For a Christmas gift, we were given a kitchen thermometer that did not meet our needs. So we took it back to the store and exchanged it for a Taylor Elite dial-type "instant read" thermometer (sorry, don't know the model). We were very disappointed to find that it took about 38 seconds to settle on a temperature. Hardly "instant"... our years-old thermometer from the grocery store is faster! So we took that one back to the store and exchanged it for the Taylor Elite digital "instant read" model 608-20. The store clerk demonstrated her sample of that model and it was pretty fast. But when we got ours home, we found that the little plastic tab that prevents the battery from being run down had been pulled and the battery apparently was dead. The store where we got this is VERY far from our house, so I decided to replace the battery, using the instructions on the package. Unfortunately, it doesn't actually tell how to *remove* the battery, only how to *open the thermometer casing*. So, once I had the casing opened, it appeared that the way to remove the battery was to spread the little plastic tabs that hold the battery in place. But when I tried that, the plastic tab broke off!So... The first "Taylor Elite" thermometer that we tried was *extremely* slow. The second one had no actual instructions for replacing the battery, and when I tried to do it anyway, the thermometer broke! This is our first experience with Taylor products and it is not one that makes us want to try them again. "Elite" is not really the first word that comes to mind! If our thermometer had performed the way the sample in the store did, and if I had been successful in changing the battery, I would give this 4 stars. (It's not fast enough for 5.) But the simple fact is that a battery-operated device sooner or later needs a new battery and you have to be able to replace it without breaking the device. Update 1-26-10: I wrote to Taylor at the same time I first posted this review. At this time, I have not heard ONE word from them.

NCjohn

Asheville, NC