Yes, I highly trust Tempil stix, however, the owner of the company gave me the "el-cheapo" POS "ray gun" to use. Fortunately, the shop had temp stix on hand. Whether they are well made instruments, there is also the "black body" vs. shiny surface that can throw off readings too.
Along these same lines, I trust PH test strips for chemical strength. Used the digital units on that too with less than desirable results.