Being a nerd I bought the Combustion with the display about 6 months ago. I has not disappointed me. I like the fact that it has all those sensors so I don't need to guess where the exact center of the meat is located. I have a rack of ribs going right now in my smoker. I'm about 40 feet away with two walls between and I'm watching the graph just chugging along.
I have both the Meater Block and the Combustion Inc with booster and display, and was an early backer on both. For me, the Combustion Inc is hands down the winner, UNLESS you can't get enough range, or you need remote monitoring. With the booster and the range, I think it is plenty range for most people. They are working on adding WiFi, piggy backing off a connected Anrdroid or iOS device. Couple of reasons why the Combustion is better. Even if it disconnects and reconnects, it save all graphing data. It is stored on the probe itself, so nothing is lost. But the biggest reason, is it has 8 thermometers in one and it uses them well. This makes it much easier to find the geometric center of what you are cooking. When I would cook a roast chicken using the Meater, I would cook it 80-90 percent done, and then check using a probe thermometer. Sometimes the geometric center would as much as 8 degrees F off from the Meater. With the Combustion it finds the true core well enough that I don't have to worry if my thermometer placement was off. I don't have to double check with a probe thermometer. Not to mention, Combustion is making it better at a rapid pace.
All great points. Thanks for sharing your perceptive. I’m looking to do a dedicated review on combustion Inc when the new app and features are added. I’ll take a much more deeper dive and maybe even change my ranking. Thanks for watching, cheers
I have only used the meater, so my opinion will be biased. But I have never had such temp problems using the meater. That being said, I'm usually cooking meat the size of a steak or chicken breast, not a roast or whole bird. I can't imagine my meater being off by 8 degrees, or when I do, I think of the trash can. That being said, meater 2 is out. I just picked some up for Christmas presents. It has 5 internal sensors, and the external can now handle over 900 degrees F. The internal ones can go even higher too (apparently brisket people push temps a bit?) It has better range than the previous model and is thinner, too! It doesn't log the data internally as far as I know though. But with the improved range it shouldn't be an issue. I don't know the software side inside and out of the meater, only that it has provided me the capability to create steaks that rival nice restaurants, as well as cook food to juicy perfection using methods never attempted on the 1st try. The combustion sounds cool. But I'm already up a meater tree over here. Is the combustion that orange box with the screen? I saw a youtuber promoting their own product that sounded similar to what you're describing (based off the number of sensors)
No matter what, these wireless meat thermometers are an awesome tool. After having one, I'll never turn back! This is as integral as the kitchen scale has become for me.
@@brandonhoffman4712 yeah, the creator is @chrisyoungcooks and he promotes combustion inc on his channel. Very cool channel, check him out. It’s a very nice thermometer system. I would love to put the new MEATER 2 plus head to head with it. Personally I found combustion inc’s hardware above and beyond.
Great information Tom! I personally own a Meater and kudos for them for had been the first ones with such ground breaking wireless thermometer but the hardware is outdated, is very frustrating the disconnections and your test results confirmed it. As an engineer I was surprise when you still choose the Meater as a winner. Just taking in consideration that the hardware is looking obsolete comparing with the newer models like Combustion (4 VS 2 sensor) for me is a no brainer. Looking forward to hear your review for the new Meater VS the updated Combustion.
The typhur handheld is not instant. It's still a 3 second wait and is known for being inaccurate. The ThermoWorks Thermapen ONE is the only one-second thermometer on the market that's tested against a super thermometer for precision. Great review and info though! The variables used are simply off is all so it was hard to trust it. In fact, I bet you could get any thermoworks product for free to review. The reason the meatstick did that is because it's software is lagging by design. They don't want you knowing it's disconnected so they wait a long while to even let you know it did disconnect. And all of those thermometers guess the temperature. They're using an algorithm due to the poor quality of the sensors so assume temp. Hopefully thermoworks will save us all by coming out with a product that actually works. Someday...
This a well designed, well-thought-out review of top wireless meat thermometers. I currently have a clunky Weber system I will be replacing at some point in the not too distant future, and will review your video again to make a selection for a new system (got my choice narrowed down to two, but will go through the process another time before making a final selection). I need about a 30ft range, but that has to go through my home's outer brick wall and another sheet rock wall - no way to know that, but even the Weber makes that distance (it's just an awkward system). Many thanks!
I really don't understand how Meater wins overall if it is less accurate and just spontaneously drops connection for no reason, even with no heat. The Combustion has best accuracy, best min depth, best distance to disconnect, and you didn't even cover the predictive element of it.
I cannot imagine how Tom chose Meater as the winner when it has connection problems which defeats the ENTIRE purpose. Combustion was the CLEAR winner here.
I've had to return my meater+ twice one didn't work out of the box. I've also never had a cook that it didn't disconnect at least once. FYI when it disconnects pull the battery from the base instead of having to put the probe back into the base
Kinda starting to seem like meater is paying for these reviews as I’ve seen a couple with the same outcome… “combustion is better in most ways BUT meater wins”
Awesome breakdown! You gave me everything I wanted to know. Now I’m going to rewind a review because you covered a lot in that video. Thanks for taking the time to do this.
meater looks cool and probably the meater + I hear works fine. I received the basic meater, which is about as useful as a wired thermometer, since I have to be right next to it to get any connection.
I've had the meater+ for about 10 months now and I'm not impressed and would never buy again. On three different occasions (two of them being long cooks on my smoker) I have had to remove the probe and reinsert it back in the base in order for it to reconnect. This completely defeats the purpose of having a wireless thermometer. I have currently switched back to my ThermoPen wired setup. After watching your review I am going to buy Combustion Inc. Thanks for such a thorough review. However in my opinion reviewing the Meater+ #1 seems to be a huge mistake. If a meater needs to reinserted into the base during a long cook it makes it borderline unuseable. Reliability, once again in my opinion, should be the number one factor.
This has happened to me. I have stopped using the meater and went back to my wired probe. I can’t quite express the rage when I spent 300 bucks for a product that does work.
I had this same thing happen to me until I put the Meater block right next to the grill. After that, it's worked flawless without any disconnections. With that said, I really like the looks of the Combustion probes/system. I was considering buying the new Meater 2 Plus, but this review (along with a few others) have convinced me to take a closer look at Combustion.
I have not gone "complete" wireless. (Yet). I have Maverick and Inkbird systems; both require wires to hang out of the grill. They connect to a "base" unit that sends grill and food temps wirelessly, to a receiver I keep inside the house. Both work very well. Neither have Wi-Fi, however, when I need to go out during a long cook, I'll take an Arlo camera and position it looking directly at the receiver unit. If you have a home security system that allows you to place a camera where you like, you can monitor temps from anywhere.
I have a Smart grill with Wi-Fi and built-in 4 wired thermometers. Range is not an issue, since I can check the temp anywhere, range is infinite. I think I would use a wireless thermometer when I have to flip meat and avoid making multiple holes in the meat. Or even resting the meat.
The meater takes you through the whole process of cooking meat. Even resting the meat. The version 2 is out and can handle over 900 degrees. Making it the new grill king for wireless models. Now you can crank the heat for the last 10 degrees of meat temp for a sear. I have the version 1.0. It was a game changer. Perfect oven chicken (chefs kiss). I got it to reverse sear steaks and can now rival a good steak restaurant with my own cooking. 2.0 is on another level though. 1.0 you had to watch your bbq Temps and pull it out for the sear, relying on timing at the end of an otherwise perfect process. Your bbq sounds cool though, what model?
I have the combustion and screen - and while I havent used any others, based on what Ive read its best for my use. I dont have a smoker and only use it for my grill. That being the case range isnt as important, and it needs to stay connected all the time with quicker cooks. Needing to take out the meatr and replace it wouls be super annoying with cooking a steak or chop.
Hey Tom, great video. Since this video is about a year old, can you tell us if the app on Combustion has been updated like you were hoping? I am also an Engineer and love the accuracy, but for some reason, I can't bring myself to get the Meater when the Tempspike just updated their hardware. Have you had a chance to test these again? Thanks
Bought combustion inc, I'm an engineer. Brother also bought it after checking it out. The app was a little quirky if you had to take out probe and reposition. It would wipe data graph and restart as a new file. It has been updated recently and I haven't checked to see if this was fixed.
I’m surprised you didn’t check out the chefiq thermometers. The meater 2 looks good due to the high temp capacity. I wish combustion inc had included wifi in the display.
I think you would be really happy with the Typhur sync. Check it out Typhur Sync Wireless Meat Thermometer Review | Everything You Could Want ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-fNY6mEgGxDw.html
Then this video is for you. Meater 2 Plus vs Combustion Inc vs Typhur Sync | These Are Best Wireless Smart Meat Thermometers ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-hrNNXFyKpAQ.html
There’s no need for it. The internal temp of the Food can never exceed the water temp even if left in there for hours. You can undercook food with sous vide if you didn’t leave it in long enough but you can’t overlook food. General rule of thumb for steaks is every 1/2 inch thickness must be sous vide for 30 mins. So a 2 inch thick steak needs to be in there for 2 hrs.
It can help you know when your meats internal temp reaches perfection. Just make sure your model is safe for doing so. There's still juices in the bag!
Yes, the disconnects are frustrating but it’s a great value, easy to use and learn, great app, decent range, and good accuracy. As I said, it’s number one now but if the company doesn’t innovate soon, I feel like combustion inc will knock it out of 1st.
Meater has worked great for me. There's a model 2.0 out now too. 1,000 ft+ range and can handle over 900 degrees. Spicy! I have the version 1.0 and it took my meat cooking from a 2 to a 5 with 100% consistency. I've only used it on steak and chicken. But this thing can nail the hardest meat to nail I've found. Boneless skinless chicken breast, oven perfect everytime! I'll always recommend it, the app even holds your hand through resting the meat. 2.0 has 6 internal sensors too!
Meater 2 is out and aiming to destroy. Fully stainless for higher temps with a ceramic band for signal capability. Over 900 degrees on the external now! Sear away my meaterers. Also 6 internal temp sensors all with a higher internal max temp. Its even got bluetooth 5 with some new g wizzy stuff that will give it a 1,000-6,000 ft range.
