Researchers at the University of Washington in the US said they have developed a smartphone-based COVID-19 test that detects the infection with 97% accuracy in 20 minutes.
The Harmony test kit comes with a low-cost detector that uses nasal swab samples to detect the SARS-CoV-2 RNA genome. A smartphone is used to operate the detector and read results, researchers added.
While the conventional PCR tests can take several hours, the Harmony kit can provide results in less than 20 minutes for some samples and with similar accuracy, they said.
“We designed the test to be low-cost and simple enough that it could be used anywhere,” said Bary Lutz, an associate professor at the University of Washington.
Through their new company called “Anavasi Diagnostics”, the team intends to develop a Harmony series of products based on the prototype to deal with the shortage of testing kits for Covid-19.
