VeraTemp Non-Contact Thermometer

For full disclosure I do own stock in the company that manufactures and distributes this product. I actually purchased the thermometer to test it and see if it really was a good product (to determine if it was worth the risk of holding or buying more stock in the company). So I ended up buying the thermometer for my mother who is a pediatrician and has her own practice in Northern VA. We tested it at home and it seemed to be working well, but my mom being a doctor (and a bit of a paranoid person to boot) didn't trust the readings without comparison. So she brought the thermometer into the office and started using it along with her other thermometers to compare the readings. I guess this wasn't any sort of a problem because the kidz med thermometer literally only takes a second for its readings. She seemed pretty pleased with the results and asked her nurses to continue testing it. I didn't talk to my mom about it after that for about a month. When I finally did ask her if she was still using the thermometer she told me that after a while her nurses adopted the thermometer as their primary thermometer because of its accuracy, ease, and speed. I'm 24 and have no kids, but my mom has been a practicing pediatrician for I think 23 years (seeing as I was born while she was in residency) and with how skeptical she is about technology (if my dad and I hadn't stepped in she would still be using all paper records) I think her approval means a lot (at least to me). I figure the backlighting and the other functions would also come in handy for parents. Personally I just had fun playing around with it like the guy that put the video commentary up on these reviews. In conclusion, I think this is a great product and would suggest buying one even if it is just to play around measuring temperatures of things around your house.

There are many things I really like about this product:1. I really like that there is both a quick start guide for those who might need to use it immediately and a small pamphlet size manual to allow the user to become more familiar with the product at their liesure.2. I really like that they included the batteries needed to use it. Nothing frustrates me more than opening a product that I need at that moment to find it doesn't include the necessary batteries.3. It was very convenient and a nice touch that they included a protective carrying case for it.4. I really like that the product is easy to read and easy to operate with one hand.Addendum: I have since bought a few more of these because I thought my soon-to-be-mom friends would want them. I was right! They love the 5 in 1 and can't say enough positive things about it. Some have delivered their healthy babies and really appreciate not having to wake their tykes to check their temperatures while they are sleeping for the extra reassurance they are OK. And because the thermometer does not require waking the baby, it allows them a few extra mins of sleep --> precious to new moms! Excellent product that has made an excellent gift! Thank you, Amazon....

I should've read the reviews and fine print more carefully. You cannot return this product even if it doesn't work, which for me is the case.Three weeks after my baby was born I came down with a 24 hour flu and had the chills, body ache, and high fever. I used my simple oral thermometer and was at 103 F. We brought out the VeraTemp thermometer to make sure baby wasn't getting sick and got 97 F. But when I tried it on me it read 98 F...??? It was definitely off. And we did try multiple times and at different stages of my fever, but each time was obviously off.Bottom line, if you really want to give this thermometer a shot, which I do not recommend for its inaccuracy and unreliability, I would buy it from Costco dot com if you can. I saw it there but figured while I'm ordering other baby items from Amazon, I might as well order this here too. Wrong move. It is useless as a thermometer, especially when you're really worried about your child's health, and Costco probably allows returns in case it doesn't work for you.Update:(June 21, 2013)We've figured out a way to get a more accurate read. What we do is make sure there isn't any hair in the way, just a clear forehead or temple. And I usually take the temperature at three different locations to get the most accurate overall temperature: the forehead, the temple (between the eye and ear), and the ear. If my baby feels especially hot somewhere else (like the stomach or hands) I'll take the temp there too. It works for us, and I'm glad because it's no longer a waste of money! But still don't know if it'd be my recommended choice. (I changed the rating from 1 to 3 stars)

This thermometer is pretty impressive! It seems to be accurate and the option to read the temperature of the room, a surface (like coffee or baby bottles!), or the body is really nice. You must wait 15 minutes when you first get it, for the thermometer to acclimate to the temperature of the room. It takes two AAA batteries and comes with two to get you started. The directions also say to wait 10 minutes to use the thermometer after changing the batteries. It doesn't make any sounds, which is really nice if you're trying to take the temperature of a sleeping child. This thermometer also came with a little bag to store it in. The only slight drawback is that the temperature is only displayed for a few seconds before the unit shuts off. I like that it shuts itself off, because that saves battery life, but it'd be nice if it didn't happen quite so fast. All in all I'm really pleased with this purchase and would recommend this for any parent to have on hand.