pHin Is Discontinued: What Are the Alternatives?
A calm rundown of what pHin's shutdown means for the sensor sitting in your pool, and the realistic options for testing and tracking your water going forward.
If you bought a pHin water monitor expecting it to quietly test your pool for years, you're not imagining things: pHin's sensor and companion app were discontinued, and per public reports, that's left owners holding hardware with no working service behind it. Nothing about that is your fault, and nothing about it is unusual for a subscription-dependent smart-home device. Here's what actually happened, what you lose, and what to do instead.
What happened to pHin
pHin sold a floating sensor that took automated chemistry readings and paired them with a subscription-backed app that generated dosing recommendations. That combination, hardware plus a required cloud service, was discontinued, which ended the automated readings and the cloud-based dosing guidance the device depended on. Like other smart-sensor products built the same way, the hardware itself has no independent function once the backend behind it stops running.
Note: This isn't a pHin-specific problem, it's a structural one. Any product that pairs physical hardware with a required subscription service is only as durable as the company running that service. Worth keeping in mind for whatever you choose next.
What you actually lose
- Automated chlorine, pH, and other readings the sensor used to take on its own
- Dosing recommendations that were generated through pHin's app and cloud service
- Any historical test data that only ever lived in your pHin account, not on your own device
- The value of the subscription itself, since it was paying for a service that no longer runs
Weighing your alternatives
There are really three directions from here: go back to manual testing and track it yourself, go manual but use a purpose-built logging app, or buy into another smart sensor. Each has a real tradeoff worth being honest about.
| Option | Ongoing cost | Automated readings | Shutdown risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Test strips or liquid kit + a notebook or spreadsheet | Free beyond strip/kit refills | No, manual | None, there's no service to shut down |
| Test strips or liquid kit + a logging app like Skimmer | $19.99/yr for Skimmer | No, but entry takes seconds | None, no backend or account required |
| Another smart water monitor | Hardware cost plus an ongoing subscription, varies by product | Yes, while the service keeps operating | Same structural risk pHin had, tied to a company staying in business |
None of these is wrong. If automated readings genuinely matter to you and you're comfortable with the risk, another smart monitor is a legitimate choice, just go in with eyes open about what happened here. If you'd rather not repeat this exact experience in a few years, manual testing paired with an app that keeps your data on your own device removes that dependency entirely.
Moving your setup over without losing your history
- Retire the pHin sensor. Without the company's backend running, it can't take or transmit readings, so there's no benefit to keeping it in the water.
- Pick up test strips or a liquid test kit for the basics: pH, free chlorine, and total alkalinity at minimum, cyanuric acid if you're not sure when it was last checked.
- Before the pHin app disappears entirely, save whatever equipment notes, dosing history, or test records you can export or screenshot, once it's gone, it's gone.
- Choose a tracking app that stores your data locally rather than in a single company's cloud account. Skimmer, for example, logs every reading and chemical dose directly on your iPhone, with no backend to lose access to later.
Keep your pool history on your own iPhone
Skimmer logs every reading, chemical dose, and equipment note directly on your device, with no backend or account to lose access to later. It's the manual-testing companion built for exactly the situation pHin owners are in now.
See how Skimmer worksThe adjustment is smaller than it feels. Testing manually takes a few minutes a week instead of zero, and a good log turns those few minutes into the same running picture of your water that pHin used to generate automatically, just without the risk of it vanishing if a company changes direction.
Frequently asked
Is pHin still available to buy or subscribe to?
Can I still use my pHin sensor for anything?
What's the best replacement for pHin's automated testing?
Will a new smart water monitor just have the same problem eventually?
How do I save my pool's history before I lose access to the pHin app?
Track this with Skimmer — water tests, dosing, and equipment history in one place.
See pricing →Keep reading
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