I've had several kitchen scales before, but have never really been fully satisfied with any. This EatSmart scale trumps every one of them. I've had it about a month, and use it several times every day. It's a little marvel. Pros: Accurate: I have a $1,000+ digital laboratory scale, and when I check weights on both, the EatSmart is right on. Repeatable: Very consistent weighings. Turn it off, turn it back on, weigh the same item - it weighs the same. That is comforting; EatSmart must use good quality strain gauges. Flexible: The availability of multiple units of measure (four, combining English and Metric measure), which can be changed 'on the fly' while the scale is in use - is excellent: just tap the RH button to cycle through. The scale also remembers the last one in use when turned off, and presents weights in that unit next time it's turned on. Control over power-on / power-off: Tap the LH button and it turns on, tares quickly, and is ready for work. If you leave it on, but do nothing, it turns off after about three minutes. If you tap the LH button again, without having done anything, it simply turns off. If (while on) you add more ingredients, or whatever, to the platform, it reflects the new total weight and silently 'resets' the clock to give you additional time. This is really a boon: no more rushing to make measurements before it decides 'long enough - no soup for you!' - and shuts down while you're trying to use it. Intelligent tare: If you turn on the scale with a bowl (or whatever) on the platform, it 'tares out' that item and reads 0.00. OK, almost any scale will do that. But wait... If you turn it on with nothing on the platform, then put the bowl on and press the LH button, it of course also tares - and it will do that, going back to 0.0, any time you press the LH button while something remains on the platform. That's handy if you want to keep adding things to the bowl, but you want NOT the 'total weight' of ingredients; rather you want specifically the weight of the 'next ingredient' you are adding. And here is another good feature: it thinks along with you. That is, if you finish your weighing activity and now remove the bowl - and THEN press the LH button (the display is reading 0.0 at this point) - it knows you are finished for now, and it doesn't (annoyingly) try to re-tare, staying on for another three minutes and wasting battery power. Instead, it concludes you want to turn it off and save the battery - and that's exactly what it does. Simple and smart. Display: Large, crisp, easy to read. Batteries: Hurrah. Uses standard AAA batteries. No more expensive "disk batteries"(do you ever have them on hand when needed?). Size / Capacity: Compact - fits easily on the counter, is not obtrusively large, and yet weighs items up to 11 pounds / 5 Kg. It's really small enough to leave on the counter all the time if you like. Yet storing it, if desired, is a breeze for the same reason. It is also light, but seems to be quite rugged. Discrimination: Weighs accurately in increments down to 0.05 ounce - fantastic. Cons: Not many, really, and very minor... One might say that its compact size works against being able to see the display in certain cases (large bowl, pan, or other item placed on the platform may interfere with your sight line to the display). But I'll gladly accept this potential drawback, especially in the interest of compactness and low profile. There are easy remedies. I like the suggestions of some other reviewers in this regard: get a ~5 inch round by 2 inch high piece of styrofoam for such cases. It weighs almost nothing, but will support whatever you have on the scale, and it 'lifts' the bowl, etc. enough so that you can see the display without difficulty. What about the possible danger of spilling liquids over the buttons? I have not experienced this problem, but because the buttons are separate pieces (i.e., not 'membranes'), one could imagine a potential vulnerability here. What I found worked perfectly was: when you're doing messy work, take one of the clear thin bags you get at the grocery store when buying produce / meats (you keep a stock of these as 'waste bags' anyway, right?), cut it in half, and just put the scale inside! I even grab a bit of scotch tape and tape the bag so the scale won't come out while I'm working. The bag weighs essentially nothing, you can see the display through it without trouble, and you can still manipulate the buttons easily. In addition to keeping liquids away from the buttons, it's also a time-saver if you're weighing 'messy' ingredients and don't want to keep putting plates, etc. on the platform and doing the 'tare' routine. So what if they're messy? After you finish work, just pitch the bag - and you're done: the scale stays clean, the platform doesn't get sticky / grungy. Life is good. A halfway house: just grab a 6 inch square of Saran wrap and wrap it around the 'nose' of the scale while working. It won't cover the platform, it takes less time to put on / take off, and it successfully keeps everything (including the grunge on your food-covered digits!) away from the buttons. Final observation: I like the matte silver version, since it doesn't pick up fingerprints and show every little fleck, the way a white one (or one with a shiny surface) would. Just my opinion... OK, this review is like the "JD Powers _initial_ quality rating on your car. No long-term claims yet, but at some point I'll come back and update... Short take: It's a great little scale, and I highly recommend it! Steve Ferris Oldwick, NJ
