USB Thermometer - Temperature Readings From Your PC

Looking into getting a USB thermometer?  The USB thermometer is one of the latest gadgets to come out for the computer which is actually quite interesting and fun to use.  What the USB thermometer does is basically plug into your computer and get a read on the temperature in the room and report that back to you via software on your computer.

The software is usually packaged with the device as well and combined they sell for relatively cheap.  If you’re interested in picking one of these up, here are a few that you can choose from:

USB Digital Thermometer Dongle - This one I found at the “Deal Extreme” website.  It’s priced at $8.76 with free shipping and has gotten 154 Diggs(from Digg.com) and several positive reviews as well.

This USB thermometer tells you the temperature within the range of -40C and 120C.  The software that is used to report the temperature back to you is written in Microsoft .NET 2.0.  When you plug in the device, it shows itself as a serial port device, all you have to do after that is install the drivers and software and you’re ready to go.  This is pretty accurate as well, within .5 degrees accuracy. 

This is probably the smallest and cheapest device you can get to take the temperature in this way.  If you install this on your laptop, you can use it pretty much anywhere you go and take the temperature of every room that you’re in, the data can also be accessed remotely.

One unique application for something like this is if you say have a pet that is in a room while you are out at work, like a dog, cat or even a gecko.  Some animals, like geckos, require a certain temperature in order to be safe and if you worry about your animals being in a good climate, accessing something like this remotely can provide peace of mind.

Now the only problem with this one is that some people don’t think the software included with this is all that great.

USB Temperature Data Logger - Another great one found at “Professional Equipment”(dot com) is this one at $88.95.  The user can setup the logging rate and start time and download data by plugging this directly into a USB port and running the associated software.  The temperature data can be graphed, printed and exported to other applications even. 

If this device is functioning correctly it will be indicated by a flashing green light, a light which can also turn to orange or red.

This device is water resistant(IP 67) and can take 16,000 readings every 10 seconds to every 12 hours.  The measurement range is between -13 and 176F.

Now if you’re looking for a USB thermometer there are definitely other ones out there to consider, but these are some of the better ones.  Still, it’s a good idea to search around some more to be sure you’re getting one that’s right for you.