5/4/14: I am currently using this for the 2nd time now and am really happy. I've basically been a steak and chop griller, but am now trying smoking on my weber 18. My initial thoughts:
My 1st attempt was a HUGE success! I never realized I was loading the grill too soon - before it had properly heated, and was then losing so much heat while checking on things. I was able to be more patient using the thermometer to monitor the grill, and when ready to load it, I then changed my probe settings to monitor chicken and steak. They came out perfect! The best ever!
Figuring out how to program it is not hard, but you need to go slowly with the instructions next to you. Practice at least once before grilling. I practice while setting it up to test boiling water. It worked well. Accurate.
Comparing it to the other remote thermometers I saw, this just seems to have all the features in 1. Dual probes; the actual readout information is sent to the unit you hold (the receiver), instead of the transmitter (that receives the probe info directly) keeping that info and you just holding an alarm that lets you know when the temp is too high or too low. I like how you can simply choose your meat and then set rare, medium, etc so I do not need to know the actual exact temp I want.
I agree that 3' probes are too short for a thermometer in this price range, but if you have a table near the grill, you can make it work. I am taking off a star for not including at least 1 6" probe, and for my battery concerns (see below).
I think the unit is a nice quality. Yes, it's plastic, but what else do you want? If the transmitter was metal, it would conduct too much heat! Guess the receiver could be metal. The stands are nicely thought out. The screws in the transmitter is needed to make it water resistant, and that unit shouldn't use up batteries as much.
Not sure about battery use. The batteries that came with it lasted one grilling in the receiver. The low battery sensor showed it as low and the screen was real dim when I was preparing for my 2nd use. I replaced the batteries and it works fine, but the "old" ones still measure as "strong" with my battery tester. If it really needs fresh batteries all the time (just the receiver; not the transmitter), I'll use rechargeable and recharge each time. BTW, it remembered my settings when I changed the batteries.
Customer service was responsive. I was looking at this product and an Acurite product. I emailed Acurite a few days before emailing Maverick. Maverick responded the next day. Acurite has not responded yet and it's been a week.
One thing I was unsure of was how I could run the probe wire outside my weber 18 with the lid closed without crimping the wire. The instructions say crimping the probe wire will break it. The Maverick folks say that closing my lid should not be a problem, and so far it has not been, but I am making sure to open and close my lid gently.
5/7/14: Man, I love this product so much that I restored the star that I took off for not having 6' probe cords. So...my attempt to smoke some pork rib meat (mentioned above) was a success! A moderate success, because I had trouble getting my rill temp down to the low 200s. No way I could try it without these dual probes to monitor temperature and my food simultaneously!!!! The biggest problem is keeping my weber in that slow-cooking zone, but now that I know where I need to set my intake and chimney openings, I think I'll do even better next time. Still, my cinco de Mayo pulled pork tacos were enjoyed by all, even my "carbaholic" 8-year old who ate more meat in 1 sitting than she usually eats in a full day!!!
Also, I will still be monitoring the battery issue, but after 4 hours of use, it did not register low battery and seemed perfectly fine. Even the transmitter that still has the original batteries in it seems fine.
In case it was not clear from the 1st post, one of the other nice things is that you can change the probe settings on the fly. When straight grilling (high heat for chicken or steak), what I did the first time and expect to continue to do is to start by setting 1 probe to monitor the grill and the other for meat, but the meat probe just dangles off the probe while the grill thermometer monitors the grill. When ready to load the grill with the meat, I will do that, stick both probes in the meats (if I am cooking multiple pieces) and then change the barbecue probe to set it for meat. Also, I set the meat "taste" setting to the lowest preset setting (rare for beef, medium for pork, etc so I'll know when it reached a safe temperature. Then, I change the taste setting to what I prefer (medium for steak, well done for pork.
Since my last time, I also used my probe for fish. Great way to get it medium rare, as we prefer!
Last comment: Maverick customer service is very responsive. I am at the point where I do not expect to need the instructions unless there is a problem, in which case they will probably be misplaced, so I reached out and asked them for a PDF copy that I can just save to my phone to call upon whenever I need it. Anyway, they email me a copy in less than an hour!!! I do not see how I can attach a PDF to this review, but if any of you want to see the instructions (I like to do that to get an idea of all the capabilities), you can ask maverick for a copy.
5/27/14 UPDATE: Still love this unit and I am no longer concerned with battery life. Today was my 4th time grilling with the same rechargeable batteries. This includes a 2-hour barbecuing session. The low battery light came on last time, but I decided not to change the batteries. This time, I just forgot, but the batteries on the receiver made it through. I'm still using the original batteries with the transmitter.
This product is great!
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Reviews with images
Good but DON'T LEAVE IT IN DIRECT SUNLIGHT
I'll start by saying this thermometer improved my smoking tenfold, it's very accurate, and it's somewhat easy to use. The buttons aren't as intuitive as an iPhone or anything, but once you use the instructions to get it how you like it, you can generally figure out how to work it from then on.Unfortunately, the sun isn't very friendly to the main screen of the display remote. Ever since I barbecued all day with the sun hitting its screen, you can't see the numbers anymore without looking at it from an extreme top-down angle. Not a deal-breaker, and I still use it, but it's pretty damn inconvenient to always have to tilt it enough to see what your temps are at.The other remote, which the thermometers are plugged into, still works perfectly, even in the rain.
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