Joule Sous Vide from ChefSteps

[dcarch]

Not that I don't trust their team. But for me I will wait.

 

In their design, there are several materials in close contact with each other. Each with a different thermal expansion coefficient. In repeated heating and cooling, who knows how they will behave. If the thin pottery glaze develops a crack (what? cracks in pottery glaze?) you will have high voltage in direct contact with water.

 

Perhaps they have safety built in.

 

A normal heating coil has the heating element in thick ceramic jacket and the jacket is sealed in electrically grounded stainless steel tube.

 

dcarch

[Martin Fisher]

Handily skips the "find phone.  Unlock phone.  Find app.  Launch app.  Wait for app to start." steps, which will take quite a bit longer.

 

I thought the video was quite clear, it's just the setting of the temperature. The initial set-up of the machine and app is a different matter.

[haresfur]

I'd be very happy with a circulator that's the size of the Joule, as simple as the Sansaire (I don't need fancy connectivity or other bells and whistles), as reliable as the Anova and a ~$99.00 price point.

I'd buy a few of them!    

 

FWW, you can get close out Anova 1s for $79 US right now. 

[Adam George]

Since I own two Anova PC1, with one constantly out in my cook corner and one at my girlfriend's I really can't see the appeal of the Joule. I only ever use the Anova App for odd timings like 17 minutes or such.

The open source and community idea is great, but my PCs are hardly big and I never need to use that much liquid when cooking for one or two people. In this photo you can see in using a washing tablet box with a cut out in the flip up lid. It heats up in moment and is plenty stable .

 

although Dave Arnold's 500ml 'fuge is on the way.

Where is the latest info on this?

[btbyrd]

Anyway; Joule. Does it have wifi?

 

Yep. Wifi and Bluetooth. 

[adey73]

I hope Sansaire has a smaller circulator in the pipeline. 

 

If not a Joules in Black might be tempting.

[Adam George]

Yep. Wifi and Bluetooth.

That's good. What will make or break this is clearly going to be the online community and how well that is implemented and how dependable those features are.

The size and wattage is a bonus, but I'd suggest that if you need to hear up loads of water, you don't mind an extra two inches of machine. Likewise, if you're hearing 2 litres, you can make do with less wattage.

The aesthetics are good and it fits the Apple iStore styling that middle classes like, so that makes a lot of sense... It's a shame for them that Aniva beat them to getting this in the Apple Stores.

It's a great looking and clearly powerful machine - I love the Chefsteps team also, I might add - but I have a feeling they are at least a year too late with this.

[daveb]

Chef Steps has been in bed with Poly Science for so long I've wondered if they realized the growing market for circulators is looking for a sub $200 unit.  I'm sure I'm not their only "member" who follows the site, uses it for reference and recipes and then plugs in an Anova.

[rustwood]

Chef Steps has been in bed with Poly Science for so long I've wondered if they realized the growing market for circulators is looking for a sub $200 unit.

 

That is a good thought, but it seems unlikely that they wouldn't be aware of that.  Perhaps they are intentionally aiming for higher margins and lower volumes towards the upper end of the home user market.  I will be interested to see if they are able to maintain that $100 price jump after the introductory period. 

 

There is a smoker called a Pit Barrel Cooker that seems to have succeeded with the same strategy and price points.  They offered $100 off their $300 cooker, sold a bunch of them, got a lot of buzz and then maintained the $300 price point.  It may have taken some time for people to get used to the idea of paying $100 more, but they seem to be doing very well now.  There are cheaper options, but a lot of people seem to think it is worth a premium.  Perhaps Chef Steps is hoping that will also be true for the Joule.

[haresfur]

What's the big advantage of a small circulator? I find most of the time I wish mine was longer so I had more flexibility in the bath I use. I have a surgically-enhanced Esky/Cooler that fits the circulator through the lid but it doesn't reach very deep so I use more water than necessary for small batches. Maybe that's not a major issue for some, but I don't see the current size as a too large.

[rustwood]

I succumbed to the Joule sale back in August - not long after my Anova died on me (it was subsequently replaced under warranty).  My Joule finally arrived yesterday.  I knew it was compact, but it was really striking to see it in person:

 

 

That is a standard 12 oz beer bottle.  The beer is a little closer and the angle distorts it a bit, but the Joule is quite compact.  I will give it a try in the next few days but I don't expect it to perform dramatically better or differently than my Anova.  It will be nice to have a little more room in the pots I typically use for SV though - not to mention drawer space.  My Anova is probably headed for the back of a distant pantry cupboard.

 

Chefsteps claims they will be caught up on their backorders soon.  They are now taking orders at $199 including shipping.  I am sure they would have liked to have kept the $299 price, but there are now many lower cost competitors.

 

 

 

Edited November 22, 2016 by rustwood
clarity (log)

[Smithy]

Impressive!  I've been anxiously awaiting mine to arrive.  It's supposed to arrive tomorrow, unless the winter storms delay it by a day.  Unfortunately it's scheduled to arrive at home, and I'm traveling for the next few months.  :-( I really wish they'd kept the original schedule, in which they promised an October delivery.

[blue_dolphin]

2 minutes ago, Smithy said:

Impressive!  I've been anxiously awaiting mine to arrive.  It's supposed to arrive tomorrow, unless the winter storms delay it by a day.  Unfortunately it's scheduled to arrive at home, and I'm traveling for the next few months.  :-( I really wish they'd kept the original schedule, in which they promised an October delivery.

Dang!  I can imagine the small size would be a boon in the confines of the Princessmobile. Oh well, next year!

[chefmd]

Mine arrived on Friday, just before we left for Lima.  I held the box close but did not even have a chance to open it.  Will start playing with it when we come back this weekend!

[rotuts]

Im very pleased that circulators have become common, and one has choices at reasonable prices.

 

not so pleased CombiOvens have not followed suit.

[chefmd]

Came back home and started playing with Joule.  Downloaded the app, no problems.  It offered me to re-name Joule.  Now her name is Mashwa, after an exotic root vegetable that I ate in Peru.  

 

Side by side comparison with Anova.

 

Real strong magnet made using clip unnecessary in Le Creuset pot.  Made lamb leg overnight, it worked like a champ and I could check the cooking temp on iPad without getting out of bed (although I did not).

 

[FauxPas]

The size difference is very noticeable. I find the Anova somewhat big and clumsy and keep thinking about the Joule. But the Anova was recently $99 and the Joule is twice that and I just can't justify buying the latter right now at that price. But the Joule does look very elegant. Does it circulate the water just as well? 

[btbyrd]

I've been very happy with mine so far. It's so much smaller and SO much quieter than my Polyscience. It also heats marginally faster. The pump isn't nearly as strong (which is a good thing -- the PS is, if anything too strong) but it doesn't need to be because its impeller sucks in the coldest water from the bottom. Apart from the size and noise benefits (which are substantial) I think my favorite thing is that you can use it in basically no water. It's feasible to use it in pretty much any pot or container, however small. This not only saves water but also heats up faster so you're ready to cook in a shorter amount of time. While I'm kinda tempted by how cheap the Anovas are, if I was going to get another circulator, it'd be a Joule for sure.

 

Now, if only they'd update the software so you can control multiple Joules from the same device...

[Martin Fisher]

I was very tempted to order a Joule but I think I'll wait another year or until the Anova One (I have that and two SVMs) dies.

 

[rustwood]

According to a reliable source (ahem), Joule can be run completely submerged under water for at least an hour and then continue to run with a normal water level for the remainder of the day without any problems.  It is not a recommended practice though - the official high water mark is just below the power cord.

[scubadoo97]

My Anova is working well so no need to upgrade and figure when the Anova craps out, they will be on Joule v4

[IndyRob]

11 hours ago, chefmd said:

Real strong magnet made using clip unnecessary in Le Creuset pot.

 

 

I like that feature, but how's the clip?  Although more clunky, the Anova clamp seems more versatile.

[chefmd]

Clip is not adjustable, it is about 5 inches high so your pot has to be at least that tall.

[btbyrd]

It doesn't really have to be that tall. I've cooked eggs in an 8"X8" glass casserole dish. (Try that with any other circulator.) And I've used several dutch ovens and All Clad pots with the magnet (which is great). The clip from the factory is pretty small (too small to clip on the classic "big Cambro" that many use for SV) but they designed Joule so you can swap the clip out for a larger one that will fit Cambros and premium coolers like the Yeti. The bigger clip isn't on the market yet, but should be soon. 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I also like that the anova has a removable cord.  Makes the device much easier to store.  But assuming both products hold temperature and circulate well enough, what it comes down to is the pot you wish to use.