Lavatools Javelin® Ultra-Fast 3-Second Digital Instant Read Meat Thermometer for Grill and Cooking, 2.75" Probe, Compact Foldable Design, Large Display, IP65 Water Resistant, NSF Certified – Wasabi

I've been using this for a couple years now next to its big brother, the Javelin Pro. This Javelin is nice and compact, but still has all of the best features of the Pro. The probe is well protected when folded and is extremely easy to use since it turns on and is ready as soon as you unfold it. The temperature reading updates very quickly and is very precise. The battery lasts nearly forever too; I haven't needed to replace the battery for two years with reasonably frequent use. I've tried other thermometers and I can recommend you buy a Lavatools if you value a quality, durable tool. This one has even seen a few flames from open fire pit barbecues without any sign of damage. It will last you a long time and it is well worth the money.

Instant temperature readings, simple to use, and easy to clean. The built-in magnet is a great touch — I store it on the side of my fridge, so it’s always within reach and never cluttering a drawer. Solid, reliable, and well designed.

This is my 4th one. 2 got dropped too many times. One given as a gift, and then this one. It's fast, it's accurate, and the price is great. I use it for determining meat temperature, so I don't need to be super precise. I don't care if it's .5 degree over 165, just need to know if it's 165. I use it pretty much daily, but I don't require extreme accuracy.

I didn’t expect much from something so small — but this thermometer totally surprised me. It’s compact enough to stash in a kitchen drawer, yet powerful enough to give a super-fast, accurate temp reading in about three seconds. No more guessing whether the chicken or burger is done. It heats up fast, the display is easy to read, and the probe feels solid and reliable. For the price? It’s almost a steal — you get professional-level performance without dropping big money. It’s one of those kitchen tools that feels like it belongs in any home cook’s toolbox, not just a pro’s arsenal. If you want an accurate, fast, affordable thermometer that doesn’t take up space, this one knocks it out of the park.

Well designed, easy to use meat cooking thermometer. Performs as advertised. We eat late frequently, cooking on the grill at night outside and I didn't realize the display does not light up. It was also preset for Celsius degrees, so I had to take it all apart to flip the switch under the battery to Fahrenheit. It would be nice to preset it to Fahrenheit for the US market. My minor criticisms aside, this thermometer features great design, and performance at a very good "value" price.

This review is a combined review for the PT12 model and the Pro, I purchases the PT12 back in 2015 because I wanted a accurate instant read thermometer but based on my use case I couldn't bring myself to spend the $100 on a Thermoworks (although I thought long about it...). This seemed like a good substitute for the price point so I went with it. I'm glad I did, as it quickly out performed the CDN device that I was using, as well as other thermometer gadgets around the house. After making sure that it was accurate (boiling water test) I found it to be much faster than those other devices, and more accurate, taking anywhere from 3-5 seconds to come within a degree or two of the food temp, and then another 5 seconds or so to to level out at the final temp. Not really instant, but good enough for my uses. And once the probe/sensor is "warmed up" (meaning its not starting from 60 degrees) subsequent checks go much faster (like when you're moving from burger to burger or steak to steak on the grill). The small size made it perfect for having in a pocket and the built in magnet makes it easy to store on the fridge or side of the grill. Overall I was so happy with this that I purchased a second one (one to keep by the grills, one for the kitchen), and was equally satisfied with that purchase. So much so, that when the original went missing for several months (it eventually turned up) I went to purchase a third one. By this point Lavatools had introduced their Pro model, so I went with that one. Again, happy I did, as this model was a worthwhile upgrade to the PT12's. Much faster return on food temps, providing a temp within 2 seconds and leveling out at 5. Much closer to what I would expect an instant read to perform. The large display, backlight and longer probe are great additions. It's certainly much beefier feeling than its little brother, but not so that its cumbersome or clumsy to use. All in all I'm very pleased by these purchases and would highly recommend them for the products that they are, in this price point. And, of course, the Amazon experience in researching, purchasing and delivery of these was also great

Hey all- so I've had a CDN thermo for about 6 months now based on the recommendation of The Sweet Home and Cooks Illustrated. It was pretty great to start, right price, very accurate (for my uses). Overall, a great little tool at a great price. But recently, I've found it to sometimes be very jumpy and slow to take a temp. Sometimes in chicken breast it will jump +/- 30° in a reading as the thermo moves around. I'm not sure if it's because the shaft is being heated by the ambient heat from the pan or if there is a loose connection or what. Also, I've always felt the probe on the CDN was a little too short, I'd always be almost burning my hand trying to take a temp on some stovetop chicken because you have to hold the bulb in place directly above. Anyway, these things were getting annoying so I was thinking of making the plunge into a Thermapen, putting it on my holiday list (because its so pricey), etc- however, when I was on amazon, I saw this item, the Thermawand, a new thermometer that is clearly putting itself directly up against the Thermapen. At only $24.99 I figured I'd give it a try. It just came last week and I've only been using it a bit but I already love it. All the following is in comparison to my use of the CDN: - its more comfortable and intuitive to use, by extending the temp sensor wand it turns itself on, when you close it, it turns off. No buttons. - much bigger, easy read display - overall length is a little longer than the CDN, so you can hold it further away from the heat. - you can use it when the probe is at an angle so you can avoid your hand being directly above the heat/splattering oil. - feels well built. My best friend has a Thermapen (the $96 one) and comparatively, they feel very similar in hand and operate very similarly. The thermapen does have the appearance of being more waterproof/sealed, but otherwise, they are very similar. - product design is much nicer looking than CDN, and this one has color options - For an inexpensive tool, it comes in nice packaging which is a plus! So anyway I did some initial really basic "testing" head to head with the CDN. I put some water on the stove to boil and made a cup of ice water. I then simultaneously put each thermometer from one temp extreme to another a few times back to back to see how quickly they adjusted. The Thermowand was about a half second or more quicker every time and more importantly, it was also quick to stabilize and overall more stable. The temp reading on the Thermowand was not as "jumpy" yet it was still reading in real time, as when I held it in the pot of water, I watched it creep up second by second. The actual numeric readings between the two would vary about a degree, but this wasn't a big deal to me. I know part of the "jumpyness" could be attributed to the fact that the CDN is technically a bit more sensitive than the Thermowand- however, I'm not talking about being jumpy within a degree or so. I'm talking about being jumpy +/- 5 to 10 degrees- which is a meaningful difference, especially if you are aiming for a specific doneness and want to know a temp with more certainty. Anyway- my testing was far from extensive- but since none of the review sites have been updated- I wanted to give this company some love. It is about $7 dollars more expensive than the CDN, but I think it's well worth it. I will say, the one silly thing I like about the CDN better is the probe sleeve has a little meat temperature cheat sheet on it- something easily fixed with some screenprinting on the thermawand. Additionally, I can see how its "pen" format allows for better clipping on an apron or chef jacket/shirt- however, that's not important to me.

Works as described. Not a super-fast read, but fast enough. I have used this so far only for meat, but see no reason why it would not work well for temperature testing baked goods.