Product Review: ReliOn Temple Touch Thermometer, Noninvasive Accurate Readings in 6-8 Seconds

To be honest, I never heard of the temporal thermometer until my nurse's supervisor took my vitals with the ReliOn Temple Touch Thermometer. I was prepared for the regular oral thermometer that seems to take about 3 minutes to take its reading -- a virtual lifetime it seems. I get bored and start humming the Jeopardy theme song waiting forever for the final beep which indicates my release from the endless forced closure of my mouth and the sarcasm I want to spew.

The ReliOn Temple Touch thermometer is simple and convenient to use for children or adults of any age. Simply touch the thermometer probe to the temple area for 6-8 seconds to receive a clinically accurate reading. What makes this thermometer great is that it is noninvasive to the patient, unlike the ear, oral, armpit and especially the rectal thermometer. The ear thermometer is not too bad but this temporal thermometer is even simpler and some children complain about the ear thermometer, especially if they have any earache. The ReliOn Temple Touch thermometer is so simple to use that it can even be used on children or patients while they sleep and they won't even know it.

ReliOn says that there Temple Touch Thermometer uses a technology known as R.A.T.E. to measures the heat radiating from the body to give a clinically accurate measurement of the body's core body temperature.

How to Use

1. Press the On/Off button once and release it. It will indicate it is on with a single beep.

2. The screen will display startup information with an hourglass image for 2 seconds and beep twice when ready.

3. Clean and dry the skin in the area of the temporal artery and brush any hair away from the area.

4. Hold the probe on the temple and the measurement begins automatically with an on-screen indicator. The thermometer probe and the patient should not move while measurement is in progress.

5. Wait 6-8 seconds for the measurement to be completed which will be indicated with a single Beep.

6. Read the results, which will be displayed for 1 minute.

7. Press On/Off and release to turn the unit off or it will automatically turn off within 1 minute.

Advantages

There are several advantages for using the ReliOn Temple Touch thermometer that definitely outweigh the negatives. Below are just some of those advantages.

The ReliOn Temple Touch thermometer requires 2 AAA batteries that are good for 1000 uses over a two-year period. It also has an automatic shutoff after 60 seconds of nonuse to conserves energy in case you forget to turn it off. These 2 aspects make this a thermometer that really uses little power which saves you money on batteries and that is always a good thing.

It has a low weight at 2.1 ounces including batteries and is very compact at 4.7 inches long.

A great feature of the ReliOn Temple Touch thermometer are the warning indicators for low and high temperatures, too hot or cold to operate, improper placement, malfunction, low battery and drained battery. Never be surprised because the warning indicators tell you exactly what is wrong as soon any problems occur.

The thermometer can be set to use either the Celsius or Fahrenheit formats of temperature. This allows users anywhere in the world to use the same thermometer using the temperature format of their area and easier to convert if you prefer one over the other.

The thermometer casing is made of medical grade ABS plastic and has a stainless steel probe, so it is light but sturdy and also very easy to clean. Simply wipe the tip and probe with rubbing alcohol on a swab before and after each use. Use a soft dry cloth to clean the thermometer body.

The ReliOn Temple Touch thermometer is one of the lowest costing thermometers of any kind at under $10 at Wal-Mart. With its one year warranty, so you have plenty of time to work with this thermometer to see if it works for you or if your unit malfunctions.

Disadvantages

The ReliOn Temple Touch thermometer is a little bit picky in the conditions it requires you to use in order to get accurate readings. If you don't follow these conditions, you can end up with inconsistent readings each time you use the thermometer. This has been one of the complaints users make for this thermometer but, usually, it is because of users not following all of the conditions. It can easily be overcome by reading the instruction booklet included with the thermometer.

The main conditions that are often ignored by users are proper placement and time between readings. The proper placement of the thermometer probe is very important and needs to be almost directly on the temporal artery. If it is not, the reading will be off consistently. Users need to wait at least 2 minutes between readings for the thermometer to adjust to room temperature again. This is a very important step and is one of the steps many people do not know about or possibly just ignore but it is very good to wait between measurements if you want the most accurate readings.

One condition that is easy to forget for the ReliOn Temple Touch thermometer and most temporal thermometers in general and that is not to put the thermometer on the patient's skin while or soon after it has been exposed in contact with direct sunlight, direct heat, air conditioner and cold or warm compresses. If you think about it, these are really common sense conditions but ones that are easily forgotten.

One other condition that most users forget, most likely in haste, is that thermometers stored at cold temperatures need to be given a few minutes to adjust to room temperature. This will also give faster and more accurate readings when the probe is placed on users' temporal artery.

Specifics to Note

The temperature range of the ReliOn Temple Touch thermometer is 95° F to 107.6° F and its operating environment is 60.8° F to 104° F with 15-95% humidity.

My Opinion

Overall, I think that the ReliOn Temple Touch thermometer is definitely worth its price and it offers a simpler, easier, faster and noninvasive option for taking your temperature for people of all ages. I certainly appreciate how much easier this thermometer is to use for myself and can imagine everyone will prefer this thermometer after they try it.

I use a ventilator and exhale considerably from my mouth which makes it a little difficult for me to take my temperature with the normal oral thermometer because I need to keep my mouth closed for a few minutes until the thermometer finishes its reading. This is especially difficult if I have extra trouble breathing at the time of its use.

The ReliOn Temple Touch thermometer, even with its negatives that can easily be overcome, is a great thermometer for everyone and, with such a low price tag, it is usually affordable for even people with the smallest of budgets. I recommend everyone try it and see if it works for you.