# Meater



## old golfer guy (Nov 10, 2017)

Any body tried this product yet?  It might have to go on my XMAS list if it is any good. One probe to give you booth meat and smoker temps. I like the idea.
Dale


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## tallbm (Nov 10, 2017)

I think you left out the link/photo :D


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## bbqwillie (Dec 2, 2017)

I'm an original investor in that project. The single probe product is shipping but the Meater Block is not ready for production yet. It's 3 years over target date. The product is new and untested in the field. Caveat Emptor.


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## dward51 (Dec 2, 2017)

I almost bought in on the first round for the block.  Hesitated and I'm sort of glad I did.  The fact they are 3 years past target date says something.  Perhaps the concept is ahead of it's time at least with reliable economical components and the price point they targeted.

I will buy one for sure once they are out and have a few initial tester results from the production models posted.


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## ross77 (Dec 3, 2017)

Looks interesting.  Curious how it can withstand high temps.


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## Hotwax (Dec 22, 2017)

First Meater review I've seen....
https://heygrillhey.com/meater-thermometer-review/


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## old golfer guy (Dec 23, 2017)

I think the Bride is going to say something like " What the F--- You already have 6 thermometers you don't need another one" when this shows up.
Thanks
Dale


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## ross77 (Dec 23, 2017)

I got one a couple weeks ago and used it on a reverse sear ribeye cook.  It worked well.  The bluetooth range is pretty bad so I used my wife's iPhone as the main device near the grill.  Her phone then links to my wifi.  From there my iPhone picks up the wifi signal so I can use it throughout the house or even away from the house via LTE.  If you install the app on all your devices, it all syncs automatically once you have it all setup.  

The app itself is pretty cool.  You tell it what you are cooking and what temp you want and it predicts the cooking time and will let you know when to remove the meat taking the carryover temp into account.  It also graphs everything and saves all your cooks.
I setup a medium rare ribeye cook and it ended up perfect.  I wanted a 135F final temp and it told me to pull the meat at 128.  After resting it hit 136 so it was pretty spot on.

I plan on smoking a brisket flat soon so I'll be curious how well this will predict a longer cook


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## old golfer guy (Dec 23, 2017)

*Greg at Ballistic BBQ sponsored video on the Meater while cooking a brisket. Nothing but raves. Keep in mind a "sponsored" video.*


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## ross77 (Dec 23, 2017)

I like it but you will need at least 2 Android or iOS devices.  Or you could buy the Block with the included wifi device but I didn't want to spend $200 and I don't need 4 probes.  Not having to deal with wires is really nice.


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## dward51 (Dec 23, 2017)

Glad to see they are finally shipping those.  I'll give it a few months and end up buying a block.  I just don't want to be a "beta tester" which often happens with new to the market products.

The app sounds very impressive.  Good points in this review about how it aided in adjusting temp so food was done at the desired temp and time.

https://grillinfools.com/blog/2017/10/23/meet-the-meater/


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## dr k (Dec 23, 2017)

So you need a device you can download 
 the app on that also has bluetooth and wifi to use as a gateway to the cloud. Since my laptop only downloads programs not apps and isn't bluetooth is that a double whammy on why it wouldn't work?
-Kurt


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## ross77 (Dec 23, 2017)

Yes, you would need a smartphone or tablet with their app. There is no Windows support at this time. The Meater Block comes with a WiFi gateway device.


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## Tbuff (Feb 25, 2019)

Figured I would bump this old thread instead of starting a new one. My boss bought me a Meater thermometer last week. It didn't have the block so no wifi.

I cooked a ribeye for me and the wife. Set hers to medium and threw mine on a few minutes after so mine would be closer to MR.

The app is very cool and shows internal and ambient temp. Shows how much cook time is estimated left then tells you when to pull the meat so that it hits your target temp after resting. The steak came out perfectly cooked.

I'm going to be smoking some PBBE's on Friday, so while I won't really have the thermometer in the meat, I am going to use it to monitor the temp inside my smoker. I am curious to see how long the battery lasts on one charge.

I'm definitely a fan so far. I haven't actually calibrated to see how accurate the actual temperature is, but my wife's steak was dead on medium, so I have to assume it's pretty close.


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## ross77 (Feb 25, 2019)

It’s been working great for me with steaks. I did an ice bath test with a couple other thermometers and it was dead on. 

I like that the app warns you to remove a few degrees before it hits target temp to allow for the carryover.


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## dr k (Feb 25, 2019)

Tbuff said:


> Figured I would bump this old thread instead of starting a new one. My boss bought me a Meater thermometer last week. It didn't have the block so no wifi.
> 
> I cooked a ribeye for me and the wife. Set hers to medium and threw mine on a few minutes after so mine would be closer to MR.
> 
> ...


I believe the Meater has the battery and electronics in the meat probe end so the meat is a heat sink to protect the electronics and I'm not sure you can use it without sticking it in something without damaging it.  Definitely check into that.


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## Tbuff (Feb 25, 2019)

dr k said:


> I believe the Meater has the battery and electronics in the meat probe end so the meat is a heat sink to protect the electronics and I'm not sure you can use it without sticking it in something without damaging it.  Definitely check into that.


ah, thanks for the heads up


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## ross77 (Feb 25, 2019)

Use a potato. The internal limit is 200F. 

And FYI the ambient temp on the meater will almost always show as lower than the set temp on your smoker. The proximity to the cold meat has an effect.


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## dr k (Feb 25, 2019)

ross77 said:


> Use a potato. The internal limit is 200F.
> 
> And FYI the ambient temp on the meater will almost always show as lower than the set temp on your smoker. The proximity to the cold meat has an effect.


That's what I was going to post about the potato.  I read somewhere that the food probe limit is not quite boiling temp at sea level 212*.  Pork butts and brisket at 203*+ is pushing it I guess.  I've been following this since the start up years ago and I am interested in more reviews.  I have data for my phone and no wifi at home but I am always following therms as one of my favorite BBQ gadgets.  I hope this thread continues to give history Pros/Cons.


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## ross77 (Feb 25, 2019)

Yes it is over 200. 2012 sounds right.


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## bbqwillie (Feb 25, 2019)

I just received my Meater Block. First look is very good. The quality, fit and finish are excellent. Pairing to my WiFi was child's play. 

It will be a month or so before I get a cook with the Meater as the weather has been brutal in my neck of the woods.


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## bmfkai (Mar 31, 2019)

How accurate is the estimated cook time?  I'm in the middle of a 7lb shoulder right now.  2 hours in at 275 (turbo, ish) and it says 1.5h left.  That doesn't seem right.  I'm also wondering how it could calculate the stall (if it even can) when it doesn't ask for the weight of the meat.


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## WillRunForQue (Mar 31, 2019)

I usually cook closer to 250, and have found it underestimates the stall time, but then does well.  How did it go?


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## tallbm (Mar 31, 2019)

bmfkai said:


> How accurate is the estimated cook time?  I'm in the middle of a 7lb shoulder right now.  2 hours in at 275 (turbo, ish) and it says 1.5h left.  That doesn't seem right.  I'm also wondering how it could calculate the stall (if it even can) when it doesn't ask for the weight of the meat.



Hi there and welcome!

Yeah that measurement isn't correct.  Your probe placement may need to be rechecked and ensure it isn't hit the bone.
I usually stab large chunks of meat like pork butts and briskets with 3 probes.  I usually get 1 out of the 3 placed properly so that is my approach for producing the most consistent and best BBQ I make :)


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## bmfkai (Mar 31, 2019)

The probe was fine, it was an awkward cut so most of the bone was near the outside of one side.  The estimated time seemed to become much more accurate once I hit the stall so it must only be using the time it takes to rise a degree over so many minutes.  It eventually landed on what seemed to be a perpetual hour left mid stall so I don't think I'll be using the estimated time as any real measure.  I didn't expect to anyway but as for the internal and pit temps, those were quite accurate so I'm pleased regardless.  I hovered around 250-275, roughly 50m/lb


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## tallbm (Mar 31, 2019)

bmfkai said:


> The probe was fine, it was an awkward cut so most of the bone was near the outside of one side.  The estimated time seemed to become much more accurate once I hit the stall so it must only be using the time it takes to rise a degree over so many minutes.  It eventually landed on what seemed to be a perpetual hour left mid stall so I don't think I'll be using the estimated time as any real measure.  I didn't expect to anyway but as for the internal and pit temps, those were quite accurate so I'm pleased regardless.  I hovered around 250-275, roughly 50m/lb



Well it's good to hear that things basically behaved the way they should.  Getting to like 150-160F can often be a fairly fast ordeal.  Its that 165F-205F range that really takes time :)


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## bmfkai (Mar 31, 2019)

tallbm said:


> Well it's good to hear that things basically behaved the way they should.  Getting to like 150-160F can often be a fairly fast ordeal.  Its that 165F-205F range that really takes time :)



Yeah, I was kind of hoping the Meater's estimated time would be some sort of voodoo but that's ok.  My normal time measures work just fine.  I also discovered towards the end that you can share a live feed of the cook with it!  All in all I really like it and I'm glad I backed it on KS.  Now we just need to see how long they last :)


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## dr k (Apr 1, 2019)

In the Kickstarter video they were estimating the remaining time more accurately with steaks that cook quickly.  Then you have to make sure grill temps aren't grilling the probes.  The electronics and battery in the pointed meat end are insulated by the meat being a cold sink and will fail about 212*F so don't use the probes unless they are stuck in something.  Even then 203*F butts and briskets are getting close to the limit.  Heat kills batteries faster than anything else even with phone fast chargers should be 40C-104F max or start expecting capacity loss.  So I'm looking forward to life expectancy of the battery technology in the Meater.


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