We started with one of the cheap ten dollar ones, and couldn't even get a reading off it, let alone an accurate one. It may be useful for a baby that stays still for up to a minute at a time, but even before he was mobile our DS wouldn't stay still that long. Holding him tight against us to get an underarm reading just doesn't work, he can wriggle out of anything in about five seconds flat, well or unwell.
We bought ours after taking our DS to the doctors because he felt really hot and we had given him panadol which didn't do anything - it turned out he had a temperature of 39.2. Apart from being really distressed and sleeping badly (which was normal because he was teething at the time), he wasn't showing any specific signs of being unwell, and he wasn't at all lethargic. Although feeling how hot he was a useful indicator that he did have a temperature, it wasn't a useful or accurate indicator of how much of a temperature he had or how it was fluctuating over time. And there have been other times where he has felt hot to touch, but when I have taken his temperature it has been well within the normal range, or even low.
I prefer not to give panadol automatically with a temperature that is only slightly above the normal range, because in the case of viral infections a mild and short lived raised temperature is the body's natural response to try to kill the virus. However, to do this safely, I need to be able to accurately monitor the temperature constantly.
We recently bought one of the Braun tympanic thermometers (one of the $100 ones), and even though I was flabbergasted that I would spend that much on something that will hopefully get very little use, it is fantastic. Accurate, fast (about 1-2 seconds) and easy to use.
At the moment DS has a cold, and has had temperatures, and the thermometer has been really useful to monitor exactly how he is doing.
I have the Braun ear one as well and we love it. We don't give Panadol automatically either but there have been a few hairy times that she has been sick and we have wanted to know the extent of her fever. It is fast and accurate, plus you can check their temp while they are sleeping -big bonus so you don't have to be taking off clothes to get under the arms etc... At $100 it is dear but a great investment as it will last years and years.
i have no idea if they're any good but i recently saw a dummy for a baby with a built in thermometer in it. you just pop it in the bubs mouth and it tells you the reading. i thought it was a great idea. i think i seen it at big w, kmart and a baby store for about $10-$15.
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