If you’re searching for Contour test strips — Contour Next, Contour Next One, or Contour strips — now is a good time to consider a meter that doesn’t use test strips at all and has a built-in finger pricker.
The Betachek C50 uses a 50-test cassette instead of individual test strips — so you stop handling, loading, and binning a strip after every finger prick.
What Contour test strips actually are
Contour test strips are the single-use strips made for Ascensia’s Contour family of meters — most often Contour Next and Contour Next One in Australian retail. Each strip comes from a vial or foil pack. You open the container, pull one strip, push it into the meter, apply blood, then pull the used strip out and throw it away.
The chemistry works. Contour Next strips are a mainstream, accurate strip system. The issue is not whether Contour can measure glucose. The issue is the bulky kit that comes with every strip-based brand:
- A separate meter
- A separate finger pricker
- A vial of Contour test strips
- Used test strip after each test
- A zip up case to hold it all
That is the same “old kit” pattern you see with Accu-Chek Guide Me and most pharmacy meters — Contour is just one of the brands that still sells it.
Why Contour Next strips (and every kit-style strip) get annoying
You handle every strip twice
Open vial → insert strip → apply blood → eject or pull the used strip → dispose. Do that enough times and it makes testing something to avoid. Multiple items to handle, fiddly packaging or remembering to quickly recap the strip container or looking for a rubbish bin for a used test strip all take their toll.
The Betachek C50 meter has a built-in finger pricker, so the Contour-style three-piece kit (meter + strip vial + separate lancing device) collapses into one pocketable unit. Meal markers, adjustable lancing depth, and app logging are included for people who test around meals or want a cleaner history.
More on the design here: is an all-in-one blood glucose meter better? and can glucose meters work without test strips?
Contour test strips vs Betachek C50
| Feature | Contour test strips + Contour meter | Betachek C50 |
|---|---|---|
| How you test | One loose strip per test | 50-test cassette |
| Handle / dispose of used strip | ✗ Yes, every test | ✓ Wound into cassette |
| Finger pricker | Separate device | Built into the meter |
| Pieces to carry | Meter + strip vial + pricker + case | One handheld unit |
| Meal markers | Depends on Contour model | ✓ |
| Best for | Staying on a Contour meter you already own | Convenient testing |
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How to try the Betachek C50 instead of another pack of Contour strips
The BETACHEK C50 Value Pack: 4 cassettes (200 tests) plus 200 lancets and a FREE meter.
OR
The BETACHEK C50 Starter Pack – Meter + 50 test cassette
FAQ: Contour test strips
Are Contour Next strips the same as Contour test strips?
In everyday search language, yes — people type “Contour test strips” when they mean Contour Next / Contour Next One strips for Ascensia Contour meters. Always match the strip name on the vial to your exact Contour model; Contour generations are not freely interchangeable.
Can I use Contour test strips in a Betachek C50?
No. The C50 only takes Betachek cassettes. Contour strips only work in Contour meters. Switching means changing both the meter and the consumable — that is the point of leaving the old kit behind.
Where do people buy Contour Next strips in Australia?
Online pharmacies commonly list Contour Next strips. Stock and pricing move often.
What is better than Contour test strips for daily testing?
If “better” means fewer parts and no loose-strip handling, a cassette meter like the Betachek C50 is the direct alternative. If “better” means lowest NDSS out-of-pocket on a meter you already own, Contour strips on subsidy may still win on price alone — at the cost of keeping the kit.