Digital Scale?

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RunionX4
RunionX4 Posts: 190 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Is a digital scale more accurate than the one with the dial? I am considering getting a digital but want to make sure I am going to be getting the more accurate type of scale. I have used the one with a dial for a very long time and it is not very accurate according to the scale at the dr. office. Can anyone tell me which is better and if digital is better what kind should I look for?

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  • martintanz
    martintanz Posts: 280
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    I have a 6 or 7 year old Taylor digital scale that works alright, but has an annoying tendency to vary by as much as 2 lbs within just a few minutes. I am considering replacing it, maybe with an old fashioned analog scale, maybe with another digital scale.
  • rebasporty
    rebasporty Posts: 287 Member
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    I seem to have the same issue...I step off and step back on. The weight changes, frustrating!!
  • RunionX4
    RunionX4 Posts: 190 Member
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    the analog scale I have changes while I'm standing on it. plus I have to make sure it's on 0 before I can even start and it's hard to get it right on 0. That's why I was thinking that a digital would work better.
  • ilovescarymovies
    ilovescarymovies Posts: 202 Member
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    I bought a dial scale first and it was 7 pounds off what a doctor's scale said. So i got a digital one. It is way more accurate and it tells me the exact same weight when i step on it twice. So you should definitely get a digital
  • buffcleb
    buffcleb Posts: 150 Member
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    I have this one and it rocks http://amzn.com/B0032TNPOE (Eatsmart Precision Plus Digital Bathroom Scale)

    It is consistent... if I pick up an item that weighs 10 pounds it accurately adds 10 pounds to my weight... I'd buy it again...
  • pixtotts
    pixtotts Posts: 552 Member
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    i guess analogue are the most reliable as long as you can read them accurately, and potentially going to last forever!

    i have digital personally because it analyses body fat and water :)
    x
  • martintanz
    martintanz Posts: 280
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    This is why I am contemplating buying a Health O Meter analog model. Wal Mart has a model on sale. I want consistency as much as, if not more than accuracy.
  • suumoner
    suumoner Posts: 17 Member
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    If you can find one the Slide Scale like in the doctors office is the best. That is what we have and it seems to be the most accurate.
  • momreader
    momreader Posts: 1 Member
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    Read recently that temperature changes can cause fluxuations in digital scales. Not sure how much truth there is to that. I got a digital last week and saw a difference from my dr. office weigh-in the previous day by only 1 lb. Seems to be pretty reliable so far. Have weighed myself every other day since then just to check for accuracy and love the new scale so far.
  • indygal76
    indygal76 Posts: 283 Member
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    I have a digital Thinner scale I bought for 19.99 @ Bed, Bath and Beyond over 1.5 years ago. It has always been very accurate.
  • 126siany
    126siany Posts: 1,386 Member
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    I really like my digital scale and have been using it for about a year and a half without any problems. I think it's easier to see fractions of a pound with a digital scale.

    http://www.amazon.com/EatSmart-Precision-Digital-Bathroom-Technology/dp/B001KXZ808
  • spongebex
    spongebex Posts: 194 Member
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    Could it be that batteries might need replacing if digital scales are coming up with different weights in a matter of seconds?

    Not sure if batteries could explain my digital scales little 'trick' of if I step on with my left foot first I am 1/2lb lighter than when I step on with my right foot first... Random huh? Maybe I need to replace the batteries in mine...
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
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    Big picture, missing it you are.
  • WinnerVictorious
    WinnerVictorious Posts: 4,735 Member
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    the only truly accurate scale is one you can calibrate as needed. that means getting a medical balance beam scale.

    digital or dial home scale my be consistent within a certain margin (i.e., +/- 1 pound or less) every time you step on them, but that does not mean they are accurate. they could weigh 5 pounds heavy or 7 pounds light. you'd never have any way of checking that unless you could put something of a known weight on it to see. personally, i wouldn't check a scale's accuracy with a 10lb bag of flour if i was mostly using the scale to weigh a 250lb body. i'd want to check it with something heavy, of a known weight.

    my best advice is to borrow a couple of scales and see what you weigh on each compared to your home scale. if all of them show roughly the same weight, then you have a way of verifying accuracy (to some extent). better yet, get an accurate weight on a known-to-be calibrated beam scale and then compare it to your home scale and see what offset there is.
  • RunionX4
    RunionX4 Posts: 190 Member
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    Thank you all very much for the advice. I think I'll check them out and see about checking the weight with an object I know the weight of and go from there.

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