I have always found the soil ph testers to be useless also.

I think taking a sample and doing a wet test is the only true way to tell. Even then you should multiple samples from different areas as you may have pockets of lower or higher ph throughout the total area you are trying to test.

You can get digital meters off ebay for fairly cheap but they need to be calibrated often or they can be inaccurate. The ph paper strips are the easiest option and are fairly cheap. I have seen them in garden stores for $8 for 100 strips.

You might have better luck asking this on the "Soil, Compost, & Mulch" forum.

Depends on what your needs are .. the handhelds may be convenient but I like the cheap of the little strips and I find for my city yard, trees and flowers I don't use them that often.