BACtrack S80 Breathalyzer | Professional-Grade Accuracy | DOT & NHTSA Approved | FDA 510(k) Cleared | Portable Breath Alcohol Tester for Personal & Professional Use

I need to have a means to check my BAC before driving. I am a very good driver - in almost 30 years, I have never so much as dented a car I was driving except the one time I was stopped at a traffic light and got rear-ended. That said, just because I think - even *know* - that "I can drive", the law may say otherwise. With limits reduced to a meager 0.08%, I am entirely positive I have driven over that limit before and I don't want that to happen again. I cannot afford a DUI. I shopped around and immediately discarded all of the cheap-o keychain options. I am not interested in fail/pass (read: alcohol present vs. not, at all) device. I want an accurate measurement. If I am at 0.08%, or above, I look to either find another mode of transportation or wait it out some, depending. In purchasing this device, I spent more than I had anticipated, but this is an occasion where quality cannot be sacrificed. It arrived quickly after ordering. Within the box was a nice carrying case, the device, an instruction booklet, a registration reminder, a pair of AA batteries, and a half-dozen individually sealed mouthpieces. I reviewed the instruction booklet. It is front-loaded with a few pages of general information RE: alcohol consumption. After that, there are a couple pages dedicated to the operation of the device. The instructions were stone-cold simple except for ONE thing. It made reference to pressing the "Power Button" which is, in fact, the "Start" button. I took a measurement and it seemed to operate just fine, registering a solid 0.00% result, which is good since it is still the middle of the afternoon and I am not an alcoholic. The device is solidly built and everything fits nicely in the case, which zippers shut. It can easily fit in one of the several storage cubbies in our car. I intend to throw a spare set of batteries in there and leave it in the vehicle. Anyway, my wife and I have an active social life and, quite often, it involves some booze. I'll probably be using this device once a week. I will update this review with tales of "actual usage" as they unfold. I may just "calibrate" it tonight, for kicks. There is nothing I see, so far, though that renders this anything less than a five star product. Only tips are: Have spare batteries. Register the product online (takes 30 seconds). Wait 20 minutes after your last drink before expecting an accurate measurement. Be prepared to send it off for calibration once a year. That should do it. Good luck and stay safe and out of trouble! EDIT: The night I purchased the device, I drank some beers and measured the results. They were exactly what I expected them to be. Measuring after waiting 20 minutes after each beer yielded increasing results. I did this for eight beers. About two hours after no longer drinking, the results started to go downward. I am confident I will not only have a good measurement when it comes time to drive, but I will also develop a better sense of what different levels of buzzed/drunk translate to in terms of raw BAC numbers...and how long those numbers take to diminish after stopping drinking for the evening. This is good information to have. EDIT2: After using this device for some months, I absolutely love it. I have basically trained myself to enjoy the evening, but end it under the legal limit. When I go to the car, I check my level and, almost without fail, I am able to predict what it is within 0.005...just based upon what I have consumed and how I feel. No more guesswork. No more risk. I cannot recommend this enough. I have had friends witness my use of the device (and the eerie accuracy of my predictions..."I feel like about a 0.065"...BOOM!) and they have been quite impressed. Hopefully the behavior will rub off on a few of them and they, too, will render themselves immune to unnecessary trouble. EDIT3: 6/26/2015. Well, some nasty person broke into my Jeep Wrangler while I was attending a rock concert with my son, destroyed my locked glove compartment (but couldn't get it open), cracked open the locked middle console, and stole my BACtrack S80 (among other things). I just ordered $800 worth of Tuffy gear (secure glove compartment, middle console, and rear compartment), so that's not going to happen again, but, more pertinent to this product, I am purchasing the same exact BACtrack S80, again. That is how good it is. Meh. It was up for calibration, anyway.

I mentioned this rather expensive S80 as a purchase I was considering to my wife. Surprisingly, she said "great idea" -- she questioned not so much my sobriety, but my legal BAC on a couple of occasions, either after dinner with a couple of drinks, or after beers at a friend's house. If we're together, she'll drive, but there are those times I've come home and she'll smell that I've had a few. I don't drink often, and when I do, I don't drink in any remarkable quantity, but when we're out I'll have a margarita with dinner or a beer with brunch, or a couple of beers while working on the house. Rarely do I feel impaired (and at those times I won't drive), but it's those other times... If I DO get pulled over after a couple drinks, what will I blow if I get pulled over? Without one of these BAC meters, it's always been a big question mark. Anyway, the S80 is indeed a compact unit that stores away in a zippered protective case. It'll stow easily in a glove box or side door compartment, or even under the seat, so that it's in the vehicle when needed. I of course tested it when it first arrived, and let's put it like this: I'm satisfied that I haven't driven over the .08 limit any time in my recent history, and my "I feel impaired" self-selected limit is closer to .05%, which I achieved with 5 beers over 4 or 5 hours. So what I'd like to point out is that this BAC meter shouldn't be used (but *could* be) as a go-ahead to drink more. This meter + common sense is probably the better combination. I personally won't get behind the wheel if my results come back in the .06 to .07 range, and will continue to not drive if I *feel* impaired even if the meter is giving me a BAC in the "safe" range. Operation is one-button simple. I was prepared for a long, hard, deep blowing session to get a good result, but in use it seems far easier and shorter than expected. Keep in mind that you're supposed to wait 20 minutes after your last drink or last BITE OF FOOD before use. That can be a long time. The manual references not fouling the internal workings as the reasoning behind this 20 minute wait, and I definitely don't want to do anything to permanently compromise the accuracy of such an inexpensive instrument. Results do take some time -- maybe 10 seconds? -- to pop up on the LCD display after blowing is complete, but as other reviewers have pointed out, the results seem to be accurate and consistent. The price of this unit is fairly steep, but comparatively, it was the BAC meter I felt to be most reliable. In retrospect, however, I might opt for a less expensive unit because I see it's not as important to have accuracy to the Nth decimal place, but instead to have general idea of what range my blood alcohol content is sitting at. Again, I'm not looking to differentiate between 0.080 versus 0.075, because I wouldn't be driving in either instance. Instead, less accurate .06 versus .05 would be of more use to me, if I felt OK to drive. No, I'm not complaining that this S80 is "too accurate" -- I'm happy to have that level of confidence in the unit -- just saying that a less expensive unit with a less precise BAC readout would be equally useful for my needs. I do plan to make this meter available to any guests over for BBQ / parties / football watching as I think it would be responsible to ensure nobody leaves my house unaware that they're over the legal limit. Seems like the right thing to do.

Okay this is spot-on. I tested and it did seem to be accurate and very reliable. Why did I buy it? My daughter just got her license and I showed her what it would be like if she was ever pulled over and suspected of DUI. It was so impactful she took it to her school and shared it with her friends. YMMV but I feel better a few kids know a bit more.

Una cerveza , 0,02. 2 cervezas 0,04. 3 cervezas, 0,06

I've done experiences and the test results are very accurate. Very fast results in extremely portable package. I really recommend this product!!

Très bonne qualité, seul inconvénient le mode d'emploie n'est pas en Français

Funziona davvero bene ma bisogna selezionare l'unità di misura corretta. Per esprimere il valore in g/L bisogna selezionare l'opzione ‰ in quanto la misura inpostata di default (BAC) è l'unità di misura americana e non adatta in Italia.

The BACtrack S80 Professional Breathalyzer has been a game-changer for me. It’s so reassuring to know I can drive with confidence after a dinner or BBQ without relying on guesswork or counting drinks. Instead of risking my life and others by guessing my blood alcohol level, I now have accurate, reliable information at my fingertips. The device is easy to use, and the after-sales service for annual servicing has been excellent, ensuring my breathalyzer stays in top condition. If you value safety and responsibility, this is a must-have tool. Highly recommended!