We recommend

First Alert SA302CN 

Price: $99.64

Good points: Excellent flaming fire response. Very good smouldering fire response. Easy to use. Dual sensor model. TV remote can be used to test or silence the alarm (useful for high ceilings).

But: Not suitable for kitchens: the ionisation sensor could produce false alarms. Expensive.

Orca SafetyAce OM PE10 LL

Price: $44.95

Good points: Very good flaming fire response. Excellent smouldering fire response. Easy to use. Long-life (10-year) battery good for awkward-to-reach locations like high ceilings.

But: (No obvious bad points.)

Available from: Mitre 10 stores under the product code 129598. 

Comment: The distributors have now released the OM588H model. This new model uses the same sensor as the OM PE210LL but comes with a cheaper one-year battery (the OM PE210LL comes with a 10-year long-life battery). Retail price is around $13. We have not tested this new model, but have inspected the unit and can see no reason why it shouldn't perform as well as the long-life version.

First Alert SA710CN

Price: $34.98

Good points: Good flaming fire response. Excellent smouldering fire response. Easy to use. The least expensive of our recommended models.

But: (No obvious bad points.)

Worth considering

Quell Q307H

Price: $22.67

Good points: Good flaming fire response. Excellent smouldering fire response. Easy to use. Good price (for a photoelectric model).

But: Flaming fire response not quite as good as in our recommended models.

Flamefighter SS-166S

Price: $16.98

Good points: Good flaming fire response. Very good smouldering fire response. Excellent to use.

But: Flaming fire response not quite as good as in our recommended models.

Orca SafetyAce OM196H

Price: $12.83

Good points: Good flaming fire response. Very good smouldering fire response. Good price (for a photoelectric model).

But: Only OK to use. Flaming fire response not quite as good as in our recommended models. Test button couldn’t be activated with the blunt end of a broom stick. 

Elto ESD-196H

Price: $17.00

Good points: Good flaming fire response. Excellent smouldering fire response. 

But: Poor ease of use. Flaming fire response not quite as good as in our recommended models. Test button took a long time to activate and couldn’t be activated with the blunt end of a broomstick. 

Wormald WRS001PH

Price: $30.99

Good points: Good flaming fire response. Good smouldering fire response. 

But: Difficult to use. Flaming fire response not quite as good as in our recommended models. Test button took a long time to activate and couldn’t be activated with the blunt end of a broomstick. 

Comment: We could find these only at KMart stores.