Thermopro tp-08 Problems and Reviews vs Thermopro tp20

ThermoPro are the markers of one of our favorite smoker thermometers, the ThermoPro TP20. That made it onto our list of the best digital meat thermometers as the best value for money thermometer for use in your smoker. In our ThermoPro TP08 review we’ll take a look at what the differences are between the TP20 and TP08 and cover everything you need to know before you buy one.

ThermoPro TP-08 Wireless Remote Digital Cooking Meat Thermometer (Dual probe)

Pros:

  • Great value for money
  • No syncing required
  • Superb customer support
  • Good performance

Cons:

  • Lacks some features
  • Only one meat probe

Reviews:

  • FEATURES 6.0/10
  • PERFORMANCE 9.0/10
  • BUILD QUALITY 8.0/10
  • EASE OF USE 8.5/10
  • VALUE FOR MONEY 9.5/10

Check latest price of the ThermoPro TP08 on Amazon.

[AMAZONPRODUCTS asin=”B01LETF6Q8″ listprice=”1″]

What’s Included with the ThermoPro TP08

Package Contents:

  • 1 x Digital Thermometer Receiver
  • 1 x Digital Thermometer Transmitter
  • 1 x Food Temperature Probe
  • 1 x Oven/BBQ Temperature Probe
  • 4 x AAA batteries
  • 1 x Manual

Thermopro TP08 – What’s in the Box? Manufacturer Specifications:

  • Temperature Range: 32°F to 572°F (0°C to 300°C)
  • Temperature Accuracy: ±1.8°F (±1°C) from 32 to 212°F (0 to 100°C)
  • Resolution: 1°
  • Probe Length: 6.5″ food grade stainless steel probe and 3″ oven/bbq stainless steel probe
  • Cable Length: 40″ stainless steel mesh cable
  • Remote Range: Up to 300 feet
  • Receiver Display Size: 1.5×1.3 inches (39×34 mm)
  • Transmitter Display Size: 1×0.55 inches (26×14 mm)
  • Uses: BBQ, Oven, Smoker, Candy, Meat, Food
  • No Sync Required! Simple interface and setup, ready to use right of the box

Features

As the ThermoPro TP08 is roughly $10 cheaper than the TP20 and $20 cheaper than the Maverick ET-733 it’s to be expected that it is a little lighter on the features.

Most importantly, the TP08 is a dual probe thermometer, with a transmitter and receiver to allow you to leave the thermometer probes and transmitter at the grill or smoker whilst you go off and relax with a beer. The transmitter has the food probe and the pit probe attached to it. This then uses a radio frequency signal to send the data from the probes to the receiver that you keep on you, so you can check up on how your cook is doing from anywhere within a 300 foot radius of your food. This is incredibly useful on smokers as it means you won’t have to physically babysit the smoker whilst it cooks.

The transmitter and receiver come already synced meaning there is less hassle getting started. In theory you’ll be able to take the TP08 out of the box and use it straight away after inserting the batteries.

The TP08 has a range of alarms to notify you when certain actions take place. For example, there are customisable timers and temperature range alarms that will alert you to temperature changes outside of your specified range or when your timer reaches 0.

There is also the ability to switch between Fahrenheit and Celsius.

Read More: Best Bluetooth BBQ Thermometers

Build Quality and Design

The design of the TP08 is generally quite good. It looks nice and feels good in the hand, with a decent sized screen and good sized buttons to make navigating easy. However, the layout of the buttons and the labels on the buttons are somewhat confusing. For example, to confirm a temperature you need to press the Mode/Light button. After spending a while getting used to it I manged to become familiar with the controls but it could have been easier with a better thought out design.

The build quality is about the same as the design. It’s generally good but has a few problems, likely due to the low price of the thermometer. The general quality feels good and the probes seem to work very well due to being made from stainless steel. Slightly longer wires would have been nice but for the price it’s hard to complain. Both the transmitter and receiver are made from plastic and rubber. Whilst it does feel good in the hand and seems fairly durable after a little use it becomes more obvious why the TP08 has a low price point. There is a rubber bumper around the edges that became loose and neither the transmitter or receiver are splash proof, like the TP20. At such a low price this is to be expected.

One of the best aspects of the TP08 is the quality of the thermometer itself. It’s incredibly accurate and can even be used as a candy thermometer. During my experience with it, it managed to stay very close to the Thermoworks Smoke, one of the best premium BBQ thermometers on the market. It has good accuracy, but its speed is relatively low. This is understandable as it’s built to be a long cook thermometer, not an instant read thermometer.

Ease of Use

The ThermoPro TP08 is generally quite easy to use after you’ve got the initial learning curve out of the way. The setup is very simple, thanks to the transmitter and receiver being already synced up during the manufacturing process. All you have to do it insert the batteries and you’re ready to go.

Due to the lower numbers of feature on the TP08 it’s quick to get your head around what it’s capable of. Despite the somewhat confusing layout of the buttons and no indication of which probe is which, most people should be able to set it up for a cook with little effort.

Here’s a good video to help newcomers with their initial setup and understanding:

ThermoPro TP20 vs ThermoPro TP08

Quick Differences:

  • TP20 has preprogrammed meat cooking times and temperatures – TP08 does not.
  • TP20 has two probes that can be used for meat or ambient measurement. TP08 has only one that can be used for meat.
  • TP20 has a larger screen and is generally more user friendly.
  • TP20 is splash proof – TP08 is not.
  • TP08 is usually at least $10 cheaper.

We think that either of these thermometers are worth your money. They both generally work as expected and will make your smokes and other cooks a lot easier and will give you noticeably better results. If we had to choose one, it would be the TP20 as the extra features are well worth the additional $10.

ThermoPro have a great record for customer service and offer very generous warranty and refund options, which should help with peace of mind when buying one of their thermometers.

Check the latest price of the TP20 on Amazon.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the ThermoPro TP08 does exactly what it says on the tin. It’s a cheap and easy to use dual probe thermometer with enough features to allow anyone to successfully bake or smoke food of their dreams.

Despite a few small problems here and there, the ThermoPro warranties and customer service are enough to put our minds at ease because you know you’ll be covered if something does go wrong.

Check the latest price of the ThermoPro TP08 on Amazon.

How to make the most out of your ThermoPro TP08

  • Always try to keep the meat temperature under the temperature rating of the thermometer. This is one of the biggest killers of digital thermometers. It’s easy to accidentally touch a grill grate or the inside of the oven which could be hundreds of degrees above the recommended max temperature. Going above the maximum is likely to damage the cable that the probe is attached to which can instantly kill the probe. Luckily ThermoPro have a 3 year warranty if you register your thermometer and will replace any damaged probe free of charge!
  • Keep the tips of the probes nice and clean. A build-up of carbon on the tip can insulate the sensor, giving a false reading. Obviously, this is bad for cooking, but it also increases the risk of overshooting the maximum temperature. Simply grab a wet sponge or paper towel and wipe off any carbon you see. Don’t fully submerge the cables though as this can easily damage them.
  • Make sure all your connections are pushed in hard. There have been several reports of disgruntled customers thinking their thermometers are not working when in actuality they just haven’t read the instructions properly. A lot of people simply needed to push the probes into the monitors further before thinking about returning the thermometer.
  • One of the most important parts of using a digital thermometer correctly is the placement of the probe. When placing a probe inside the meat, try and aim for the very center as this is the area that will be cooked the least.
  • Use our smoking times and temperatures charts to make sure you cook your food to the perfect temperature.