Excellent purchase & Scale
I was extremely hesitant in buying a new scale despite dissatisfaction with my old scale which had a tendency to fluctuate erratically. I also wanted more than just a cheap scale that only told me my weight but NOTHING about what was going on in my body. After shopping comparing features and reading literally hundreds of reviews I finally settled on the Omron brand but I wasn't sure which model to get. Finally I chose the 500 model and Amazon informed me that the 500 had been replaced with a newer model the 510. Unfortunately the 510 no longer had the same features as the 500 (they got rid of the Body age & Resting metabolism features along with the 1 7 30 90 day memory that the 500 had). Luckily the web page for the 510 showed a better new model this HBF-514C which had ALL the original features of the 500 and boasted "NEW - Advanced Accuracy" on the box. The main reason I chose the 514 model was for the extensive features and the excellent quality behind the Omron name. They are noted for their accuracy NON-fluctuation when done consistently and long lasting scales. I figured that with the amount of money as I was about to spend on any one of these scales I should get the one with the features and the newer model upgrade.
Out of the box I noticed how lightweight the scale was and yet it felt VERY solid and well built. Attractive. Well boxed and it comes with batteries manual registration card and a worksheet for logging results that they say you are allowed to reprint as needed. The worksheet is clean and very easy to use with tons of room for many weigh-ins to come.
I then sat down and did what many reviewers said to do I read the manual from cover to cover. Then I braved the programming for myself which went quickly and was very easy to do (reading the manual before doing it REALLY made it easy.) Then I weighed. The results were exactly as expected no surprise in my weight. The other results were realistic and informative. I mainly got this for the weight general body fat % and most importantly the Skeletal Muscle % as I am attempting to lose extra weight while building my body to be strong and lean. More muscle more calories burned so that is very important to me (I am 34 and active but stress has left me less than happy with my body composition) BMI is close to other results. Body fat % seems realistic as does the skeleton muscle %. The Resting metabolism and body age is neat but I don't know how helpful it really is. Knowing your Resting metabolism rate gives you a base amount of calories you should eat daily so it may be helpful to some although it is probably just a start and needing to be fiddled with to see what caloric level YOU need daily for your goals.
The scale gave consistent results for the 3 people in my family without fail repeatedly. The most accurate (read: Consistent) scale I've had the pleasure to use. I follow the rules outlined in the manual to get consistent results and it works. The scale and hand held sensors are easy to use and very fast to get results. Having it store my results for up to 90 days is a great feature although I also log my results in my excel sheet (I like making pretty graphs showing trend lines and how far I've come) and also on the fridge with the reprinted worksheet included. Gives me motivation to see my progress when tempted late at night.
HIGHLY recommended and worth every penny!
Pros:
* Full body composition (7 areas tested)
* Can also be JUST a scale. Nice! Scale weight is consistent every time.
* Accurate in that it is consistent without weird fluctuations.
* Easy to set up and use if you read the manual to get acquainted with your new scale first.
* Lightweight and attractive to see lying around.
* Good value for features.
* Well written manual that is actually helpful.
* Included worksheet that you can legally reprint. Nice worksheet design for easy use.
* Free batteries so that you can use it immediately.
* Sold by Amazon so I got free shipping. (and with the promotion going on right now I saved an additional $10 at checkout. Details on the item page: [b]Save an extra $10 instantly when you spend $49 or more on select Omron products offered by Amazon.com. The discount will be reflected in your cart at checkout. Here's how (restrictions apply). Offer valid through August 31 2009.[/b] )
Cons:
None really so far. However to many people the price is a bit high esp. when you are worried about whether it will live up to the hype when you could get a cheaper scale for $60-89 with less features (or an older model like the 500 with the same features from a 3rd party seller on amazon) Honestly I do believe that this was the best scale for me at a price that I could afford. I debated a cheaper Omron model but at the end I knew that this one was the way to go for my needs. Shop around I do however recommend this scale and I am very happy to date.
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