The special "Calculate" mode is a simple, yet powerful feature that pushes this scale to the top of our list of favorites.
The EatSmart Digital Nutrition Scale starts with a lot of nice features. The manufacturer has a friendly, well-organized Web site with video demonstrations, illustrated instructions and a
downloadable copy of the scale's code list. And the scale itself can display twelve different nutrients for each item in its 999-item database.
But it is the special "Calculate" mode has made the EatSmart Digital Nutrition Scale a permanent fixture in our kitchen. Calculate mode allows the user to input a serving size and the amount of a nutrient in that serving size. When a food is then placed on the scale, the total amount of that nutrient in that sample is computed. This makes calculating a single nutrient in a packaged food quite simple.
As a practical example, we could have the scale tell use the number of carbohydrates in a bowl of cereal. We start by placing an empty bowl on the scale. We check the Nutrition Facts on the cereal box and seeing that the Serving Size is 28g, and the Total Carbohydrate in that serving is 20g. Turning on the scale and pressing the [MODE] button switches the scale from "Normal" mode to "Calculate" mode. We would then press press the following buttons to enter the information from the Nutrition Facts label: [SERV] [2] [8] [NUTR] [2] [0] [=]. That's it. Now, when cereal is poured into the bowl, the scale will measure the weight and calculate the number of carbohydrates associated with that weight.
The math being performed in Calculate mode is really quite simple, but it is a pleasure to not have to repeatedly perform the calculations.
Please note that the Calculate mode performs the calculation for only a single nutrient. To perform a similar calculation for multiple nutrients—say for a person who wants to calculate Weight Watchers Points using calories, fat and fiber—the Kitrics Model 120 scale may be a better choice.
