Cool Gadgets

[NewToy]

I found what I thought was the coolest little gadget at Target the other day. It's a remote meat thermometer that works with an RF signal. It has a probe that goes in the meat with a 2' braided wire cable that attaches to a small base unit. There is another piece that resembles a beeper that tracks the temp, time and a few other functions I haven't checked out yet. It works up to 100' away. It's like $20 bucks and slick as a whistle. I had no idea they even made these things. What else am I missing out on?

John

 

[anojones]

These things are great for low and slow bbq- you can get the remote next to your bed for those 20 hour brisket cooks. They have come down a lot in price- I'd stil like one of those true instant thermometers (Thermapen), but they seem to still be around $80.

 

[rcrcomputing]

A garmin GPS unit for your vehicle.

 

[Solo]

I found the Garmin I got for Christmas useless. It had the route # of the road I live on wrong. It also could not find rural addresses. Maybe good for city driving.

Solo

 

[jdbower]

If you like the remote temperature sensors you'll love the BBQ Guru, not only do you get a few meat sensors, but there's a sensor for your pit and a fan to help stabilize it. It's not all that great on a steel cooker like a Weber grill since it's hard to isolate the airflow, but it's perfect for smokers or low-and-slow cookers (my favorite is the Komodo Kamado). For the super-geek, the Stoker has an Ethernet port so you can monitor your cook from work.

 

[tallyho8]

For the super-geek, the Stoker has an Ethernet port so you can monitor your cook from work.

Wow! With that device a hacker could turn your roast into toast!

 

[rcrcomputing]

I found the Garmin I got for Christmas useless. It had the route # of the road I live on wrong. It also could not find rural addresses. Maybe good for city driving.

Solo

That's the only time I use it. On trips and in the city.

 

[NewToy]

I did a turkey breast on the smoker today using the remote thermometer and it worked great. You don't have to keep taking the lid off losing heat to check it. As soon as it hit 180 degrees on my little remote it was done perfectly. I don't know how I've managed to get by so long without this thing.

John

 

[coffeeman]

I found the Garmin I got for Christmas useless. It had the route # of the road I live on wrong. It also could not find rural addresses. Maybe good for city driving.

Solo

I got a Tom Tom. It's pretty neat. I have found you have to get to know how it works. It's not a 100%. It can be confusing around cities when navagating a network of interstate exits in close heavy traffic. It pays to have a good understanding of where and how your going before you hit the beltways. The Tom Tom is a helper in this case. Many times the address is not exact but you will get close to where your going.

My son-in-law has one and uses it to check his speed. His speedometer is broke. In fact, I have heard there is a case in court disputing police stop for speeding. The driver had a GPS that confirms the dispute. It will be interesting to see if GPS will trump the police.

Cheers...Coffeeman

 

[wjoerob]

We used a Garmin on a trip from Indiana to Florida and back. The stupid thing calculates your route based on shortest distance, not most practical route. So it would constantly tell us to turn off the interstate onto side roads. On the way back, it told us a few times to turn onto dirt logging roads. We got to calling it "Grandma Gertie GPS", because it nearly had a hissy fit if you didn't turn when it said to. Kept on saying, "Make a U turn as soon as possible". Finally, we turned the voice volume down, and just kept it on to watch the map display. Another time, it told me to cross a railroad where the road don't go!