Tanita BF680 Duo Scale Plus Body Fat Monitor with Athletic Mode

by Tanita

Product Features

• 2.25-inch, 2-line display shows weight and body fat percentage
• Determines weight and estimates body fat with safe, low-level electrical pulse
• Stores data for two different people
• 0.1% body fat graduations
• 0.2-pound graduations

Product Description

Amazon.com

This device might look like a scale, but it presents a broader snapshot of personal health by not only determining weight, but estimating body fat as well. It does this by sending a safe, imperceptible, low-level electrical pulse (50 kHz) through the body. (Healthcare professionals use similar electrical-pulse devices to estimate body fat by what is known as Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis, or BIA.) The device operates on four AA batteries (included), and its digital screen displays body-fat readings in 0.1 percent increments and weight in either 0.2 pound increments, up to 300 pounds or 136 kg.

The scale stores data for two users and a simple toe-tap calls up your data before stepping on the device. Within seconds, it displays your weight, followed by an estimate of body-fat percentage. Both will repeat before the device turns off automatically. Durable and easy to maintain, the device carries a one-year warranty against defects. --Fred Brack

Product Description

Tanita's two-person Duo Scale plus body fat monitors stores two sets of pre-programmed personal data for fast, simple operation. The Duo model are designed specifically for two people who want to stay in control of weight and body fat management plus athletic mode.

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 6.6 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000094ZGH
• Item model number: BF680
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #126,590 in Health & Personal Care (See Top 100 in Health & Personal Care)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

177 of 179 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Get the skinny on your bodyfat!, December 27, 2003

By 

Philip Chang (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tanita BF680 Duo Scale Plus Body Fat Monitor with Athletic Mode (Health and Beauty)

I just got this scale for myself as a Christmas present and I have nothing but good things to say about it.

Pros:

EASE OF USE - Inputting the user settings when you first get the scale takes less than 2 minutes. The interface is intuitive and the instructions included are complete and easy to understand.

PRECISION - You get nice and consistent readings for both body weight and body fat if you do repeat weighings right after another. Usually within 0.2 lbs and 0.1% body fat.

ACCURACY - There's a lot of debate over what the most accurate way to measure bodyfat is - calipers vs. electrical impedence etc. However, I think that it's more important to be able to track your improvement rather than being able to know exactly what your % bodyfat is. This scale allows you to do that. So you know that you've dropped 5% bodyfat and that you know roughly what it is. Unless you're a world class athlete, it's probably not necessary for you to have an exact value and if you are one of those few people, you probably have access to more advanced methods.

COST - At the present Amazon price, this is a great deal. About the price of a session with a trainer and only a few dollars more than a regular digital scale without the body fat feature.

CONS:

None that I can really think of right now. As I mentioned earlier, some people may be shocked/disappointed by the readings they get and dispute the accuracy of them. However, as I mentioned, the direction of your bodyfat change is more important and more valuable.

138 of 142 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Scale, October 5, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Tanita BF680 Duo Scale Plus Body Fat Monitor with Athletic Mode (Health and Beauty)

Pros: High quality, consistant results when used according to the directions, and it is fast.
Cons: Still not perfect, I would say about a 3% variation between body fat readings. No memory for previous weights and body fats, as far as I know.

I would buy it again if I had to do it over. I am impressed with the quality of the device, it feels substantial, and I don't feel like I am going to break it, and I weigh close to 300 lbs. The results I get, when averaged over a week, are very similar to caliper measurements, and it is a lot faster.

Each user(2 users) enters his/her height and age, and when you press one of the three toe buttons on the bottem edge of the scale, and step on the scale once the 0.0 shows for the weight. The whole process takes maybe 10-15 seconds. It is very easy to use.

I bought this scale for a few reasons. First off, is it was the highest quality scale of the ones I was looking at. It felt the most substantial. Secondly, I was looking for a scale that allowed two users, this company makes one that is for 5 uses but I felt that was unnecessary. Finally, it would have been nice if it had memories for previous weights and body fats, but I just enter it in a log so it doesn't matter.

I would recommend this scale for someone with the same needs that I had.

53 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Scale I've Ever Owned, January 20, 2004

By 

Matthew Hunter "Technology Geek" (Blacksburg, VA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Tanita BF680 Duo Scale Plus Body Fat Monitor with Athletic Mode (Health and Beauty)

Even without the body-fat function, this scale would be my favorite . I've gone through a few digital scales, but never found one that was so accurate with weight. With any other scale, I could always weight myself a few times in a row, and get at least a pound discrepency in the weight. A pound here or there isn't a big deal, but it inspires confidence that I can get on this scale a few times in a row, and get the same weight down to a .2 pound accuracy.

As for the body-fat measurements - I used to think they were pretty innacurate. I then realized that I was doing a few things wrong... First, I believed that I qualifed for 'Athlete' mode... and maybe a couple of years ago I did - but I was kidding myself to think that was still the case. Switching from Athlete to normal mode, and following the guidelines for when to measure BF made the scale very accurate. Plus, it's motivated me to get back into very fit shape, so I can turn Athlete mode back on :)

Pros:
-Very Accurate
-Easy to use
-Stylish

Cons:
-You'll need to read a whopping 3 pages of manual to get good results with the Body Fat measurement. I haven't found any real 'con' to give this machine.