
- Seller: Medixgraph Inc.
- © 2016 Medixgraph Inc.
What Related Applications To MedixGraph CFU Scope Exist?
From the result of some preliminary research on both the Apple and Android stores, the CFU Scope appears to be the only app available to count the amount of colony forming units in a testing environment. It is yet to be seen if specialized medical apps like this will see an increase in popularity, or if researchers will stick to using conventional tools.
While there is no direct comparison to the CFU Scope application with the exception to medical equipment, image-analysis software has made some strides in becoming recognized as a viable alternative in specialized settings. From the humble beginnings of being used as a low-resolution camera, the cellphone has led to inventions such as the QR code and facial recognition software. The continuation of these developments are likely to continue as cell phones become ssmarter and sophisticated each year, as well becoming more affordable.
What Are People Saying About Medixgraph CFU Scope?
While there are no reviews available on the app’s store page, there have been some notable comments made about the application on various third party forums and medical blogs. Most users of the app were impressed with the innovation of the product, as it can reportedly replace some very expensive and hi-tech equipment that is cumbersome for research students.
The opinion on the accuracy of the CFU scope is a point of contention among users. While some users expressed that it worked just as well as some of the big brands in the medical community, there were some that said it did not accurately display the amount of colony forming units. While it may be tempting to jump to conclusions about these claims, it would be unwise to take them purely at face value. There are many factors involved in the mechanism of how these apps work, with the quality of the hardware being the most influential.
Reviewers that attempted to try the CFU scope on phones below iOS 8.0, found that their devices were simply unable to download the application at all, while others with damaged or faulty camera found the application unusable. While the amount of negative comments about the CFU scope is negligible in comparison to the praise expressed by majority of users, they have been included here for the sake of being impartial.
It should be noted that the success or disappointment of using a given application is largely determined by one’s expectations of performance and the user’s point of view. What one user considers a successful experience, another may be left bitterly disappointed, even if the app delivers identical results.
It is perhaps for this reason that the application does not guarantee that one experience a specific result. This could be the reason for why the app is sold at the the price of $0.99 for the vast variations in the experiences of their user base.
The Bottom Line – Is Medixgraph CFU Scope Recommended?
While the application is new and the Medixgraph business itself is unheard of, there is enough evidence from third-party sites to suggest that the application works as intended, at least for most of the time.
It is one of the very few applications that have been tailored for the microbiology niche, so users have little to lose to at least try the application out for themselves. The risk of loss is minimal as the app is quick to download and costs less than a dollar for the experience.
In conclusion, the CFU scope is perhaps an experimental foray into the medical field by intrepid cell phone developers. If the application proves to be success then it may mean that the dominance exhibited by medical equipment manufacturers is weakening, which could mean faster and most effective medications and scientific breakthroughs for the world at large.
