CDN LED Probe Thermometer/Timer, Black

This thing has a nice strong cord that's plenty long to reach out of the oven or grill, and it works like a charm. Unless you care about getting all fancy with wireless, this is the way to go. Programmable either to your own set temp or to their defaults, which is also helpful. UPDATE 11/28/11 I've used this now for a few years and it's been very reliable and accurate. My only gripe is that chicken only has an option of 180 degrees, but I can get around that by using a beef setting at 165. I've gotten my money's worth in the fact that I've ruined zero meals since buying it, and if it conked out tomorrow I'd buy another. UPDATE 9/20/12 Still going strong after all this time. I use it in skillets, the oven, and on the grill. For a pork tenderloin or a steak, I stick it in the end and leave it in the whole time while cooking. That configuration allows me to roll the tenderloin or flip the steak without having to pull it out and release the juices. I even leave it in while the meat rests, and make sure my temp ends up about where I need it. UPDATE 12/1/2014 Finally conked out on me. Around Thanksgiving 2013, when I used it to monitor a submerged frying turkey, it started acting very unreliable. Temps would be all over the place over the last year. Grilling a steak, I'd get temps between 30 and 290. I finally had to retire it and replace it. It might be that the last few inches of cord were submerged in 325-degree oil, so I can't fault the instrument. It saved a pound of meat for every penny it cost me over the years.

This is the DTP482 model and their official site (Component Design Northwest) has the manual available for pdf download, if anyone is interested. It's a decent unit for a decent price and so far I'm very pleased for the most part. I like that it does most of the thinking for me and that I can use it for hot oil and candy (so long as they are within the proper temperature range; less than 482°F) as well as meats. That doesn't mean it doesn't come with a couple of annoyances; hence the 4-stars instead of 5. The first of which is the most important to me and is the eyestrain to read the small things, such as Meat Modes. For us forty-somethings and above, be prepared to have a magnifying glass handy or squint trying to hold it as far away as you can without a reflection. It would be nice if it were backlit, but it isn't. Problem two is the reflection. It has a very reflective surface so it's hard to read at times, even for you young people out there. All that said, it seems to function very well. Time will tell me how well it works, and we'll see. If I have any problems I'll be sure to update it here. It does come with some sort of a hook that the instructions don't mention at all, and a magnet you can attach to it. That's so you can just put it on your oven door. The only problem for me is that my oven door isn't metal. My oven vents are metal, but there is no way I'll put that thing on the vent. Needless to say, that stuff for me is useless. It still has a little stand on the back of it, so you can rest it on the counter or whatever. Finally, and I see many complaints (or questions) about this with other products. For me, I could care less but I know for a lot of you it makes it a big deal breaker. The device IS made in China. If that's important to you, you now know. Overall I find it a very convenient and helpful device. I'm very pleased with my purchase.

Gives accurate temperature readings...

SUMMARY: * For an lower cost, get the Taylor single-probe unit. * For more functions, get the Ivation wireless dual-probe unit. PROS: * Lots of settings * Long probe cord * Long battery life * Decent beeper CONS: * Only one probe. * No wireless transmitter. * Probe tends to take on water after cleaning. * Probe replacement costs as much as other, similar entire kits. I bought one of these for soap making a few years ago. I've used it for 5 batches of soap, and several rounds of meat cooking. It works pretty well as long as you get it where you want it. Soap self-insulates, so that can be an issue. Meat tends to have warmer and cooler spots. For cooking, it's best to leave this wherever you think is best, and when it beeps, test it in a couple of different spots. Yes, you'll cook holes into your meat. The controls are a little much for what it is. You can set time or temp, and you can pick meats which have default values. You can toggle between your chosen value, and the default value. Once you power it off, it forgets your custom value. There is a switch on back for Celsius/Centigrade vs Fahrenheit, and a switch on back for on/off. The probe is about 3 feet long, with a woven metal sheath, a bent, stainless probe on one end, and a 2.5mm phono plug on the other end. The unit itself is plastic, with both a hook/screw hanger, and a kick-stand on the back. Do not leave the base unit on or in your grill, but the probe and wire are fine. This comes with a metal clip so you can mount it to the side of a pot. That's good for candy, and other temperature sensitive foods. You can also just stick this into the thickest part of a slab of meat, and just leave the probe in there. The wire fits easily through an oven or grill door. The probes should not be facing a broiler, nor should they face direct flame. They're heat resistant, but not incineration-proof. Know that when your meat is 100F, the fire may still be 800F. Plan accordingly, but in an oven, at normal baking temperatures, this is great. When you wash the probe, wash it by hand. Do not immerse in water. The probe tip is waterproof, but where the wire goes in is just splash resistant. Expect that eventually, it will corrode and fail if you get water in either end, though the first few times you get the "LL" warning, just give it some time, and it'll cook the water out of it. After a while, it will build up minerals and corrosion inside, so once you get the first LL, expect you may want to buy a backup probe soon. Replacement probes are pretty standard for many brands, and range from $5 to $15 depending on which product . Some have free shipping, some do not. You can get other, 3 button thermometers with alarm, simple but similar to this one , for $8-20, including shipping. So, unless you're getting an add-on prime item, or something on sale, it may be better to buy a new thermometer. The one issue I don't like is that this has only one probe. You cannot measure multiple meats, nor the ambient temperature inside the oven/grill. Even so, you can pick up some extra whole-sets and just run them independently. This has no transmitter, and no wireless functionality. You'll have to read the display. There are some higher-end units that will send a signal to an indoor remote so you can check temps from the comfort of your sofa. Some even have dual probes .

This is the best thermometer out there. It is a meat thermometer and everyone crying about candy and cheese and other things that aren't meat need to not post reviews for not using it for what it was intended for. I have used and abused my for over 2 years now and always rely on the information it gives me. I am still on the original batteries that came with it and I use it every time I cook. It has been set out in the element while I smoke ribs, briskets, shoulders, and chicken; and the thermometer still works. The one thing that made me worry was when it was in direct sunlight and the screen went black. I thought I fried the screen with the sun. But when I but it in the shade again, it returned to the normal screen. Answer to problem, keep the screen out of direct sunlight. All of my competition meats have turned out with perfection. Throwing the other unreliable thermometers away, I have purchased another one for the other smoker and bought one for a friend. I recommend this thermometer for anyone that is wanting to cook with the right temperatures and never have to guess. I was an amateur when I started with this product and turned into a pro. Friends and family gatherings have made me more confident to cook for them. In conclusion, this is not a candy or cheese thermometer. It is for meat. I recommend this for those that question there ability and want to make it perfect.

This is funny. I've gone through several thermometers over the past 8 years. This CDN was my first and it lasted me 6-7 out of those 8 years. I bought it from the CIA when I was out in Napa. Anyway, after 6-7 years of solid heavy use the probe finally gave up on life. I've smoked with this unit, grilled, used it in the oven, and used it when broiling. I think it was broiling one too many times that did it in. Anyway, when the probe died I unfortunately moved on to other thermometers. In the past 1-2 years I have been through approximately 6 other thermometers. I average 2-10 uses out of each "other" thermometer before it gives up on life. It's that 487F temperature rating of this CDN thermometer that makes it last and so much better than all the other ones on the market. As one reviewer said: the probes from the competition simply fry themselves because they can't take the heat. So, I am off to buy another one of these because it's that good. I only wish I still had the actual unit so I could just buy a replacement probe. Oh well, hindsight is 20/20.

I searched around Amazon quite a bit before finding this little gem. The product is very simple in design, it just reports the oven temp and the meat temp. It seems to work great, so far no problems or issues with the thermocouple. The product has a (very minor) drawback. If you use the alarm feature you can only increase the alarm temp, and once it hits the max it cycles around.. Hint: If you switch over to Centigrade mode this goes faster if you accidentally go past your desired set point. However, since the alarm isn't very loud I don't even bother with it at all. There are other, much fancier and overly designed products out there, but they have more parts that can break, require more batteries etc.. This one only requires a single AAA! Also, I really like that the probe handle measures the oven temp while the tip measures the meat temp, then you only need the have 1 wire sticking out of the oven to do both measurements. How useful! UPDATE: The temperature probe stopped working after a couple years, it just started to report inaccurate temperatures. It's a shame, I really liked this product and I am tempted to just replace it with another of the same unit (over a year is decent life for a plastic thing these days..)

I liked this model so much that I purchased another one when I got my second kettle. I use these with my weber Smokey Mountain Kettles with wonderful results. They do a great job of monitoring the temperatures of both my meat and kettle temps. I have been using the original one for about 4 years, I have replaced the battery twice, Most of my smokes are at least 12 hours in duration. I run the probe thru the upper vent of the kettle, the probe cord is never pinched, I then set the thermometer next to the kettle on a stand. I have never used the thermometer to measure temps any higher than 225 to 250 degrees. However, this item has been used in the pouring rain, in outside temps of 30 below zero, in 100 degree weather, and in snowstorms. It is easy to use and thus far.. Extremely reliable so I decided to buy the second one.