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Wireless thermometers are not recent. For years, cooking enthusiasts have had access to units that can be read remotely using an additional device that is carried around like a barbecue beeper. Highly imperfect, they were notorious for their brief range and for burning wires between the probe and the base. The latest generation of wireless thermometers completely eliminates the need for wires. The recent wireless probes can reach more places and don’t require a remote control – you just get the information in an app on your phone, and it’s all powered by Bluetooth. They also added artificial intelligence to the mix with cooking time prediction. I’ve recently tried a few of these systems and by far the combustion has been the most reliable and consistent, but it was still shaky in a few cases.
Solid equipment that holds the load
All the systems I tested have the same basic setup – you have a Bluetooth receiver that also serves as a charger for the probe. The receiver must be relatively close to the probe, and then your phone must also be within range of the receiver. Theoretically, the combustion range is 200 meters. However, as we have all learned over the last 10 years, Bluetooth and wireless signals can be disrupted by obstacles such as immense appliances, home construction materials, or a microwave oven. For this reason, Combustion has also created Bluetooth extenders that look exactly like the receiver/charging base.
From the very beginning, I liked that the receiver and charger are harmless and petite. The receivers charge via USB-C, which I also appreciated – other units I tested used batteries. The units were charged enough to get through setup, and I haven’t had to charge any of them since, despite using them frequently. According to fuel consumption, they last six months, and after a month there is no need to charge them yet.
Combustion (left) next to an instant-read thermometer.
Source: Amanda Blum
As the probes go, they are quite powerful. I reached out to a few friends at the grill to ask about their overall impression of these recent AI probes, and the main complaint was that compared to regular wired models, these probes simply left too gigantic a hole in the protein. This is a valid complaint: I felt a little uncomfortable when inserting the tubes, although I didn’t really notice it during any meal.
Great Bluetooth connectivity
I tested several different thermometers during tons of different cooking experiences and compared them to my super reliable ThermaPen, which was calibrated. I made salmon in the oven, rotisserie chicken on the grill, turkey breast sous-vide, ribs in the oven, as well as chicken breast and thick-cut pork chop on the stovetop. Yes, sous vide: one of the major advantages of the wireless probe is that it can be locked in a bag. Do not submerge the entire probes in water – Combustion sells a clip that keeps them partially submerged.
In all but one experiment, Combustion remained connected via Bluetooth. Even though I had two extension cords (the display is an extension cord, in addition to the extension cords they sell), I never had to employ them.
Plain but direct application operation – but unpredictable artificial intelligence
Setup was quite straightforward – you open the app and remove the probe from the receiver; the app sees this almost immediately and allows you to set up your first cooking experience. You can set the target temperature – based on this, the cooking time is predicted. It’s worth noting that other apps like Meater offer much more detailed experiences where you can select the type of protein you’re producing and get a range of suggested temperatures. This is a useful but not necessary feature that I would appreciate being added to the Combustion app – I prefer to choose my own temperature in most cases. Once launched, Combustion has a nice interface that tells you the temperature of the core, surface, and ambient environment the probe is in, as well as some molecular data about when the cook started, how long it lasted, and when it occurred. should reach the target temperature. Eight sensors in the probe measure the length and employ this temperature to determine the expected cooking time.
Screenshots from the Combustion app.
Source: Amanda Blum
The third metric, predictive AI, was the least useful metric, but that was true of all the products I tested. It will take some time for the estimated time to take effect; it changed often; and most of the time it was just bad. The Postmates app does a better job of predicting when my food will arrive. It’s tricky, but there’s some science behind it – even with so many sensors spread across the length of the probe, food doesn’t heat up evenly, there are factors like the shape and size of the food, and the fact that meat actually sweats and sometimes goes off while cooking.
While there are times, such as while grilling, that I may have liked the prediction feature, that doesn’t detract much from the feeling that it was wrong. Perhaps I grew to trust it over time, but like most people, I often checked the temperature myself to gauge when the food would be ready, and most of the time the recipes or experience gave me a good idea.
Close the temperature readings (but without the cigar).
The other place where all the probe thermometers fell apart was in the true temperature reading – but to be clear, it never deviated by more than a few degrees, which isn’t critical, and I suspect the probe was giving me the calculated average temperature using some algorithm, rather than the straightforward temperature reading used by ThermaPen. If I hadn’t checked with a test thermometer, I would never have known it was damaged.
High-priced but fun technology toys for the kitchen enthusiast or the very inactive cook
Wireless thermometers, combustion significantly outperforms the older generation of remote wireless thermometers with an audible signal. Of the recent generation of probes, this is the best one I have tested so far. Combustion can receive updates via Bluetooth, so the AI can improve. The app works well and will probably get more features in the future. Combustion stayed connected across multiple locations, experiences, and proteins without even requiring an extension cord, but it’s nice to have an extension cord just in case. In particular, the ability to drop a probe into your sous-vide food is a real bonus, and as a naturally inactive cook, I love being able to monitor my food from afar.
Do I love it enough to pay $149 for a thermometer? If you are someone who is only going to buy a $30 thermometer, this is an unlikely purchase. If you’re someone who values precision enough to go for the widely recommended ThermaPen digital thermometer for around $100, another $50 may not seem like much of an expense. This will be a great gift for a grilling enthusiast who has run out of ideas, or for a friend who is a cooking maniac. The burning was, apart from everything else, great fun.
