food scale

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pepefifer
pepefifer Posts: 14 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi,

I'm pretty new here (started two weeks ago today). I was thinking about purchasing a food scale to better measure my portions with. Does anyone have any tips on what to look for? Which ones to stay away from. Or which ones might be the best value for the money?

Thank you,

Cindy

Replies

  • BamBam1113
    BamBam1113 Posts: 542 Member
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    I love mine. I don't remember what brand it is, but it's digital and I paid like $10 for it at Wal-Mart. i wouldn't pay an arm and a leg for one, but I have enjoyed being able to to be really exact on my food portions.
  • jessie580
    jessie580 Posts: 87
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    I got mine at target for $5

    it has a little bowl at the top to put the food in. good for lunch meats, chicken, whatever

    if you need something larger, no idea...but this small cheap thing works for me!
  • Atlantique
    Atlantique Posts: 2,484 Member
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    I have this one and am very happy with it: http://www.amazon.com/EatSmart-Precision-Digital-Kitchen-Silver/dp/B001N07KUE/ref=pd_sim_hpc_2

    You want a scale:

    - That you can 'tare', which means that you can place a container on the scale, make the scale read 0 and then add your food.

    -That can weigh in 1g increments.

    -That can switch from pounds to ounces to kilograms to grams

    -If you plan to weigh things on dinner plates or in mixing bowls, you need it to have a fairly high weight capacity (the one I mentioned above goes up to 11lbs).

    -That uses normal batteries, so they are inexpensive to replace and easy to find.
  • kennie2
    kennie2 Posts: 1,171 Member
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    yeah digital ones are better than dial ones by far! also fee if you can get a battery powered one instead of a wired one
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
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    I got mine at target for $5

    it has a little bowl at the top to put the food in. good for lunch meats, chicken, whatever

    if you need something larger, no idea...but this small cheap thing works for me!

    I probably have the same one! My husband picked up a cheap one from Target and I was a little disappointed, I wanted t fancy digital one. BUT! This one works really well and is very reliable.
  • JLervold86
    JLervold86 Posts: 93 Member
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    Same here, I got a cheap one from Target I want to say and I didn't get the digital version, I have a regular one and it works great. I had a digital one for a while and after about 7 months it started to be a little inaccurate. Been using this spring one for about a year now and love it, especially for the $8 I paid for it! It's one of those things where you don't need to pay an arm and a leg to get something decent.
  • RMinVA
    RMinVA Posts: 1,085 Member
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    Spend a little money on a digital scale: a nice one won't cost anymore than about $30. I love being able to tare it easily and go back and forth between ounces and grams. I immediately tossed my old "dial" type scale when I bought it. Get one with a broader base too so that it is easy to add items to containers and plates. I "build" my salads right on the scale. After I add each ingredient, I "zero" it back out for perfect measurements every time.
  • darkhorse43
    darkhorse43 Posts: 70 Member
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    I have had an older version of this one for about a decade.

    http://www.amazon.com/Salter-3003-Aquatronic-Electronic-Kitchen/dp/B000698A66/ref=sr_1_3?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1304351182&sr=1-3

    The best thing is having it digital and being able to zero it after putting a plate or bowl on it. It's also cool looking :)
  • cj1234cj23
    cj1234cj23 Posts: 113 Member
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    WITHOUT A DOUBT, THE BEST ONE THAT I'VE EVER USED I BOUGHT AT WALMART THOUGH ONLINE AND HAD IT WITHIN A COUPLE OF DAYS. IT'S DIGITAL, CAN MEASURE IN OUNCES OR GRAMS AND SOOO EASY TO USE. I AN SET A BOWL OR PLATE ON THERE, TURN IT ON, IT AUTOMATICALLY READJUSTS TO 0, AND THEN I CAN ADD. IT'S MADE MY LIFE A LOT EASIER. IT WILL EVEN LET YOU ADJUST TO 0 AFTER ADDING, SAY, CHEESE. I PUT IN ONE OUNCE OF CHEESE, THEN I HIT THE READJUST BUTTON, IT SETS BACK TO 0, AND THEN I CAN ADD AN OUNCE OF HAM, ETC. GREAT!!! IF YOU GET A CHANCE, THIS WOULD BE A GOOD ONE TO BUY.
  • jdm_taco
    jdm_taco Posts: 999 Member
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    I bought one of the Biggest Loser digital scales and it works great! it was around $20 at bed, bath and beyond.
  • Xaspar
    Xaspar Posts: 726 Member
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    I have this one and am very happy with it: http://www.amazon.com/EatSmart-Precision-Digital-Kitchen-Silver/dp/B001N07KUE/ref=pd_sim_hpc_2

    You want a scale:

    - That you can 'tare', which means that you can place a container on the scale, make the scale read 0 and then add your food.

    -That can weigh in 1g increments.

    -That can switch from pounds to ounces to kilograms to grams

    -If you plan to weigh things on dinner plates or in mixing bowls, you need it to have a fairly high weight capacity (the one I mentioned above goes up to 11lbs).

    -That uses normal batteries, so they are inexpensive to replace and easy to find.

    DITTO
  • pepefifer
    pepefifer Posts: 14 Member
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    Thanks everyone for your input! I really really appreciated it. I decided to go with a digital one. I researched a few and made sure they could do the things people mentioned. I ended up getting the same one some of you had suggested without even realizing it! ha ha :smile: Yup, I liked the reviews of the Eatsmart Procision scale that I saw at Amazon and ordered that one. Thanks again! Now the waiting begins for it to come in! I've thought about calorie counting for a few years now but always thought it was a lot of work and didn't want to bother with it. Two weeks ago, I decided I would try it - and, I can't believe I'm going to say this, but it's been FUN! Who would've thought? It's such an eye opener!
  • RMinVA
    RMinVA Posts: 1,085 Member
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    Thanks everyone for your input! I really really appreciated it. I decided to go with a digital one. I researched a few and made sure they could do the things people mentioned. I ended up getting the same one some of you had suggested without even realizing it! ha ha :smile: Yup, I liked the reviews of the Eatsmart Procision scale that I saw at Amazon and ordered that one. Thanks again! Now the waiting begins for it to come in! I've thought about calorie counting for a few years now but always thought it was a lot of work and didn't want to bother with it. Two weeks ago, I decided I would try it - and, I can't believe I'm going to say this, but it's been FUN! Who would've thought? It's such an eye opener!

    Take a peek at this video...it is a real eye opener about the value of weighing things on a scale vs. measuring them in a cup. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY
  • shadow3829
    shadow3829 Posts: 103 Member
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    I just upgraded to a digital from Walmart for 19.95. I love it!!
  • pepefifer
    pepefifer Posts: 14 Member
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    Wow - what a great video! I have been measureing wrong! I don't go over the rim like they show if the video - I try to make it flush with the top - but that is still too much! go figure! Thanks for sharing the link to the video!
  • RMinVA
    RMinVA Posts: 1,085 Member
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    Wow - what a great video! I have been measureing wrong! I don't go over the rim like they show if the video - I try to make it flush with the top - but that is still too much! go figure! Thanks for sharing the link to the video!

    I definitely use the scale as much as I can these days!! Especially w/calorie dense foods. CRAZY!!
  • myofibril
    myofibril Posts: 4,500 Member
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    Wow - what a great video! I have been measureing wrong! I don't go over the rim like they show if the video - I try to make it flush with the top - but that is still too much! go figure! Thanks for sharing the link to the video!

    I definitely use the scale as much as I can these days!! Especially w/calorie dense foods. CRAZY!!

    I would go so far as to say that a decent digital food scale is in the top 3 most important things to have on your side in the fat loss game. It really is THAT important if you are tracking calories.

    Incidentally, the maker of that video is the very talented Leigh Peele of "The Fat Loss Troubleshooter" fame. The scale is a Chefmate Nutritional Data Scale...

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