All you need instant read thermometer for $14.99


 

Jon Tofte

TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
We toss around the relative merits of the Thermoworks Thermapen One and ThermoPro's Lightning. They are both great thermometers. However, truthfully for most any user, this one on sale for $14.99 is all you need. I have used it myself (until my wife absconded with it and it became our kitchen thermometer) and have given them as gifts (Hint, hint!). Others here have also used them with excellent reviews.


As you cans see, for $5.00 more you can go for the midnight black version.
 
I know this may get some upset, but I really think Thermoworks is overrated.
I have had four Big and Loud timers that I've purchased over the span of about six years and now down to one.
They last about 2-3 years and then the push buttons stop working or require a lot of pressure to work.
I have other timers that are still working fine and are over 20 years old that didn't cost anywhere near what the Thermoworks did.
I have three thermopops that only one of which still works and those aren't even six years old.
I have a Classic Thermopen that is all over the map with temperatures, replaced the battery, no change and I've only had it about two years.
I purchased a couple of new low priced instant read thermometers and so far, they seem to work as well as any of the Thermoworks. Time will tell how long they last amd I won't get into their barrage of email ads. YMMV.
 
We toss around the relative merits of the Thermoworks Thermapen One and ThermoPro's Lightning. They are both great thermometers. However, truthfully for most any user, this one on sale for $14.99 is all you need. I have used it myself (until my wife absconded with it and it became our kitchen thermometer) and have given them as gifts (Hint, hint!). Others here have also used them with excellent reviews.


As you cans see, for $5.00 more you can go for the midnight black version.
Agree 100%! IMO, two or three seconds doesn't make or break a cook. I use the TP19H and find it does a great job. And no, I ain't spending an extra $5 for a different color :) I understand the need to have the latest and greatest all too well. Until I retired and learned to live on a fixed income, that was me. Whatever fits your budget. Keep in mind though, there is a big difference between best price and best value.
 
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Honestly I bought one of those orange ThermoPros to take to my dad's house so I had something when I was grilling there. It's a rock solid device. It's here now and I use that as my outdoor grill on the Big Z or the Wolf or the Q320. Fast as the Lightning? NO, but just as accurate and maybe 2 or 3 seconds slower. I don't care. Though I do tend to gravitate to the Lightning :D
 
We toss around the relative merits of the Thermoworks Thermapen One and ThermoPro's Lightning. They are both great thermometers. However, truthfully for most any user, this one on sale for $14.99 is all you need. I have used it myself (until my wife absconded with it and it became our kitchen thermometer) and have given them as gifts (Hint, hint!). Others here have also used them with excellent reviews.


As you cans see, for $5.00 more you can go for the midnight black version.
I bought one as well a few years back. I love the thing. I think I paid like 13$ or so. I use it in lieu of the themapen only to preserve the thermapens life and honestly, it works as it should. I will admit I am a thermoworks guy only because I've had a great experience with their customer service. I own a pen,pop, Dot, and the smoke I've only had one issue with a probe and they replaced it.
 
I went for thirty odd years with an old “Taylor” dial instant read, no battery, worked in all light conditions.
Timers, for fifteen years I had a three alarm, $20, loud, stuck on the fridge ”Maverick” timer it was great until it landed in the sink!
Now, I have three or four thermo pops, three or four other brands of instant read thermometers in drawers or traveling kitchens and a Dot, on the fridge with the “Big, loud timer” (second one, first didn’t last a month but, replaced very happily by a kind CS rep) a double alarm “Therm pro” which seems to work well enough as long as you are within 30’ (not very loud). I tend to think that this is the quest for the home cook or grilling enthusiast! The small equipment that is so important seems to only have a short Working life.
 
Honestly I always used a so called instant read mechanical round dial thermo. I got by. But, IDK how I got along so well without my ThermoPro units. Honestly before I rarely used the old one because they were so slow. So I went by "feel, smell, look" now I get so much more consistent results but worry I am losing a valuable skillset.
 
I know this may get some upset, but I really think Thermoworks is overrated.
I have had four Big and Loud timers that I've purchased over the span of about six years and now down to one.
They last about 2-3 years and then the push buttons stop working or require a lot of pressure to work.
I have other timers that are still working fine and are over 20 years old that didn't cost anywhere near what the Thermoworks did.
I have three thermopops that only one of which still works and those aren't even six years old.
I have a Classic Thermopen that is all over the map with temperatures, replaced the battery, no change and I've only had it about two years.
I purchased a couple of new low priced instant read thermometers and so far, they seem to work as well as any of the Thermoworks. Time will tell how long they last amd I won't get into their barrage of email ads. YMMV.
I will jump on the bandwagon. On several of the buttons on my Thermoworks Smoke, I do have to push the button hard and sometimes several times to get them to activate. Up to now, the eventually function, but I am not confident that the will fail completely in the future. Otherwise, the unit works great. I also have a Thermoworks One, which works flawlessly and I really like it.
That being said, I also own a ThermoPro TempSpike wireless remote thermometer and find myself going with that over the Thermoworks Smoke mostly due to the ease of use. No wires and the remote is an app on the phone and works flawlessly for me. It has the added benefit of being usable with a rotisserie as well. As far as accuracy, I find it to be very accurate when compared to my instant read themometers. That brings up the Thermoworks Lightning vs Thermoworks One. I think both are extremely good units but I would go with the Lighting for two reasons. First the price which is significant. Second and probably not a big deal to many, but I love the magnet on it. All the ThemoPro products seem to use magnets for sticking them to refrigerators or microwaves or any other steel appliance or object. That makes them readily available and I don't loose them in drawers, baskets cabinets or other black holes around the house or grilling area.

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