Originally Posted by
Pegleg
All I can say is that I went through several cheaper ones prior to getting the Thermapen, and it's head and shoulders above them. A couple of them died or got inaccurate (with no way to calibrate). One we got from the restaurant supply store for $15 was pretty good and lasted several years, but the read time was slower. I received the Thermapen as a gift - I know it's spendy, but damn does it work better than the rest. Super fast read time really makes a difference, as does the built-in automatic backlight (especially for checking meat on the grill in the dark). Given that it's something I plan to use for the next couple of decades, it seems worth the investment. (I haven't tried the Lavatools Javelin, but based on the reviews it sounds like it has some customer service issues if you have a problem. It's probably fine, but I'm a fan of the invest-once-and-be-done approach for kitchen gear - it's saved me money in the long run since I stopped buying the cheaper versions of everything.)