Second post of the hour: what's a good food scale to invest in?

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Nursie863
Nursie863 Posts: 55 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok, I've been counting calories on and off for, oh, pretty much my whole life, and never used a food scale. :blush: After reading countless posts about the accuracy of these contraptions, I am compelled to buy one. :smiley: What is the best brand? Any suggestions?

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  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    One with grams.
  • TheVirgoddess
    TheVirgoddess Posts: 4,535 Member
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    I have this one: http://www.amazon.com/Ozeri-Digital-Multifunction-Kitchen-Elegant/dp/B004164SRA/ref=zg_bs_678508011_1
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    TheVirgoddess wrote: »
    I have this one: http://www.amazon.com/Ozeri-Digital-Multifunction-Kitchen-Elegant/dp/B004164SRA/ref=zg_bs_678508011_1

    Ooh I have this one at work!
  • 85Cardinals
    85Cardinals Posts: 733 Member
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    I just bought the Ozeri Pro. It's supercool, all black and silver. Low slung like a foreign sportscar.
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,626 Member
    edited July 2015
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    OXO.

    I used the postal scale (had it) and tried two others, including an Ozeri, but the OXO is the best of the bunch.

    The OXO tares and weighs things faster, had a detachable plate, so you can plop food on it without a plate and just wash the thing. Best of all, you can pull (easily!) the little window thing that displays calories out so it's easy to read. So many of them are hard to read and you gotta bend down or twist or whathaveyou if you put a plate on them.

    It's small, too. Looks big in pics, but isn't.

    It costs a little more, but if you can swing the extra cash... IMO, it's worth it.
  • linzi02
    linzi02 Posts: 74 Member
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    I've got a great scale that does ml and fl oz as well so I can measure my drinks or liquid, especially handy if I'm treating myself to a glass of wine but don't want to guess the calorie content! I'd definitely recommend one that does the same.
  • KarenJanine
    KarenJanine Posts: 3,497 Member
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    Look out for:

    Something with accuracy to increments of 1 gram or smaller (some cheaper brands have increments of 2 of 5 grams).

    Something that has a tare button so you can put a bowl/mug/pan/etc. on the scale and zero it, and then zero between adding items.

    Something that's easy to clean

    Something that takes a standard size battery (I previously had one with a rare sized watch battery - it was a PITA when it needed replacing so I bought a new scale which took AAA batteries).
  • Horrorfox
    Horrorfox Posts: 204 Member
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    Ozeri Pro - $13.60
    • The most precise digital scale in its class, with a capacity range from 0.05 oz. to 12 lbs. (1 gram to 5 kg)
    • Oversized buttons for easy operation and a large LCD screen that displays weights in pounds (lbs.), kilograms, grams and ounces
    • 3 Minute Automatic shut-off feature maximizes battery life while giving you time to multitask in the kitchen (batteries included)
    • Precise Tare features calculates the net weight of the ingredients (automatically subtracts container weight to calculate the ingredient weight)
    • Finished in a new modern black base with a chrome finished weighing platform, this compact design is lightweight and stores easy
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    They're mainly all the same

    Don't pay a fortune

    Look for one that tares to 0, has a flat base you can rest a pan or plate on - perhaps one that also goes into negative so you can put a jar on and scoop out. Also one that takes simple batteries like AA that you'll have lying around the house


    I have a Salter scale .. had it years and years .. it cost about $15 (£10 in real money ;)) .. it doesn't go negative but it's fine
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
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    I had the OXO, but it got funky on me after 7 months of use. Even changing the batteries didn't help it. It started being unreliable. I loved the feature of being able to pull out the display part when you had a big plate on it, but I felt it died pretty quickly.
  • Nursie863
    Nursie863 Posts: 55 Member
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    Thanks for the tips everybody!
  • velveteen7845
    velveteen7845 Posts: 70 Member
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    I have the Ozeri scale linked above and I love it. It does read negative numbers so it is great for weighing peanut butter right out of the jar. The only thing I wish it had is a back light, but that's not a huge deal.
  • CooCooPuff
    CooCooPuff Posts: 4,374 Member
    edited July 2015
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    I've had experience with four different food scales.
    This was the first. I had it for nearly a year until I dropped on the floor and broke it. I don't remember how accurate it was but I wouldn't buy a scale like this because the underside of the dish would collect a lot of gross stuff.

    This was the second food scale I bought and definitely what I would recommend. It's pretty accurate and easy to clean and use. It's actually sitting by my desk right now. :wink:

    This scale was extremely finicky, a PITA to tare, and extremely inaccurate. I returned it soon after purchase.

    I bought this scale because I wanted something bigger than the second scale. It's a little finicky but accurate enough to warrant keeping. I have to switch to grams every time I turn it on because this scale doesn't save the last unit saved.
  • maxit
    maxit Posts: 880 Member
    edited July 2015
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    I have been using an OXO for about a year and like it a lot. Push a button to tare, push one to toggle between lbs/oz and kg/g, it has a pull out display so you can put a dinner plate on it and still see the measure, 5 lb capacity (there is a model that goes up to 12 lb capacity which I wish I would have gotten). It takes AAA batteries (I use rechargeable). I got it on Amazon and it was around $30.

    Edited: It's here
  • bpetrosky
    bpetrosky Posts: 3,911 Member
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    Nursie863 wrote: »
    Ok, I've been counting calories on and off for, oh, pretty much my whole life, and never used a food scale. :blush: After reading countless posts about the accuracy of these contraptions, I am compelled to buy one. :smiley: What is the best brand? Any suggestions?

    There's not that much differentiation with food scales these days. All you need are:
    • Tare/zero button
    • Easily changed from ounces to grams
    • Flat weighing surface, raised over the controls/display is nice. Integrated food bowls are often more trouble than they're worth.
    • Cheap. More than US $25-30 is probably overkill

    I would advise against the models Walmart sells under their Mainstays brand because the switch from ounces to grams is on the bottom of the scale, and it defaults to ounces every time it turns on. That makes it a big pain to use when you use grams frequently.

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