OMRON BF511 Clinically Validated Full Body Composition
OMRON BF511 Clinically Validated Full Body Composition Monitor with 8 high-precision sensors for hand-to-foot measurement – Turquoise
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| Weight: | 2.01 Kilograms |
| Dimensions: | 32.7 x 30.3 x 5.5 cm; 2.1 Kilograms |
| Brand: | Omron |
| Model: | HBF-511T-E |
| Batteries Included: | 4 AA batteries required. (included) |
| Manufacture: | Omron Healthcare |
| Dimensions: | 32.7 x 30.3 x 5.5 cm; 2.1 Kilograms |
Interesting machine,very difficult to operate at first but after having mastered it ,every one was eager to be allowed to get their measurement taken at the Health Expo.We are looking forward to purchasing another one.
The scales are so easy to use and very portable.
They give you current reading and last reading for easy comparison if you’re on a mission to change the numbers.
The digital display is on the part you hold up for body composition measuring, so it’s super easy to read and I drag it to my table to jot down the stats.
There is no bluetooth feature with these scales for auto loading to any apps, but I knew that upon purchase as I prefer seeing my stats written on the fridge door for accountability 😉
Great scales, accurate, and just the ticket for my weight loss journey.
1. Switch on, wait for “0.0 kg” on display
2. Remove display unit
3. Press button 1
4. Step on the base unit
5. When “START” appears extend arms out straight and horizontal
6. Wait for the weight reading to appear again on the display
7. Step off base unit
8. Note the weight reading
9. Press “WEIGHT/BMI” and note the BMI
10. Press “BODY FAT/MUSCLE” and note body fat
11. Press “BODYFAT/MUSCLE” again and note muscle
12. Press “RM” and note Resting Metabolism
13. Press “VISCERAL FAT” and note it
I tried it three times in quick succession to see if it would give the same readings each time to check the claimed accuracy (strictly repeatability). According to the machine my weight was 82.5, then 82.5 then 82.4 kg which is well within their claim of +/- 1%, and is surprisingly good. My BMI, BMR and visceral fat readings were the same each time, also very good. My fat percentage readings were 23.7, 24.0 and 23.1 which is just outside their 3.5% accuracy claim. My muscle percentage readings were 32.9, 32.7 and 33.2 which is also pretty consistent and at 1.5% error well inside their 3.5% accuracy claim. Although repeatability is not the same thing as accuracy it is a reasonable guide. These are impressive accuracy results for such an inexpensive machine. Three months earlier I had a comprehensive health check up costing over 200 GBP which included these measurements and many others and gave similar results. I am disappointed that the visceral fat readings are just arbitrarily divided into 30 levels with no units so they cannot be checked or compared. I wish they had given the measurements as a percentage of the total mass or the mass in kg like they have for total body fat and muscle. The number are derived “According to Omron Healthcare Figures”. If I had realised this before I bought the machine I would have looked for a better machine although perhaps none exists in this price range. The guarantee card states that it has a 3 year guarantee after the date of purchase. Tha manual states that it has a “Durable period of 5 years”. What a pity they don’t give hydration measurements. I have been using it now for 11 days, tabulating all the measurements every day, at the same time of day with no clothing each day and the readings on all parameters are pleasingly consistent. I would have preferred it if they had given how each parameter is calculated from the measurements. There have been only small deviations from expected measurements. Although Omrom is a Japanese company the monitor is made in China. So after the slightly frustrating initial familiarisation period I am only slightly disappointed but happy and gaining confidence in this monitor.
If you are an athlete with great physique don’t expect that this scale helps you to thoroughly measure you muscle mass, body fat etc
They disclose that this scale is for normal people only and accuracy in extreme cases is vanished (not this words but it means like this)
Final point on the hand-held display – great tool, but probably not ideal for anyone with back issues due to the up/down required to use it. Overall, would have given it 5 stars if stones/pounds was an available setting.
Just before I bought this scales, I got a DEXA scan – the gold standard and true accurate way of measuring fat, muscle and bone mass. So I knew if this scales was way off, I could gauge it, and at least see if it gave consistent results.
My DEXA fat % – 36%.
Fat calipers fat % – 34-35%.
Omron scales fat % – 30%.
So straight away a big difference there.
But, after logging many results over the first few weeks and then consistent logging twice a week, at the same time in the mornings…the numbers vary slightly, but ultimately, you do see an all round consistent measurement.
Ultimately – it’s a great way to track and stay focused. But take the measurements with a pinch of salt. For me anyway, the fat % was 6% less. And who knows about the muscle percentage, most probably off too. So use it as another tool to measure, but don’t just count on it for true values. It’s good to see trends and your progress over time on a chart.
There is no memory function, as this is an old scales now, over 10 years old. But it’s probably the most accurate because of the hand held function. It can take 4 measurements between your arms and legs, instead of the new monitors now that only measure between your legs – not accurate enough.
So I keep a log of my results on the bathroom wall, simple and effective, and keeps you honest and focused.
I know some reviewers said it’s not accurate or consistent at all. It does say in the manual, it’s not suitable for extreme athletes. Like very low fat mass or very high muscle mass. So if you’re at that level of fitness, look to a more professional method of measurement. And always measure the same time and situation every time like first thing in the morning. Overall, I’m pleased I bought it. I just have to add a few extra % to the readings. I’ll be getting a follow up DEXA scan in a few months, so I’ll update my review to see how consistent it was.
It does not have an app and only records the last reading previously for comparison.. so you MUST keep spreadsheet manually. All these scales that give biometric readings MUST be recorded as as without charting progress we can not get better. Just the best scales at this price point.
Floor must be very flat…no wobble. Before starting it.. lay the hand unit on the scales so that its weight is included until calibration is finished…about 10 secs.
Test the unit with 4 sequential measurements .. many times during the first two weeks to ensure you have an accurate machine.
I also have the Tanita rd545 at 6 times more expensive which are useless compared to this. … Omron blood pressure cuff also recommended.
The accuracy for me has been good as confirmed by skin fold tests and my GP but it can vary a lot; I only weigh myself 1st thing in the morning, once a month after a clean none alcohol night and before eating my breakfast. Having the hand grip certainly helps with the accuracy and I’ve found setting up users to be fairly straightforward. I’m not such a fan of the two colour options and would have preferred to have a bathroom friendly white or black option and so these are kept hidden under my bed for their once a month use – perhaps the colour choices are intentional to encourage this sort of storage and therefor avoid harmful fixations.
I’m confident about using these scales because they appear consistently accurate and offer more insights – for visceral fat, for example – than most other scales I’ve tried. I recommend the Omron BF511 with the proviso that most domestic scales are not 100% accurate, but if they are reporting consistently, then seeing overall trends – going up or down over a period – is the most important thing, and these scales do that well. If you don’t know, Omron make medical grade equipment that you might have come across in in your GP’s surgery, so that gives me another reason to trust their quality and reliability. One more thing: if you do buy them, have a good read at the instructions before using them; there are reference tables to interpret the data the scales provide, and general pointers on correct use.
It is erroneous to judge body composition scales for their accuracy of body composition; that’s par for the course, an inherent limitation of all bio-electrical impedance scales and not a particular model. I won’t judge scales for tight precision either: if I’m foaming around the moth because I’m 0.5% fatter 5 minutes later then I’m probably dumb for expecting such a consistent result.
I will judge a scale for the precision of body weight (not composition) in a highly repeated environment and this does it well.
I use this scale to get an idea of a general trend of my body composition and it does this well too. For trends you also needs a way to chart it, this scale comes in handy because it allows you to store up to 4 users (and guests) and recall you previous reading for comparison. It only allows recalling the last reading which is a pity though.
Are these the most accurate scales in the world? I don’t care!!! They give me the sense of being in control like never before. That said, I only weigh myself in the morning, before breakfast and after the loo and a shower. This way I keep external variables to a minimum.
The only thing these scales are missing is the ability to analyse the results over time. But you know what, I can type in Excel as easily as anyone else so who needs wifi when a bar chart will do?
Weight is a perfect match with the scale at my doctors and is precise down to 0.2 lbs / 0.1kg.
Body fat, etc is very difficult to measure accurately with scales like these that rely on conductivity but with both the feet and hand sensors it has the best chance of accurate measurements. However, yesterday I had the opportunity to find out exactly how accurate these scales are. I had something called an DXA (or DEXA) scan which is a form of mini XRay that tells you exactly how many grams of fat, lean tissue and bone you have in each limb and AFAIK is the most accurate way of working out body composition short of an autopsy. PS: it’s not a good idea to mess around with XRays for none critical conditons so this isn’t a recommendation of DXA scanning but given I have had one it does tell us how accurate these scales are…
It’ll probably be obvious from these numbers that I’m not fit (yet) so don’t laugh – I’m working on it 🙂
Background info: Male, 34, Caucasian
Height: 177cm
Weight: 81.9kg
Body Fat: 29.6% (Omron scales), 32.8% (DXA Scan)
Visceral Fat: 11% (Omron scales), 8.8% (DXA Scan)
Lean Mass: 33.6% (Omron scales), 63.0% (DXA Scan)
So, the body fat percentage for me at least was very accurate. The visceral fat was an overestimate but not by a huge amount. The Lean mass is miles off, however I think there’s a difference in what’s being measured here. I believe the Omron scales are estimating muscle whereas the DXA scan is measuring all lean tissue (ie: everything that isn’t bone or muscle = organs, ligaments and muscle). Overall I’m very pleased with the accuracy and repeatability of these scales and for measuring relative changes in body composition they should be very helpful.
Good stuff:
* High accuracy measuring weight and total body fat percentage.
* Decent measure of internal body fat (the really bad stuff).
* Simple to use – step on to get your weight, press the profile button on the handle to measure everything.
* 4 profiles/users
* Shows current readings and last readings for comparison
* Measures in kg and lbs to 0.2lb and 0.1kg accuracy
* Quick ~5 seconds for measurements
* AA batteries (included)
* 3 year warranty
Bad stuff:
* Only remembers last measurement (seperate memory for each profile/user) so need to keep a pad of paper to track long term changes
* Electrical conductivity measures can be heavily affected by water content so you really need to way at around the same time each day under the same conditions – ie: drinking water before measuring changes the results.
* Doesn’t send results to phone/computer/whatever – personally I think this is an advantage as it’s simple and does exactly what you need but some people really want an app on their phone *shrugs*.
I really did want a bells and whistles system, but found that the scales on offer with all these gadgety add ons were either going wrong on the gadget front or the accuracy of the scales wasn’t up to par…Albeit I was being pragmatic on the user front as you can never underestimate public stupidity. but it seems these scales generally got good reviews on the what they were supposed to do so I dismissed the gadget man in me and purchased these, and as they were reduced somewhat, they seemed to tick my a) and b) boxes above.
Definitely did not make a wrong choice, the accuracy is brilliant, I can weigh myself eat 0.2 kg of food and these scales will see it. If you think scales wonder all over the place between meals and you’re weighing yourself every 5 minutes wondering why your expectations aren’t being met, then do some research on how your body process food and the time lags between dieting and weighing etc…your body’s weight will fluctuate greatly during the day…again do your research.
From day one I started graphing all of the metrics this scale kicks out, weight, BMI, Skeletal Muscles, General body fat, visceral fat (organ fat) and BMR or base metabolic rate. I didn’t know what BMR was until I got these scales and did my research, to this end I thank this measurement as it’s now a critical metric I now devote to. BMR is the calories your body needs to survive the day based on doing nothing. The general guidelines say a man needs 2500 calories a day, but these scales tell me I need 1731…this is now the basic calorie intake I work to and I’ve been losing weight ever since…30lb so far since March.
Basically these scales have helped me understand my dieting goals and coupled my gym workouts and cycling I now understand what I need to do daily to lose weight effectively and safely.
These scales have been deadly accurate for the last 5 months. the instructions are ok, no rocket science and tell you what you need to do to set up profiles for yourself and three other members of the family…there is also a guest mode where you can quickly jump on to check in…But this won’t get remembered unlike a profile weigh in.
These are fab and I cannot recommend highly enough, my only quibble would be is that you must detached the handle/display from its socket before standing on the scales as standing on them seems to create a little bit of pressure on the socket and the handle is hard to pull out to the point where you first think you’ve snapped something…so I don’t take the chance and just uncouple the handle before getting on.
Seriously.
The fact it tells you how over weight you are and what your metabolism is… gave me a very accruate level of calories I should have for each day.
As I lost weight, I could see my visceral and body fat reduce, as good indicators and incentives.
I could also determine what my maximum calories should be, as the device told me my base. I was then able to set maximums.
As you loose weight, your body needs less calories (from plenty of reading) I saw this for real. But it meant that I could therefore factor this in, in setting what I could eat.
So this device has been massively helpful as part of becoming aware and conscious on what I can eat, how much and the types.
I also got a book on all the different foods and what the calories were, so I guess I used both things to calorie count and got myself disciplined and the outcome is a cost effective 2 stone loss.
Next target is another stone.
I’d utterly recommend this device. It’s worked great for over a year.
I have also BF508 (old model). They are both consistent and I can jump on and off the scale several times in a couple of minutes and the measurements don’t vary a lot. I’d rather prefer to take measurements 3 or for times in a row and then do an average. But as I said the difference isn’t that much.
The only issue I’ve noticed is that I tried both old and new model and BF508 shown as an average 128.4kg and 33.4 body fat and BF511 shown 129.1kg and 33.6 as average. That’s quite a gap but to be honest doesn’t matter if there’s a difference between the two. All I want to know is that the scale is consistent and that I can measure my improvements in the weight loss.
The good thing about these scales is that the hand sensors allow a more accurate reading then the body fat scales you stand on as these scales send signals all around your body where as the scales with only the feet sensors just measure the lower part of your body giving you a less accurate reading.
It’s good being able to monitor other then weight, for instance my dad is at recommended weight but his body fat and Versical fat are near high, so it’s good to keep on top of things like that!
The scales come with a manual that has all the percentages and numbers charts to tell you what is low, normal, high and very high for each specific measurement.
You can have up to 4 profiles on the scales so if like me you weight yourself accordingly it keeps a record on each profile of your previous measurements/weights so it motivates you to keep on top of your exercise/working out.
It is not for serious Bodybuilders,or highly trained athletes(and the Omron manual specifically states this.), but is fine for the rest
of us mere mortals, who simply wish to get in shape, keep fit,and maintain healthy body composition, and weight.
I have been a bit of a fitness freak for the last 20 years, and have always used these types of machines to guide me in my general fitness training.
This machine is the best that I have tried so far, the weight reading is “spot on”,body fat readings seem as reasonably accurate as can be obtained on home machines at the under 100 price tag.
The muscle reading seems to be reasonable too,and it is a bonus to have an indication of dangerous “Visceral” fat levels.
Omron provide a good manual with charts,so you can check your readings against them to see how well you are doing in working towards your targets(and the healthy figures range applicable to you).
The Charts information is accurate,but for the Body Mass Index Chart, which is not “Age Related”,as the others correctly are.
For those of you who purchase this item it can be useful to note(if applicable) that after the age of 45 years the” Normal range” BMI figures,are subject to a “slider”,so that from 45 to 54 yrs Normal BMI is from 22 to 27
” 55 to 65 yrs ” ” ” ” 23 to 28
and ” 65 to 80 yrs ” ” ” ” 24 to 29.
If this is your first machine of this type,do not obsess over the figures too precisely, or take excessively frequent readings.
Remember that your body is in a constant state of flux.Your weight usually varies by about 2 to 4 lbs from one end of the day to the other(for obvious reasons – think about it!!) Body fat and Muscle percentages also slightly vary along similar lines depending on hydration at the time.
(The manual gives excellent guidance on when to best take your readings to ensure consistency and accuracy.)
As a regular trainer visiting the Gym three mornings each week,I like to take my readings at the same time every Sunday morning to ensure consistency, assess the effect of my work outs, and adjust the exercise structure if necessary for the coming week.
Some trainers only take readings once per month, and keeping a monthly log of your figures is useful for tracking purposes.
All in all this is an extremely competitively priced machine,of decent construction, versatile for home use,which produces reasonable “assessments” of body composition, relative to the limitations of the technology involved.
If you are serious about health and fitness this will be an invaluable aid to start you off,but it is very worthwhile and interesting to make the effort to learn about the associated physiology, and fitness training regimes.( Loads of information is available on the web, but remember some may be selling something,and some others are slanted towards serious athletes,and lifters in training for specific events,and go beyond ,what us mere fitness trainers may reasonably wish to achieve,or indeed practically require.
The majority of negative reviews are about the difference in readings the scales give if you weigh yourself repeatedly within a very short time period such as a few minutes. This is quite normal for any scales and is not a fault.
If you read the negative reviews for all the scales on Amazon, you will see that the majority of complaints are for the very same reason. This is because there are a many contributing factors that will vary your reading every time you get on scales. The two main factors are your balance (no matter how still you think you are) and standing in the exact same spot on the scale.
If you want to test your scales put an inanimate object on them in the exact same place and you will see the reading will be the same. We are humans and we move, even when we are trying to be as still as possible.
As far as I am aware there are no 100% accurate scales on the market, and you will have this issue with every scales no matter how accurate they claim to be. I would question any manufacturer who claim their product is 100% accurate. These scales are manufactured by one of the leading manufacturers in hospital weighing equipment and as such are highly regarded by the medical industry.
If you want to get an accurate reading as possible – weigh only once a week before you take a bath or shower as moisture (believe it or not) will greatly vary your reading and before you eat, I usually weigh on a Sunday morning. When weighing, do it no more than 3 times immediately after each other and then use the average reading. This should give you as close a reading as possible to your actual weight. The reading may be a couple of ounces out either way but that is irrelevant.
My only reason for giving this product 4 out of 5 stars is that I would have liked it to have given me a reading in stones and lbs instead of lbs or kilos, other than that, I would say this is an excellent product and should not be unfairly criticized.
But, IF!!! you actually do the dieting and exercise, they seem to be spot on for tracking changes in fat percentage and weight loss.
I’m not actually very fat.
When I started dieting I was only 78kg, and 19% fat (5’10”, 40+ male)
However, I knew the weight and fatness I wanted to be. These shocked me by revealing the high % of visceral fat I was carrying (7%).
I found that for a day of fasting I could lose about 100g of fat.
Technically their accuracy isn’t sufficient to measure this in a single measurement – I just calculated rolling averages.
(if I’m 70kg, 12.1% fat then I go to 12% fat, I’ve lost 0.1% of my body weight, which was fat.)
It took me 5 months to get to 70kg and 12% fat, (3% visceral) and I’m very happy with the feedback that these gave me.
NOTE – these measure skin resistance, which changes with temperature. Always measure yourself at the same time every day. I just get out of bed and go stand on them. It’s a waste of time using them after showering – even if you’ve dried yourself properly. The figure will be off by miles.
Diet 5:2 alternate fasting (I often did 4:3).
I now want to stop being so skinny and build some muscle, without larding up. I will be using these to check that the gains are all rock solid.
Every house should have one of these.
I’m happy enough with it – it is consistent, giving me the “same” values with only slight variations which is perfectly normal – my old scale-only scale did that as well.
It’s easy to set up and program, and good that it’s possible to have settings for 4 different individuals which suits my family perfectly (and a guest-mode should anyone require that). A bit disappointing that the memory (one per person) only contains the last reading – it shouldn’t have been that hard to store a bit more?!
My reason for not giving it 5 star is that
a) I have not verified how exact it is – I would have had to do a full body scan for that with a bod-pod or similar.
b) it’s not exactly going to win a design award. Quite frankly it’s not good looking, but it does the job and that’s the most important thing.
This is a pretty well-made weighing machine that has technical features. It has a good manual, and needs it.
Fortunately the instructions were clear and easy to follow – and pretty easy to remember after a few goes.
Why did we get it?
My old solar powered machine was becoming pessimistic in its old age, and anything that adds nearly 2Kg (4.4 Lbs) to my weight is well past its dispose-by date and…. we are both starting the 5:2 ‘Fast diet’ made famous on TV.
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So it weighs pretty accurately, that’s a given. A hard, level floor is needed for best results, so carpet is not a good idea.
What else does it do?
It computes your BMI (Body Mass Index) that is a measure of the weight you carry in relation to your height.
So you need to tell it your height before it can do that.
It also wants to know your age and gender, so that the other calculations can be done correctly. It then remembers these details for the future.
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To weigh yourself, you tap the toe switch, wait for it to calibrate, and step on. Just like any other machine. Despite my failing eyes and ten-year-old specs I can read it OK when standing up, without lifting the handle-display thing.
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To do the body computation business you need to pick up the handle thing, select your user number, then step on and weigh yourself normally.
When it has a weight result, you hold the handles firmly and put your arms straight out forwards with the display vertical.
It detects this, and starts measuring body impedance. From this it calculates the body fat stuff. When it’s finished you can step off and scroll through the info. Simples!
After a false start (I got my wife’s height wrong when converting it to metric from feet and inches, oops!) it has worked fine, no problems. We’re going with metric – it makes sense nowadays because the medics all use it.
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Our GP should be happy, I’ve lost 1.4Kg in the first week, and should no longer be clinically obese in another two weeks!
I can recommend that diet, and recommend this machine for those interested in the automatic BMI calculation, the Visceral fat classification and the body fat percentage. It’s good value at under 30 including postage.
The hand held controller is on a retractable flex and so easy to take out and put back. It can work just as a scales. If you want the other features then you have to tell it which of the 4 person profiles you are before you step on. It does not auto sense this. Also means if you forget to tell it then you have to get off and start again. You can’t set the person profile once it has weighed you.
The unit has a main on/off button at the front (it is not designed to auto power on when you stand on it). This is very easily operated with your toe. To take fat readings then you have to be barefoot but of course it does not mind for weight. Has a memory so you can see your progress. At the price shame it has no way to upload the readings (WiFi enabled scales exist at this price).
Only loses a star as you have to remember to follow the sequence to the letter – power on, wait for zero, remove hand held controller, press profile button, step on. Would not have been able to justify paying list price – I would have simply done away with knowing my body fat – but the current big discount on Amazon brings this down to the territory of good regular digital scales.Also Omron is a good brand being in the market of medical instruments – I have a blood pressure monitor from them too. I would trust them more than from a company that makes toasters.
Because I have no other ways to measure fat percentage I can’t confirm whether the measurements this scale makes are accurate, but I can confirm that they are consistent. Which means that even if the exact amount is not correct it works really well if you’re trying to lose (or gain) fat on your body, because it still shows the trend properly. It’s nice to be able to see your results of last time, and if you want, keep track of it on a piece of paper or excel or whichever program you would like to use and it’s a very useful tool and good scale.
Weight wise I can confirm that it’s accurate and does what it’s supposed to.
Excellent piece of kit, does what it says on the tin, I have been using a Wii with a Wii board for 6 months to measure weight & BMI, now that I have these scales I was a bit alarmed to find out that the Wii was 5lb out (under), getting on these scales straight after the Wii showed a 5lb increase!
These scales are pretty accurate after putting some “known” weights on them, so bit more weight loss needed than I thought then!
I bought these scales after seeing Michael Mosely using them on his TV program about the 5:2 diet, and also doing a bit of research myself, there very easy to use and clear and easy to read, all measurements show current and previous measurements, so you have a comparison straight away.
I put all the measurements into MyFitnessPal as this will keep a log of them for you and draw a graph to represent the information as time goes on, or just put it into a spreadsheet or just plain write it on a piece of paper.
All in all a good bit of kit if your looking to lose a bit of weight and see what your BMI is like not to mention fat & visceral fat etc, my figures were very alarming to say the least, so very pleased I took the plunge to confront my health head on with this bit of excellent kit.
For ease of reading I have put the conclusion first.
These scales are both easy to use and, as my readings below show, incredibly accurate and reliable.
I almost didn’t buy these scales due to the negative reviews about how inaccurate they are.
The instruction manual says to use these scales only on a hard surface. My results show that even when used on carpet the results are fairly repeatable although not very accurate.
By far the best results were obtained using a lino or tiled surface.
The results were accurate and repeatable to within 1% of each other.
Even after eating and drinking lots these scales produced very reliable readings.
Why it is other people managed to get poor readings I do not know.
As long as these are used on a hard surface they’re absolutely fine. In fact I found them to be more accurate than the expensive ones at our gym.
I took a lot of time to display my results as a table but after posting I see now that the tables will be ruined.
Aim:
To test the accuracy and reliability of the Omron body fat scales on different floor surfaces.
Method:
Floor surfaces used: Carpet, lino, tiles.
Measure four variables: Mass (Weight), Body fat %, Visceral fat, and BMI on the different surfaces.
The scales were placed on the floor surface.
Switched on and allowed to calibrate (takes about 2 seconds).
I then followed the procedure outlined in the book to measure the four stated variables (i.e. Step on, measure mass, then raise handles to shoulder level and measure other three parameters).
Without moving the scales the scales were switched off, then switched back on and the variables of the human subject were measured again following the same procedure.
The scales were then moved a few feet to a different area in the same room (i.e on the same floor surface). And the measurements were taken twice.
This procedure was used on three different floor types. And so generates four readings (M1, M2, M3, M4) for each of the different surfaces. (Although looking at my readings now for some reason I didnt write down the first two carpet results).
Furthermore I also measured mass, body fat etc at the correct times as stated in the booklet (i.e. not after a shower, 2 hrs after food etc) and at the wrong times (e.g. after eating and drinking loads).
Results:
So remember. Four measurements were taken on each floor type (M1 – M4)
For M1 and M2 the scales were in the same place.
After M2 the scales were moved and M3 and M4 readings were taken.
I have included average and standard deviation readings but you hardly need them to see which surface is the best.
Note: That I didnt record anything but mass in the first two carpet readings for some reason.
_____________________________________________________________________
Condition 5 hrs after eating food
Surface carpet
M1 M2 M3 M4 Average STDEV
Mass 78.1 78.1 80.3 80.7 79.3 1.3952299691
Fat % 21.6 22.1 21.85 0.3535533906
V Fat 8 8 8 0
BMI 25.9 26.1 26 0.1414213562
Condition 5 hrs after eating food
Surface lino
M1 M2 M3 M4 Average STDEV
Mass 86.1 86.1 85.9 85.8 85.975 0.15
Fat % 25.6 25.8 25.8 25.9 25.775 0.1258305739
V Fat 10 10 10 10 10 0
BMI 27.8 27.8 27.7 27.7 27.75 0.0577350269
Condition 5 hrs after eating food
Surface tiles
M1 M2 M3 M4 Average STDEV
Mass 85.9 85.9 85.8 85.8 85.85 0.0577350269
Fat % 25.9 26 26 25.9 25.95 0.0577350269
V Fat 10 10 10 10 10 0
BMI 27.7 27.7 27.7 27.7 27.7 0
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M2 and M4 are missing because by this point Id realised carpet measurements werent the best.
Scales were moved between the two carpet readings.
Condition Right after food
CARPET
M1 M2 M3 M4 Average STDEV
Mass 72.5 80.6 76.55 5.7275649276
Fat % 15.8 22.7 19.25 4.8790367902
V Fat 6 8 7 1.4142135624
BMI 23.4 26 24.7 1.8384776311
Condition Right after food
LINO
M1 M2 M3 M4 Average STDEV
Mass 87.1 87.1 86.9 86.8 86.975 0.15
Fat % 27.2 27.5 26.8 27 27.125 0.2986078811
V Fat 10 10 10 10 10 0
BMI 28.1 28.1 28.1 28 28.075 0.05
Condition Right after food
TILES
M1 M2 M3 M4 Average STDEV
Mass 87 87 87 87.1 87.025 0.05
Fat % 27.1 27.3 27.3 27.3 27.25 0.1
V Fat 10 10 10 10 10 0
BMI 28.1 28.1 28.1 28.1 28.1 0
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I bought these to replace a cheap mechanical scale that was inaccurate. I was fed up of getting different results from the hospital and gym. Now, thanks to these, my weight is known for sure and not approximated. The fact that it measures so much more than just your weight is an added bonus. These are so accurate that they use the same brand at my local gym. A word of warning though, they will not give accurate BMI to body builders or professional athletes. They explain this in the booklet but if you don’t know in advance you can be wasting your money. For everyone else, though this is superb value for money whilst Amazon.co.uk is selling them for 40.
The only thing that lets it down slightly is the fact that once you are holding the handles, the resistance of the cable adds about 1Kg to your weight, but you only need this when checking your body composition. You don’t need it if you are just weighing yourself.
Easy to use. Booklet clear. Seems adequately insensitive to minor variations of floor flatness. Readings in stones and pounds as well as kilograms or pounds would have been preferred. Delivered on 8th day from purchace.
Update after a little use: Although repeatable on rapid readings, the fat readings do seem to jump about a bit from day to day and even within a day. I have no reason to believe that this does not reflect genuine changes in body composition, although not that I repeatedly shed and replace fat! Interestingly, if I use a spreadsheet to plot a scatter graph of body fat against BMI, fat tends to go down as BMI goes up – logical: more water in me = less percentage fat! I still believe that, in the longer term if you keep taking readings, it reliably indicates progress in a diet.
Judging body fat is not an exact science & alters through the day depending how and what you eat & drink, work out ect.
I have been using the scales/body fat alalyser at the gym for over a period of 12 months and this Omron is as accurate (give or take 0.?%) as there state of the art one gripping the handels – costing a 1 a time.
(+ the Omron gives more detail anyway)
I would also like to point out If you use an ordinary bathroom scales & electrodes through the feet then this product shows a massive improvement in accuracy (nothing is perfect in body fat meassuring even callipers have disputers on where to pinch the skin)
So to somerise Highly recomended, Easy to use, As accurate as the big weighing machine/ fat measuring machine at the gym @ 1 a go. Cheaper than rival product @ 135+.
Glad I bought.
This monitor has bars for which to grab which allows a whole body measurement approach, as in the current is passed through the whole body giving a much more accurate reading.
As some people have said this is an accurate piece of equipment and if you are slightly off level on the ground, dehydrated or you eat or train hard 2 hours before measuring then the reading may not be reliable. Just follow the instructions and there’s nothing to worry about. Your own body will fluctuate in weight over the course of the day due to water loss and water gain.
The monitor also comes with a three year warranty against faults which will come in handy if breaks down but so far after using it for 1 month on a number of clients i can see it lasting a good while.
There are much dearer monitors out there with much less of the facilities this offers.
Highly recommended.
The only real gripe I have is that the readings are inconsistent. The scale is placed on a hard and level surface but still the readings vary quite a lot. First reading may say 105.6 then the next some 20 secs later says 106.2. This is in my opinion not accurate and seems quite outside tolerances.
So would I recommend it … yes, but with these reservations.