Ovilus
A handheld device that speaks words from a stored list, which ghost hunters treat as messages from spirits.
- What users say it does
- Digital Dowsing, the maker, describes the Ovilus sensing energy and speaking a matching word, and labels its dictionary mode ITC. NPR reported in 2009 that the main idea among users is that spirits create electromagnetic energy the device can pick up.
- What it measures
- Digital Dowsing says the Ovilus senses energy, turns it into a value and speaks the word stored at that position, so a value of 100 always gives the 100th word. The Ovilus X holds 2,048 words that users can replace. Kenny Biddle, in Skeptical Inquirer, calls the earlier Ovilus 1 a random word generator holding 512 preset words.
McGill's Office for Science and Society describes the Ovilus as a square unit with two short antennas. McGill says the makers market it purely as entertainment, puts its price at USD 549, and calls it a costlier take on a spirit box. NPR covered it in 2009 alongside another device called The Puck.
Wikipedia notes that Biddle has criticized the Ovilus as one of the paranormal gadgets popular with ghost hunters, and cites Popular Mechanics comparing it to a "demonic Speak & Spell".
Sources
- Ovilus X Overview, Digital Dowsing LLC (manufacturer)
- Ghost Hunting: Conditioning Phobias, Kenny Biddle, Skeptical Inquirer
- How to Be a Better Ghost Hunter, McGill University Office for Science and Society
- Home-Grown Ghost-Hunting Gadgets, Bill Chappell, NPR All Tech Considered (2009)
- Ghost hunting, Wikipedia