Last year, the company behind the popular Twine Kickstarter project launched a new iOS-enabled food thermometer called Range. That thermometer raised more than $175,000 and now the team is back for more.
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While not in time for this year's Summer grilling season, Supermechanical has launched a new, an upgraded version of the Range on Kickstarter. The new Range Oven/Grill Intelligence adds Bluetooth LE wireless connectivity as well as a magnetic storage unit that acts as the thermometer's base. The old Range needed to be physically connected to an iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch, but with the new wireless version, users won't need to leave their iPad sitting next to the oven or outside by the grill.
The magnetic base of the Range OI includes additional temperature and vibration sensors -- it's designed to be attached to the front of an oven, detecting when the oven is in use, when it's preheating and when it's on normally. It runs for a year on a single AA battery and the thermometer can measure from -40F to 450F (-40C to 230C).
There are three Range OI models available:
Oven Intelligence ($98) - including a 3" sharp thermometer
Chef Intelligence ($129) - including both a 3" sharp thermometer and a 6" round thermometer designed for candy making, home brewing and other needs, and both thermometers can be used simultaneously.
Grill Intelligence ($160) - including a 3" sharp thermometer and an ambient temperature probe for slow cooking and smoking, as well as an upgraded fiberglass cable for durability even in direct flame.
The OI wirelessly connects to iOS and Android smartphone and tablets, as well as the Pebble smart watch. There are bundles available to purchase multiple versions of the Range OI as well as higher Kickstarter levels that include priority shipping or special grilling aprons. Shipping is anticipated to begin next Spring.
The Kickstarter campaign has raised more than $80,000 with a goal of $250,000 with just over two weeks to go.
Top Rated Comments
I have been burned on 2 out of 3 projects.
The whole platform is a haven for clowns and scammers. Kick-starter also takes no responsibility for failed projects, which is the fundamental problem with the system... they take their cut off the top and then wash their hands when a project fails.
As far as i am concerned they are every bit as guilty as the project founders that take peoples money and give nothing in return.
I am sick and tired of reading about "cool" crowd-funding stuff on tech-blogs as if they were real products. It's all smoke and mirrors.
:mad: /rant
As importantly, you're supporting something that wouldn't exist otherwise. We like Kickstarter because it allows small guys to make consumer electronics exactly the way we want to: in the US with better materials and build quality. Our thermometers are very accurate and fast. The Grill Intelligence has heavy-duty fiberglass cables you can't get anywhere else. And the base contains extra sensors to detect when you forgot to turn the oven off, the oven is perfectly preheated, or if you double-tapped the oven to trigger a spoken done time estimate. Thanks to all of you who've backed our vision so far!
You haven't been on the internet long enough then. :p
I've had a number of successful kickstarter backings, personally. You just have to be smart about it. The worst thing I've had happen in a project I backed was a delay in shipping, but the reason for that is because they wanted to make the product better and get safety certified (certifications take time).
Also they should make it compatible with Yosemite and add push notifications!