Just wanted to raise an issue with the WiFi Anova PC.
To start, I love what this device can do. I have made the most awesome steaks, chicken breasts/thighs and veggies.
What I DO NOT like is the priority on using the Anova App whether iOS or Android. When it works, it’s great. However
it does not work most of the time. WiFI connectivity is a neat concept but to have to use the Anova servers to talk to a
device which I am standing next to and not access it via the LAN is nuts.
So with the power of Google have found sufficient documentation how to manual setup a cook. Then comes the rub.
I live in Australia and we use the Metric system of measure. All good. However, I have yet been able to complete a
cooking setup without intervention using Metric. Imperial i.e. Fahrenheit all good. Celsius, not so much.
First I set up my temps (in C), press and hold the Start icon for 6 seconds or so and pass through the temp change option to F. Fine. The Timer icons appears. Press and hold for 3 seconds. Can now set the time. Press the Timer icon again and press the Start icon (still in F) and it works every time.
Any attempt to long press the Start icon to switch back to C has never seemed to work. It reaches the set temp, but
never starts the timer.
Of course having to long press the Start icon and pass through the temp C/F function is an ass-hat user interface. I would like to see the Timer icon enabled on startup, set the temp and long press the timer. But no…
Just a rant. I love what the Anova PC can do, just I have to fight to make it do it.
Doesn’t the WiFi model also have bluetooth built in? Sounds like what you are asking for can be taken care of by switching to BT mode and using the BT app.
Thanks for your reply. Yes, I have the BT app and it has not been updated for a while and its
performance is equally spotty, even when I am standing next to the PC.
All up it is more of a nuisance to make sure the PC is using Celsius, set the temp then pass through the
temp unit toggle (where it then toggles to F) to get to the Timer. At the end of the day I am not
fussed because I know the PC will reach the selected temp and kick of the timer even though it is displayed in F.
Still, as I wrote before, passing through the temp unit toggle to access the Timer icons is bone-headed,
but it works.
Interesting, I have the BT-only unit, and the link link quality was always good on mine, so long as I was within a reasonable range. Maybe it’s a different components in the WiFi vs the BT, or maybe it just works better with certain phone.
I wasn’t aware that the BT app hadn’t been updated in a while as I haven’t used the BT feature since I got a new phone much earlier this year. In fact, I never even bothered to install it on the phone because I simply don’t feel I need it because it doesn’t really do anything for me.
I agree with you about the timer being hard to access, I think it could have been set up better.
Ultimately, I just use the machine in dumb mode. I know what my temperature offset correction should be, so I just set the temperature manually (corrected for the offset) with the dial and use a Thermoworks TimeStick Pro for my timer. I could time with my cell phone too, I just don’t care for using it as a kitchen timer. For what the BT adds, I’m not losing anything really.
Thanks for the feedback! I totally agree with you on changing some of the interface, I will pass on your thoughts to the team. If you are still having trouble switching temps or setting the time, I made this video to help people out because it is a little confusing: Video: Setting the timer and switching from Celsius to Fahrenheit
If I set the desired temperature in Fahrenheit, toggle through to Celsius and set the timer, it works just like
starting in Celsius!
Also after the count down timer is running, the temperature unit can be changed.
What I seem to have stumble upon is that toggling the temperature unit BEFORE the count down timer
triggers causes it to be reset to zero! I found this by doing the unit toggle before the count time trigger and
let the water bath come up to temperature. As expected the timer did not trigger. I long pressed the white
timer icon for 3 seconds and entered time entry mode. I set it previously to 5 minutes. It was all zeros.
Of course entering time entry mode may be enough to reset the timer. If I enter a timer value and press the
Timer icon, it counts down as per usual.
Which got me thinking. Maybe I am fussing too much about the timer. It is convenient but at the end of the
day the important component of Sous Vide cooking is the temperature. Unless of course you are doing eggs
and you would be standing over the cooker anyway.