Are you passionate about archeology and your dream is to unearth an ancient treasure trove of gold coins? What if I told you that you can do it with your phone? Well, you can keep dreaming, although the truth is that you can use your smartphone as a metal detector. A large part of the mobile devices on the market have a magnetometer or digital compass capable of detecting, with obvious limitations, the fluctuations that occur in their magnetic field.
Thanks to this sensor, your phone can distinguish metals such as iron, nickel or cobalt, as well as all their alloys. The latest iPhone models already have a built-in compass, while for Android devices, you can download Castro in the Play Store to find out if it includes the magnetometer in the sensors section. As you will see below, there are several applications that will help you complement the digital compass function of your mobile.
Turning your mobile into a metal detector is something within everyone's reach, provided, of course, that a magnetometer is included in the hardware of your device.
You have understood it correctly, non-metal detection applications will not help you to locate Atahualpa's gold or Jesse James' loot, since their range is quite limited. At the very least, you can use them to assuage your curiosity about whether that old family item hidden in the attic is iron or the value of that shiny stone you found on your morning walk.
