I hate my joule

I didn't know it was going to be so finicky with the app.

I didn't know that I was going to have to connect via chefsteps (internet required) to use this appliance over your own home network.

You can stay connected via bluetooth but it's better if you log into the cloud!

Bluetooth won't stay connected more than 5 - 10 feet from the device.

Sorry did you want to connect to our cloud?

literally every time I open the app it halts me and wants me to sign into the cloud and start talking to chefsteps.

Did I ask you if you wanted to sign it into the cloud?

It has a log of every time I've ever used it. I know it's waiting to store it into that cloud server. Also it's still tring to get me to finish selecting, step by step, the instructions for it to cook a steak for me because there is NO WAY offered in the UI to just start the damn thing.

It might be easier if you let us sign you into the cloud. Would you like to sign into the cloud?

I literally get angry, my heart rate increases, and I just select random options between moments when it will stay connected even though

Would you like to sign into the cloud?

I'm holding the damn phone over the top of the hting less than 12 inches away and then sometimes, the third or fourth time I try and load the menu, or start and cancel the wizard to cook the damn steak, the "start joule" button that isn't on the actual interface or menu anywhere appears and I can turn the thing on.

After it asks me if I would like to connect to the cloud.

Screw you guys really. I'll be using this thing occasionally when I basically want to pasteurize something for someone and it'w more worth getting over the initial frustration than tending the stove for 16 - 20 hours. Nothing else.

Screw your half-assed, wizard only, cloud dependent, data hungry, "knows better than you" application it's really ruined the experience of using this tool.

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Comments

brian_martin2001

You could always see about getting a refund. There are other types of immersion circulators out there.

jake_743712

Yeah it's been a few hours and the joule is doing it's thing. I thought that the feature list of the joule sounded like something I wanted, but in fact I purchased the wrong product.

99% of the time i just want something I can set the temp on and walk away from in a few button presses.

The joule isn't my problem in a sense so much as the "ecosystem".

If you literally want (what feels like) instagram holding your hand every time you use this appliance, this is for you.

Just understand that you basically have to create a new online account or integrate this directly into your social media literally before you can use it for the first time.

And you can't actually use it over Wi-Fi it only speaks to chef steps over your network and they can convey your settings back into your kitchen for you from their server farm.

Anyways it's very frustrating and I avoid using the device. But every few months something comes up and I find myself saying " oh yeah I have something that will hold that temp for a long time. By then I've forgotten the sheer irritating nature of how it works, the app seems to have conveniently forgotten the "don't show me this again" setting on the ridiculous "our servers can make this all better join the cloud" dialog that interferes literally every single time you try and access the device over bluetooth.

Did I mention the bluetooth has a range that is like, inches since it's apparently smack dab in the middle somewhere of a thick metal shell? It's no matter.

By the time you've registered your intent with chef steps so that the app will allow you to connect to a device, and then used the app to set up the device to talak to the chef steps servers over the internet, the device and app together have more than enough information to allow me to boot the device, open the app, type in the 3-5 characters of the temperature I need, and start the device.

Why can't this be done over bluetooth anyways this thing is still trying to get me to finish selecting how done I want my steak since the first time I ever used it, because I have to interact with that wizard until it gives up and allows me to start the device manually.

I'm well past my return date and every feature promised to me was delivered, the Joule does it's job. I just personally choose not to use t in most cases since It's not actually made clear anywhere that you have to integrate with chef steps and use a "cloud interface" (i.e. have them actually manage the device directly for you) in order to use the wi-fi.

I gave it a pass on a frustrating first experience since I'm not the type who registers my appliances on facebook or wants my cooking logged on a corporate cloud for me. But by the time I wanted to use it again and it was, for some reason, still difficult to just connect and set a temperature, it was too late to return it.

So honestly,if this is you get another device because the very features that led me to purchase this particular device are hidden behind the gateway of social media integration and corporate oversight.

I'm sure the wizard is cute but I'm not trying to look at someone else's steak right now. I don't need the computerized corporate chef to monitor my cook and beep me with little warnings and reminders to post pictures, or whatever happens by the time that thing starts cooking your food for you.

I'm just teasing a little since I've never actually tried to use it. Be warned After you have paid for this device you literally have to get logged into the chefsteps servers before you can turn it on and use it for the first time.

It's beyond creepy. I won't even let my fridge order milk.

brian_martin2001

I'm aware of the requirements and limitations of this particular device. I find them acceptable. I was just offering the idea to you that, if it is really such a burden or irritation to you that you could always contact ChefSteps and see about returning it. There are several devices out there that do not require a smart device interface. You could look into using one of them.

jake_743712

Brian, thanks for the advice. I do appreciate it.

To be clear I passed on buying two lesser circulators and purchased a single joule entirely for the convenience of the smart device interface and the wi-fi monitoring.

I've come here and made this post for two reasons:

One, it's cathartic. Sorry.

Two, if this information helps one or two people to choose a tool that won't cause them these frustrations it will have been worth my time to share my feelings.

Also I tried to let the software update this morning, and it starts asking for my wi-fi info again. So it looks like one way or another, he thing is going to complain until I let it hook up to the chef steps cloud and start sharing data. i.e. forever.

The joule seems to consist of quality hardware. It's really supposed to do one thing, and it does that thing well. However the tools for working with it and the interface provided are trying WAY too hard to make it seem special or complicated, and to keep you tied in tight with chefsteps along the way.

In my opinion they have gone too far, and they are so "helpful" and "integrated" that it has interfered with the usability of the simple device. Add to that the absolute hard requirement to register, check in, and get permission from them for each step along the way and the entire experience becomes, to me, draconian and offensive.

I would have suffered in silence since it's definitely a matter of preference how an individual feels about their privacy or security.

But then I realized that since they had literally forced me to divulge my personal information to them before I could power on the device to see if it even worked after I overspent on it, I could come share my frustrations here in their forum. Catharsis!

I do think they should make it clear, abundantly clear, before the sale, the level of integration that chefsteps requires with your network and your life in order to heat a pot of water.

I know that lots of people want this. I would like to have a choice, at least. I would like it to open ready to enter a temperature, with a button to invoke the wizard if you want. If this had been put together differently I'd have been curious, maybe even tried it out.

Logging every time it's turned on needs to be optional, even deletable.

As it is, It's ruined the experience for me.

ewelch

Hi Jake,

Thank you so much for your feedback and we truly apologize for the frustration that you have experienced while using your Joule. This is never the experience we want you to have and we are so sorry! We would love if you could please kindly submit a support ticket (support.chefsteps.com) so we can better assist you.

Thank you,

Nell with ChefSteps Customer Experience

fisher23

Making sure your firmware and app are up-to-date will mitigate some of these requirements and limitations. Bluetooth range is better with the latest firmware and you can disconnect WiFi if you don't want cloud services. Yes, I do understand that you are required to setup an account, but that requires no more personal information than an email address and password. I do realize some people don't like that. In my opinion, it far weights out the disadvantages, i.e. software updates with new features and notifications. If you are that worried about your email address, open a new gmail or yahoo account and be anonymous.

jake_743712

Hi Niel

I'm probably not going to create a support case for this my joule isn't broken.

I just had no idea that by buying the joule I was going to be opening the door to another "smart tv" fiasco.

It was SOOO disappointing when I got everything in order for my first sous vide cook, went to fire it up, and found out I had to go create an account with you guys just to turn on the device and find out if it was working.

After doing that, I spent several minutes trying to find a button or a setting to turn the thing on. The only option offered was to start taking a multiple choice quiz about what I wanted to cook so that the chefsteps system could handle it for me.

I finally quit that in frustration and then lo and behold, was offered an option to start the joule.

So in fact every time I want to heat my joule, I have to first log in to the chef steps servers. Then start the wizard that I have never used or wanted to use. After a moment of that I can cancel the wizard and the option to turn on the joule appears.

From this point onward I can run the joule manually although it's CONSTANTLY demanding (begging?) to be hooked into the cloud.

There's not info I can find about this in any sales materials anywhere. What happens when I hook up? What are you logging?? What are you storing? Does the joule have a microphone in it? What's your privacy policy regarding information about when or how often I cook with my joule? Do you have privacy filters or is this database just open for "research" internally and with external partners?

I understand that some are "willing to make the trade" but I'm not trading blindly. I've never had to send a request to the manufacturer of my stove or my microwave in order to have them activate it for me to cook a meal. But that's what I have to do with my Joule.

Come on, are you guys uploading my cooking usage and logs from my android app anyways?

And I understand how it works out in this awful electronic tangle you've set up but, really as I said before, this should be a simple tool. The wizards and that could be a value add but instead they're an obstacle to achieving the goal. Like this forum, you've taken a message board or blog setup, dressed it up nice and called it a forum.

But it actually inverts the conversation, and threads in such a way that while it would facilitate some feedback to a blog poster and allow for some sub-conversation, it completely mangles the data and someone who actually cares to follow the conversation as if it were a forum has to read it all and then re-sort it mentally into he actual order in which the input was presented. Or just read the original post, scroll down to the bottom, and read the additional input in reverse order, allowing for subthreads.

You can't just open the page and intuitively join/follow the conversation.

And you can't just open a new joule and start heating water. Unlike the forum, that's a real problem.

I'm not seeking a refund or anything from cheftsteps, my joule arrived in a timely fashion, and all of the functions that I am willing to use have worked perfectly (on the equipment side) to date. I want quality hardware when I stick my electronics in a bucket of water and so far this hardware is fine.

The software interface is another matter, and why you guys don't implement wifi discovery over bluetooth appears to be not a technical decision, but a social one. The fact that you're still having such a heavy focus on over-aggressively collecting data on the cooking process at this point in the product life cycle is again, more about the people than the product.

Here's my problem:

When you access or use our Services, we automatically collect information about you and we may associate it with information that you provide directly to us. ... We log information about your use of our website, such as your computer’s operating system, the type of browser you use, access times, pages viewed, your IP address and the web page that referred you to our site. ... When you connect Joule to a Wi-Fi network, we collect information about the network (such as name and connection strength). We collect information about your use of Joule, including what and how you cook, as well as your cooking and recipe preferences. We collect diagnostic data from Joule’s sensors and components, such as total motor revolutions, atmospheric pressure, and bath temp. Some technical and usage information is also saved on Joule. ... we may collect information about the mobile phone or tablet, including the hardware model, operating system and version, device identifiers, mobile network information and information about your use of our mobile applications. ... we will collect information about all mobile phones and tablets that you use to control Joule. ... We may collect information about your location when you access or use one of our mobile applications or otherwise consent to the collection of this information.

I'm done. great verbiage I like how "or otherwise consent" implies that consent might be required. Further in the privacy policy it's noted that one of the uses of this information is to determine if any "illegal activity has occurred".

LOL wow I was getting over this. It's actually blatantly stated that they will decide whether or not you can continue to use your joule based on the information they're harvesting about your mobile devices, and the networks you connect to each time you use the thing. if you select something in the wizrd that doesn't match your "recipe history profile" will your joule be disabled until you contact support and clarify that you're just trying something new and have not, in fact, stolen the joule?

Of course they'll actually know this already since they can see that you are using one of the three phones you've always used to monitor the device over your home wi-fi. But no harm in checking right? just "keeping you safe".

They actually fully know that you're at home did you catch that bit about location logging?

You are in fact literally asking for permission while they decide whether it "looks ok" or not each time you want to heat water with your joule.

Damn now I'm all fired up again. I just wanted a hip, sleek little device to heat up my damn pot of water without having to feel like I was steaming an LCD screen, you know?

Why not give us some cool super fun features like an interactive google map API page that shows us who's cooking what in the world on their joule right at this very minute?

I'm guessing they've thought about it, and realized it would creep people out.

(I edited this rant slightly for clarity).

JasonWirth_68226

Amen. All excellent points. When Joule was first announced i was hesitating because it was in a pre-purchase mode but they said there would be an open API and SDK. Upon hearing that I pulled the trigger. I too worry about the death of smart devices. As a software developer I know how difficult it can be to support a product and how many devices are bricked because the company loses focus, promotes a new product, goes out of business, etc. I wish they had an API and SDK. I wish there wasn’t the logging and monitoring, etc. Not much can be done.

Chris_Kolbu_16712

I might be wrong, but I vaguely remember reading (on Github) about someone that fuzzed the Joule API. Here it is.

jake_743712

This would be awesome.

I wonder if you could get an arduino board talking to the current hardware.

brian_martin2001

@Nell_Welch_345007 Spam

RebeccaStewart121_815680

But, Why?

brian_martin2001

Because it's just a blatant advertisement that has nothing to do with this forum, where you are trying to hock your shitty gimmick product

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