The brand, known for its sleek bathroom fittings, has unveiled 'Dekoda', a smart toilet attachment with a built-in camera that analyses what you leave behind.
Designed to turn the most private corner of your home into a data-driven wellness zone, it studies your poop to reveal insights about hydration, digestion, and overall gut health.
How It Works
As part of Kohler's new initiative to create a "connected, data-informed health and wellness hub," the Rs 55,722 (approx USD 599) Dekoda uses an optical camera with spectroscopy sensors to examine what's in your toilet bowl.
The camera doesn't record your body - only your waste (the company claims) - and relies on light analysis to detect everything from hydration levels to traces of blood. Kohler says this feature could help spot potential medical concerns early, prompting users to seek medical advice before symptoms escalate.
The Dekoda system includes the sensor, a magnetic charging pad, and a wall-mounted remote with a fingerprint sensor to differentiate users.
The findings sync with the Kohler Health app, which requires a membership starting at Rs 580 per month (Rs 5,800 annually) for individuals and Rs 1,100 per month (Rs 10,800 annually) for a family plan that covers up to five users (yes, you read that right).
A Closer Look
Dekoda clamps onto the rim of most toilet bowls using an adjustable mechanism. The main electronics sit outside the bowl, while the inside features a discreet camera and light sensors angled down to ensure privacy.
Kohler confirms that "Dekoda's sensors see down into your toilet and nowhere else." All data sent to the app is end-to-end encrypted, and each user logs in through the fingerprint-enabled remote before use.
The system doesn't just collect random snapshots. Over time, it builds patterns of your toilet habits - frequency, consistency, and shape - offering guidance on hydration (reminds to you increase your water intake), digestion, and nutrient absorption.
If blood is detected, the app sends a discreet alert so users can consult a doctor promptly.
Smart toilets aren't entirely new, but Kohler's Dekoda is perhaps the most personal one yet.
It's a leap from wearables that track your pulse or sleep - now, even your flush contributes to your health data.
Kohler has tried to make it sound as unintrusive as possible, calling it a "privacy-conscious camera" that uses light, not surveillance. Still, the idea of a camera inside your toilet bowl may feel futuristic for some and invasive for others.
"Instead of flushing away vital clues, Dekoda can help translate your body's signals into information and insights you can use to live healthier every day," Kohler's Advisory Board Member, Dr Justin Ko says.
Dekoda's rechargeable battery connects via USB, and the company warns it doesn't function as well on darker-coloured toilets. While the current model focuses on visual and hydration analysis, Kohler hints that future versions could even explore smell sensors or cleaning alerts. And, if you're wondering the tracker is not available in India yet.
While, Sheldon Cooper would have taken notes, charts, and graphs, while Kohler's Dekoda does it automatically.
But beneath the novelty lies a serious shift in wellness technology: a push to gather the most personal data to help people make better health decisions or a privacy invasion to your most personal corner? You decide.
