I’m on the fence about purchasing the wifi model vs bluetooth only. I’ve been reading reviews and it seems like the the wifi feature has horrible reviews and not worth the cost. I’m curious what the Anova Community thinks. I also like the increased wattage but it’s only a small bump. It’s hard to distinguish if the reviews are from the second gen model or not. What has your experience been with the 2nd Gen WiFi version? Also, I saw a sale for the Bluetooth only model for only 89.00… which is a hard deal to ignore. I just don’t want to always be wishing I had bought the wifi model.
I use the WiFi version and am pleased that when I’ve a long cook I can “check in” on my APC remotely and ensure that it’s still running and up to temp. When I’m at home I pretty much just use the controls on the unit itself for setting temp, starting, and stopping.
If you think you might like to leave foods in an insulated container and have them “kick off” automatically while you are away from home so that your food can be cooked and ready for you to sear when you get home you’ll also want to get the WiFi version, as it supports the “Ice Bath” cooking feature. Plenty of people love this feature and use it regularly, though personally I’ve yet to try it.
I’ve been happy with the WiFi version and find that the ability to check in on my cooks remotely lets me have a “warm fuzzy” feeling that all is well when I’m away.
Recently I purchased a second machine (a Nano), since the price is killer right now. It’s in the kitchen cooking some St Louis pork ribs even as I type. So far I’ve been happy with it’s operation as well, though given a choice to have only one or the other I’d still go with the WiFi.
I use the wifi all the time i set up guest 2.4GHz on router and connected app on phone and Anova to that and never had a problem since. I personally think it connects better than bluetooth.
I have gone out for the day and started Anova over wifi and it’s been ready when i got home.
Thanks for the replies. Sounds like the WiFi is what I’d prefer. Was just concerned about other people having problems. Based on your experiences and the requirements here: What are the WI-FI requirements to get connected?, I think I’ll be ok. To sweeten the pot, of course, today I saw it is now on sale for 99 bucks! That’s why quite the deal. Can’t wait for Christmas!
I’ve never been able to get the WiFi to work on mine. Seems like the antenna may be very weak or something is fundamentally wrong with another piece of the hardware, so unless you have a perfect connection in your kitchen it won’t connect. But if it works for you, great. If not, you can always return it or just use without WiFi.
Yeah…I thought I’d like the wifi on my immersion blender… and my can opener but soon figured out it didnt work well and I really didnt need it. However…other than that they both function perfectly!!!
Received the WiFi version from Santa this morning. Setting up on WiFi was a breeze. No issues so far. I have a shank ham bathing right now. Can’t wait. Thanks again for everyone’s replies.
I love the Wi-Fi model - been using for about a year. A bit finicky to initially connect with Wi-Fi (may be due, in my case, to using Google WiFi with 2.4 and 5ghz bands having the same name - mesh sometimes confuses devices that can only talk on 2.4. once it was connected though it’s been rock solid ever since.
I love being able to monitor and control the process remotely. The device itself is beautifully made. I’ve since added a form fit zipped neoprene case for it, a blow torch (MAP/plus gas) for browning, and Santa just brought me an excellent vacuum sealer to add to the mix.
I have been using the wifi model for 6 months (Amazon prime day 2018, $75 delivered ) and have never had an issue with connecting or controlling the unit with my Android 7.0 tablet while at home.
It would seem to be an advantage to connect remotely if you were away from the unit for a long cook time, though I’ve not attempted this yet.
I hope it continues working as well as it has so far
We’re looking forward to trying many new recipes. So far have mainly used it for cooking eggs but for the price I paid it’s worth it for that alone. They’re perfect every time.
Does not work with Google wifi (and probably other mesh networks). They do not differentiate between 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz - they frequency hop as needed to optimize connection. Anova app will not see Precision Cooker and cannot connect, so you can only use it manually. This is a significant limitation, and it’s not apparent on either the purchase pages (I bought mine via Amazon) or in the doc that comes with the cooker. Please get up to date on your wifi.
) and have never had an issue with connecting or controlling the unit with my Android 7.0 tablet while at home.