Weber iGrill 3 Review: Not Recommended

I picked up an iGrill 3 Bluetooth thermometer on clearance at Home Depot and checked out how it performed. My impressions of the product are really mixed. There are some people who are going to love the iGrill 3 but I suspect most people will be happier with a different product.

Table of Contents

What is the iGrill 3?

The iGrill 3 is a Bluetooth enabled device that consists of two temperature probes and a sensor to measure the fuel level in a propane tank. The package contains the central controller, temp probes, tank sensor and battery pack and batteries.

The iGrill 3 Bluetooth thermometer from Weber is designed exclusively for use with Weber Spirit II and Weber Genesis II series grills. You can easily tell if your grill is designed for use with the device as it will have a badge on the front saying that it is “IGrill 3 Ready”.

How to Install the iGrill 3

The written instructions that come with the device for installation are not very useful. I was able to find this nice video that walks you through the installation process.

Usage of the Device

The device is used through the Weber iGrill app that you install on your phone or tablet.

Once you are in the app you can tell that Weber spent a ton of effort building in features. You can choose from different pre-set temperatures or manually set your own target temperature. As a few examples, here are the pre-set temperatures for some of the options built into the app:

Brisket: 195F
Pork Chops: 145F
Chicken breast: 165F
Salmon: 135F

You also get multiple temperature targets for steaks depending on whether you want your steak Rare, Medium, etc.

I manually set a target temperature of 121F and let the device do its thing. As the probe gets close to the target temperature you get an alarm letting you know to “Get Ready”. When the probe reaches the target temperature you get another alarm letting you know that the temperature has been reached.

The app lets you graph and store the data from your cooks, create presets and do all sorts of funky little things.

Why I Do Not Like the iGrill 3

While the iGrill 3 works well there are several items that make me dislike the device.

Only Useful for a Single Grill

The iGrill 3 is designed to be permanently installed in you Spirit II or Genesis II grill. There is no magnetic base for mounting on the side table of your Performer charcoal grill. There is no quick release option for you to take the device out and use it in the kitchen.

I have multiple grills and smokers and I have no interest in having a high end thermometer that I can only use in one of them.

Can Only Be Used with The App

The iGrill 3 ONLY works with the app. There is no temperature display on the device itself.

Apps are nice but should not be required. When I am grilling and smoking I want to relax and reconnect with the primal elements of fire and meat. It pisses me off that the only way I can check the temperature of a brisket is to whip out my iphone.

And by the way…the flawed assumption is that the Bluetooth connectivity of my phone will always work.

I Do Not Like the App

I don’t like the app.

The app is overly complicated. Weber built buckets of features into the app which makes it hard to find what you want. I have spent over an hour clicking through the app and still haven’t found where the tank scale sensor data is displayed. I could do a Google search to find out where the data is hidden but I shouldn’t have to.

Another thing that pisses me off is that the app tracks the hell out of you.

It took me 30 minutes of clicking through the app to discover that the default setting allows Weber to track and collect data on you. The screen shot says the data is “used solely to improve the app” but when you click on the Privacy Policy you quickly learn that this is a blatant lie as the data is also used for advertising and is shared with Facebook for creation of custom audiences.

Summary

The iGrill 3 works fine as a Bluetooth enabled dual probe thermometer but I do not recommend buying one. There are plenty of other grill thermometers available that are cheaper, have greater flexibility and are a lot less creepy.