The Meater (wireless meat thermometers) - Kickstarter project

[SconnieQ]

By the time we get these it should only be 1.5 years beyond the initial target. Good thing I'm patient in regards to this.

I hear ya Tony. I am just hoping that the good old Maverick et-733 holds out until this thing ships. I am still remaining cautiously optimistic.

I will say, that this was my first Kickstarter purchase, and this experience is going to make me very wary about doing another one unless it is something like this one that I REALLY want.

If someone else came out on the market with this exact concept, then I'd be pretty upset that I couldn't just buy the other one. But there isn't anything else out there like this, so I can wait. It does cause me some concern though as to whether it's going to work, or last. Sounds like they got a little ahead of themselves in proving the technology when they launched the campaign. Maybe the technology isn't quite there yet and they are sweating bullets right now. I'm not going to go broke if this thing doesn't work out, but without the support of all of us with blind faith, the project never would have gotten off the ground. I'm sure this cost a bundle of money to develop. Far more than the $100,000 they originally asked for. Good thing they got $2.5 million. I'll continue to support Kickstarter projects if it's something this unique, and something I really want. You kind of have to assume some projects might never materialize, so I will keep within a budget I can afford to lose.

 

[NDKoze]

If the choice is between getting product right away versus a delay even for 1.5+ years to get a higher quality product, I would rather wait and get the better quality product. This isn't going to break me either, but it is a fair chunk of money that could have been used toward an already released product.

But, "The Meater" is unique enough with no real competitors that I am still very comfortable with my decision to sponsor this campaign and do not have any reservations about recommending this to others as long as the recommendation is given with the warning that this is still a bit of a gamble as we won't know the quality level and how well it works until we get our hands on the devices.

Based on the last update, it does appear that they are trying to address some of the frustrations that are being expressed by the backers via replies to their recent updates.

 

[tnlyne]

I will say, that this was my first Kickstarter purchase, and this experience is going to make me very wary about doing another one unless it is something like this one that I REALLY want.

Ditto.

 

[welloffman]

I funded through Indiegogo for the Umami package (block + single). I have lost almost $300 to another campaign and hope the Meater works out. This is the last update I received:

We're happy to report some of our earliest backers have received their MEATERs! Although the first shipment was small, our next shipment will be larger. Our production process is slow but all of the extra testing is to ensure every single MEATER that comes out of the factory "meats" our high standard of quality. As we improve the process, we will ramp up to larger quantities and complete fulfillment of all MEATER orders in the coming months. We plan to ship the next batch of MEATERs by March 31st. With that said, if you haven't already, please double check that your shipping address is correct, we'd be deeply saddened if your MEATER ended up in the wrong hands!

We've also been working on MEATER Block and making advancements on both the software and hardware front. It's still early to give an accurate shipping date, but as soon as we're rolling along and confident in the results of our progress, you will be the first to know.

 

[welloffman]

After the update, I emailed them and got the following response:

ME:
Sent: Tuesday, March 21, 2017 4:22 AM
To: Joseph Cruz
Subject: New Message from Dane on Indiegogo: Re: Updates from ‘MEATER: The Only Wire-Free Smart Meat Thermometer’

I'd really be more interested in dates rather than more promises. This has gone on too long to keep delaying the product. Maybe it is time you just said " Gee, we are piss poor planners and ask your forgiveness for not doing our job up front"! That would go a lot further with your clients than" "we have to keep fine tuning all the software and hardware to "meat" our high standard of quality""! Hell, send me a probe as a Beta tester. I've been waiting since Christmas to smoke some pork shoulders!

RESPONSE:
Hello Dane,

Thank you for checking in with us. We are creating small production batches and extensively testing the units for quality control purposes. Based on the results, we may incrementally increase the batch quantity to gradually reach mass production. Our current goal is to be shipping the bulk of MEATERs (single probe with charger) to our crowdfunders this month and into April and May. If there are changes made in the production process, it may be necessary to adjust the delivery timeline. When MEATER is being mass produced, we will redirect our focus to MEATER Block and can estimate a timeline for delivery then. Thank you so much for your continued support and patience throughout this journey.

Best,

Sam

 

[Buck]

Any update on these?  Anybody get one yet?  Reviews?

 

[SconnieQ]

I funded a Meater Block, so I doubt I will see that this year. If there are problems with the single Meaters now being shipped, it will be longer than that, maybe never.

 

[dibiase]

The idea of the meater sounds great but I have a feeling there are just to many technical issues to over come for this to every work reliably and as advertised.

 

[kz0m]

Well, like many of you, I also kicked in to help the Meater folks.  Received my single unit about a week ago and tried it yesterday on a turkey breast.  Nice unit.  I was able to monitor the smoking turkey by using meater link, the BT with our SS Smokin-it 3D unit would not transmit the BT signal more than a few feet, 5 feet to be exact, so I did go through the meater link via our wifi and that worked good.  I had to put my iPhone on top of the 3D to make it connect consistently though.  Cook time was about 5 hours and I kept the door shut the whole time.  When the Meater said the cook was finished at 165 degrees and to take it out and let it rest, I took my trusty digital probe thermometer to measure where the probe was inserted,the thickest part of the breast.  No dice, temp showed 151 where the Meater probe was located on my digital thermometer.  I kept the bird in 20 more minutes and then pulled it and wrapped in double foil, we will heat it up in our oven before eating it.  I did send a message to the meater folks to let them know.  Even my Smokin-it 3D temp probe works so much better than the Meater.  Just my two cents worth, nice cook graph and ambient temp was close compared to my set temp of 225 then up to 250 after 3 hours but the actual probe meat temp was off by over 10 degrees ;-(. Carl

 

[NDKoze]

I broke down and bought a single unit too so that I could test while waiting for my Meater Block.

Unfortunately I have not had a chance to test it yet. Maybe this weekend.

My plan is to smoke a pork butt while monitoring with both my trusty et-733 and The Meater to see how close they are. I'll also test when done with my instant read Javelin Pro.

Hopefully I have better results.

 

[LTS]

I tried the single unit meater the other day and had the same results stopped at 5ft, cooked a pair of chucks one with 732 maverick and they were within a couple of % . I also bought a transmitter &
receiver to see if it could help. I tethered it to my I phone ( it`s used for speakers ) it got me inside the house but would go on & off. I know a lot of the guys on this site are pretty savvy with electronics, I remember years ago we had poor TV recp. and I bought a antenna with an amp. to plug in  (  Or  was it just a rotor
I can`t remember it`s 45yrs ago ) but it improved dramatically I hope somebody can figure a work around. I did email meater I thought they may have a suggestion. They did not

HTH  Paul

 

[NDKoze]

I tried the single unit meater the other day and had the same results stopped at 5ft, cooked a pair of chucks one with 732 maverick and they were within a couple of % . I also bought a transmitter &
receiver to see if it could help. I tethered it to my I phone ( it`s used for speakers ) it got me inside the house but would go on & off. I know a lot of the guys on this site are pretty savvy with electronics, I remember years ago we had poor TV recp. and I bought a antenna with an amp. to plug in  (  Or  was it just a rotor
I can`t remember it`s 45yrs ago ) but it improved dramatically I hope somebody can figure a work around. I did email meater I thought they may have a suggestion. They did not

HTH  Paul

My experience is even worse. I lose connection with my phone sitting on top the smoker after I shut the smoker door. I am starting to fear that while this thermometer may work great on el-cheapo thin single wall Masterbuilt type smokers, the insulated smokers like Smokin-It may cause a problem. I am going to write to Meater and see if they have any suggestions.

Anyone else found any solutions?

 

[SconnieQ]

My experience is even worse. I lose connection with my phone sitting on top the smoker after I shut the smoker door. I am starting to fear that while this thermometer may work great on el-cheapo thin single wall Masterbuilt type smokers, the insulated smokers like Smokin-It may cause a problem. I am going to write to Meater and see if they have any suggestions.

Anyone else found any solutions?

Since I smoke a lot in the winter, that would be a problem. You can't leave your phone sitting outside on top of the smoker. I'm wondering if the Meater Block will help? I assume that the probe would still connect to the block through bluetooth, then the block connects to your wifi network? So it seems that might present the same problem? Maybe the block would also need to sit right on top of the smoker too? Would the block be safe out in below freezing temps? Is it safe to assume that the block will have no better luck keeping contact with the probe than a phone does? Questions for you tech nerds out there. I'm waiting for the Meater Block that I funded, which might never actually get here, but I have to say, I'm not really that anxious to get it anymore. Either they will just give up, or fix the problems before the block comes out.

 

[NDKoze]

Just an FYI in case this helps, but I found the following attached information in "The Meater" FAQ:

 

[NDKoze]

My experience is even worse. I lose connection with my phone sitting on top the smoker after I shut the smoker door. I am starting to fear that while this thermometer may work great on el-cheapo thin single wall Masterbuilt type smokers, the insulated smokers like Smokin-It may cause a problem. I am going to write to Meater and see if they have any suggestions.

Anyone else found any solutions?

Since I smoke a lot in the winter, that would be a problem. You can't leave your phone sitting outside on top of the smoker. I'm wondering if the Meater Block will help? I assume that the probe would still connect to the block through bluetooth, then the block connects to your wifi network? So it seems that might present the same problem? Maybe the block would also need to sit right on top of the smoker too? Would the block be safe out in below freezing temps? Is it safe to assume that the block will have no better luck keeping contact with the probe than a phone does? Questions for you tech nerds out there. I'm waiting for the Meater Block that I funded, which might never actually get here, but I have to say, I'm not really that anxious to get it anymore. Either they will just give up, or fix the problems before the block comes out.

Kari, I just sent Apption Labs a question via their Support Portal asking basically all of your questions. I will update this thread with their response.

 

[LTS]

I emailed katielyn # meatermaid  she said the same thing about the probe placement. In their video
they put the probe in an oven with a window, also on the grill they leave an iPad at the grill $$$$$
for me right now I`ll just leave the old 732 maverick out on top, and just for the heck of it I tried
using the 732 to help with the signal of the probe and no luck. You think they would have some way
to boost the signal. Do i have a fancy indoor unit ?

  Paul

 

[Gilwell]

I had all these same issues and concerns when I reviewed my Meater back in July: http://smokinitforums.com/index.php?topic=6404.msg58758#msg58758

I have decided that it's way more trouble than it's worth. I'm not leaving my iPad outside, even in an Alabama winter (we actually had snow last week!).

I hope the developers enjoyed our money!

Jim

 

[SconnieQ]

Maybe it will only be useful for indoor/household oven use. Has anyone found the probe to be accurate?

 

[kz0m]

Poor accuracy and poor signal strength, I’ll probably use it with my bbq grill, whenever I cook burgers or something. 
Hey, this is a GREAT opportunity to have the Smokin-it units installed with BT technology . Even my little Davy Crockett Green Mountain Grill has it and it works great!

 

[DivotMaker]

I hadn't followed this while I was away.  I'm sorry to hear the Meater just hasn't worked out.  I developed my opinion that it would be a hard road for them while dealing with Ted at Fireboard.  He's a smart cat, and really gave me an education on hardware and challenges faced in wireless temp monitoring.  The mil-grade technology is out there, but none of us would want to afford it just for BBQ!  Maybe, some day, this technology will be the norm, not the exception.