Tag Archives: Accessory

by | May 22, 2022 · 10:20 am

ThermoPro TP393 Hygrometer and Vice-Versa Cigars

Every now and then the folks at Thermopro send me a new gadget to try out. In this case I protested a little, and suggested something else, but they insisted that this was better technology than the older model I asked about, and were rather insistant! I agreed to evaluate the ThermoPro TP393 Hygrometer even though I thought it seemed a little large for most humidors. I set it up in my cabinet humidor for a week or two next to a known accurate hygrometer and left it alone. There are quite a few things I like about this, besides the fact that it appears to be accurate. My old eyes like the large display, in this application, the backlighting, time and date function are

Before you panic about the humidity, the top unit is in my Family Room!

pretty superfluous, but in other applications this are nice to have. It has a rechargeable battery, which should make things easier over time, as saves having to find weird button cell batteries, or keep a stock of AAA batteries around. I’ve noticed no battery power reduction over the two weeks it’s been in use. It interacts with the App seamlessly via bluetooth, one can set alerts easily, and historical data is tracked. I have three devices now in my app and can see the conditions in three humidors at a glance. It may be a little big for a desktop humidor, it’s good for a large cabinet, and would be ideal for a walk-in. It’s a nice unit for a very reasonable price. I also have been using their TP200B Indoor Outdoor Thermometer to monitor the temperature in my enclosed smoking porch. This is a neat thermometer for indoor and outdoor, but doesn’t really have a good application in the humidor without a hygrometer, and it isn’t Bluetooth. The links included are Amazon affiliate links, I get a few pennies if anyone buys one. I recently received an Amazon payment about enough to buy a cigar, and it’s the first one I’ve gotten in a few years, so I’m not getting rich off of affiliate links! Thank you to Thermopro for the promotional consideration.

 

I had an opportunity to try a new cigar this week, two of them, actually. It’s actually the same cigar, smoked two different ways. This is a cigar that Kevin at CigarProp/Trash Panda Cigars has been working on with Omar of Fratello Cigars for the last two years, it’s not a new concept, just maybe one that hasn’t been perfected yet. They have made a cigar that has a different smoking experience depending on which end you light. It’s capped on both ends, one end has a lighter cap, and is about 7″ x 50. I smoked two cigars, one from each end, and did, indeed have a different experience. I know nothing about the blend, but I am guessing it’s got some Dominican tobacco, and strikes me as a cigar rolled in the DR. It appears to have a Habano wrapper. The first one I smoked, lighting the Habano capped end (hint, cut both ends, burning through the cap doesn’t go well!), seemed to start spicier, and built in strength. The second, lighting the shade end, seemed to start smoother. Overall these are on the leather side of the flavor spectrum to my palate. My personal opinion on cigars that are copped on both ends is that they need to be stored at a lower humidity, because once the humidity is inside the cigar there’s nowhere for it to go. I found that both samples needed frequent relights in the last third, although the burn and draw were still pretty good. It’s an interesting concept, there have been a couple cigars in the past that have done similar things, one of which was a blatant SCHIP tax dodge! Check out Kevin and Jess’s video about this cigar. I’ll be interested to see how this project progresses! Thanks for including me in the select group of people allowed to know about this! 

 

That’s all for today, until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

 

 

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by | October 31, 2021 · 10:37 am

An HVC 10th Anniversary Cigar and a New Govee WiFi Thermometer Hygrometer Set

I had a few days off this week to take care of some things, so as I was out running some errands on Friday I stopped in to Son’s Cigars to see Vince for a few minutes and see what was new. Of course, I made some impulse buys, and bought some new cigars, one of which was a recommendation by Vince, the HVC 10th Anniversary. I’ve enjoyed the HVC cigars I’ve smoked, as well as most of the Aganorsa cigars, from which factory this cigar is produced. Sidebar: I told Vince when I was there that there were cigars that I wanted to pick up and couldn’t remember, and I should make a list…and I just now remembered what they were. Now the trick is remembering to make a list. Hang on, let me make a note…OK, I’m back. I would have forgotten again and it would have driven me nuts. Now, maybe, I have a chance, I just have to remember I have the list! Back to the HVC 10th. This is a cigar that comes in one size, and it’s a good size for my preference, 6 ½” x 50. I like it, it’s a little longer than a toro, not quite a Churchill, very nice, as long as it tastes good! It’s a Nicaraguan Puro with Corojo wrapper grown in Jalapa, and a few different varietals of Corojo in the filler. It started out with a pretty heavy pepper, which settled into a collection of sweet spices and some cedar, while maintaining the strength. It mellowed slightly in the second half, but was still a formidable cigar. I have one complaint, and it’s directed at Vince: why did you only sell me one? Great smoke!

I have recently been testing the new Govee WiFi Digital Hygrometer Thermometer 3 Pack, which I purchased from Amazon for $69.99. I’ll make some disclosures at this point. The links to this here are affiliate links, if you make a purchase using them I’ll get a few cents, and it won’t cost you anything. You’ll have my gratitude, but no pressure. Secondly, I purchased this with the understanding that the manufacturer would reimburse me, as they have in the past, and I have no reason to believe that they won’t. that being said, I’m really not going to lose sleep if they don’t come through, let me explain. I have Govee remote Temperature Hygrometers deployed in all of my humidors. Most are just Bluetooth, which is fine, but I’m finding more value in having WiFi connected units. I was excited to try this set-up with the WiFi Hub. This product comes with three sensors and the hub. The sensors work independently via Bluetooth, but the Hub connects them to your home WiFi network, so you can see them through the app wherever you happen to be. Pretty cool. I’ve been testing them for accuracy side by side and they are all pretty close one another, as well as another Govee WiFi unit. My plan is to spread the three sensors out in my cabinet, top, middle and bottom, although I could put them in three different humidors if I wanted, as long as they were reasonably close to the Hub, which plugs into an AC outlet. One piece of advice when setting up the system: pull the plastic tabs that cover the batteries in the sensors as you set each one up, then put the number stickers on them, if you pull the tabs all at once (like I did, duh), you have a hard time telling one from another in the app. I looked like a moron blowing on them to get the humidity to change so I could tell one from the other and rename it in the app (Edit: I’m told that if you bring one of the sensors close to the phone the corresponding one in the app will blonk to identify it). I guess what I’m trying to say is if you have a large humidor, or three humidors, this is a pretty cool way to monitor your temperature and humidity, and the app, just like with the other Govee products I’ve reviewed here before, tracks something like a year’s worth of historical data. You can set alarms and cool stuff like that as well. The only unknown is the battery life on the sensors, and I didn’t look to see what kind of batteries they take, but they are probably easily sourced button cells of some sort (Edit: they are standard AAA). 

Don’t forget to go enter the contest in the last post! I’m going to add a few cigars to the bag before all is said and done. Until the next time, 

CigarCraig

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by | March 10, 2021 · 9:53 pm

Accessory Review: ThermoPro TP59 Wireless Thermometer Hygrometer

Recently I was sent a ThermoPro TP59 Wireless Thermometer Hygrometer to test out. I mostly use Govee brand remote hygrometers, along with some Western Digital Hygrometers in my humidors, so they were used as my baseline for testing out his unit. To be honest, I’m not one of these guys who obsesses about my humidors being spot on humidity wise, as long as the cigars are smoking right, I’m happy, but I do want to know when there are wild fluctuations. There are a few things I like about this unit and and a few things I don’t like. Let’s hit the high points first. It’s inexpensive, I think the cost on this is around $17.99 (I can’t tell for sure, which will come up in the “cons” portion). It seems to be reasonably accurate. It matches up within a point or two of my other hygrometers in both temperature and humidity. Any hygrometer at this price isn’t going to be dead-on accurate, the spec is +-2% on the humidity. The display is large and easy to read, backlit, and the overall look is nice enough. It’s Bluetooth, so you don’t need to see it to get a reading. The smartphone app is easy to use and provides plenty of historical data, as well as alerts if the temperature and humidity goes above or below thresholds that you can define. Another plus is that it takes normal AAA batteries, which were included. This is a decent unit for a larger humidor.

 

Now for the downsides. I say that it’s good for a larger humidor because it’s on the large side. The screen itself is 3″ diagonal. It’s going to take up some space in a small humidor, although it can certainly be mounted in the lid. I was going to list the ease of purchase through Amazon as a “pro”, then I looked it up, and see that it’s currently unavailable. I can only assume that this is a brand new model and it will soon be available, but I don’t have a date right now. Other than that, I don’t have anything bad to say about it! It does what it’s meant to do, and looks good doing it, and provides plenty of data and features through the app.  I just need to find a good place to mount it now that I’m done with the side by side testing. 

 

Thanks to the folks at ThermoPro for allowing me to try out their product! that’s all for today, until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | July 5, 2019 · 12:05 am

Accessory Review: Govee Bluetooth Mini Thermometer & Hygrometer

 

Last year I reviewed a couple of wireless hygrometers from Govee that I really like, they are still going strong today and are in daily use in my humidors. You can see the posts here for the Bluetooth model and here for the WiFi model. I’ve been so pleased with the Govee products that when I needed a new door bell for my house I bought a Govee wireless doorbell and it’s working quite well. Recently they have come out with a new item which I think address some of the things I thought were overkill with the full size model, a Govee Mini Thermometer and Hygrometer. This version eliminates the LCD screen and is just the sensor in a small case. It seamlessly adds in to the smartphone app and has all of the same features as the larger Bluetooth and WiFi versions, temperature and humidity readings with adjustable high and low alarms, data tracking, everything but the display. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here’s the technical details right from the manufacturer:

  • App Control via Bluetooth: Monitor temp/humidity data on Govee Home App (free downloading from App Store/Google Play) via Bluetooth. Up to 328ft connecting distance (no obstacles) enables you to monitor temp and humidity remotely.
  • Higher Accurate Monitor: Built-in Swiss-made SHT30 sensor, it offers higher precision monitoring than other brands. Temp is accurate to ±0.36℉ and humidity is ±2%RH. (Calibration is supported)
  • Data Storage & Export: 20 days on-board and unlimited in-App storage. The temperature sensor uploads data to App when it connects to APP via Bluetooth. Alert will be sent to App when data is beyond preset range. Besides, export data in CSV format for free.
  • Mini Size: Smaller size than other brands. Space-saving and portable. A hanging hole is designed for various placement as you want. The battery lifespan is about 365 days.
  • What’s in Box: 1 x Govee Thermometer and Hygrometer, 1 x Hanging String, 1 x User Manual. Offer 30-day money-back guarantee for any reason and 365-day warranty for quality-related issues.
I bought this from Amazon a couple of weeks ago and received it promptly. All of Govee‘s products are sold through Amazon, and through July 16th (2019) this and the WiFi unit are featured on their Prime Day sale at 60% 0ff (follow the links sprinkles liberally throughout this post) I highly recommend these products especially at these deep discount prices! Anyway, as soon as I received the sensor I pulled the tab covering the battery and it connected to the app and I named it and it started reading temperature and humidity right away. It spent its first few days next to its WiFi sibling, so it’s at least as accurate as that one is, and, judging by the way the cigars smoke, it’s just fine. I like the fact that it doesn’t take up much space, and in a desktop humidor it doesn’t really need a display. I need a hygrometer to give me the data when the humidor is closed, which this one does nicely, a regular digital hygrometer is already moving in the wrong direction as soon as the lid is opened, so you never really know. I think this is a really cool solution, and at the Amazon Prime Days price, it’s a steal! Heck, I ordered another one.
Thanks to Leo at Govee for giving me the opportunity to use Govee products in my humidors and make me into a customer! That’s all for today, until the next time, 
CigarCraig
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by | November 19, 2018 · 7:25 am

Accessory Review: Govee WiFi Smart Hygrometer/Thermometer

In August I reviewed the Govee Bluetooth Smart Hygrometer/Thermometer, which is a handy item, but I really wanted more from it. Recently the WiFi version has become available, so I jumped on it and picked one up to test out side by side with the Bluetooth version. With the bluetooth version, I found that I had to be in the same room as the unit, which is fine if I wanted to know the conditions inside a given humidor without opening it up and looking in, or get alerts if things are going out of whack. This is all well and good, and the historical information that the unit logs is nice to have also. I did wish for a  longer range solution, then along comes the WiFi version. The only difference is a small WiFi symbol in the lcd screen, as noted in the picture. The free app is the cool part, and I can only speak to the iOS version, but I was able to add both units, and I have no reason to believe that there’s no reasonable limit to the number of units you could add, assuming you name them differently in the set up.

I did fumble a bit with the setup directions, they weren’t quite as concise as they could have been. I had to read through the Q&A to find the directions to connect to my home WiFi, but once I did find it, it couldn’t have been easier. I would suggest that the company might put documentation on their website as a resource as well as I actually looked there before reading further into the printed manual.  If the documentation is the only downside I’m not going to complain, I’ve had other WiFi devices that I’ve given up on using because they were too much of a pain in the ass (PITA) to set up, which is a shame, because that particular item would have been far more useful than just monitoring. I digress.

Some technical details:

  •  Easy Check: big LCD screen, WiFi supported, check on App anywhere and specific time. 
  •   High Accuracy: advanced Swiss SHT30 sensor. Accuracy of ±0.5°F on temp and ±1% on hum (Temperature Range: 14°F – 140°F/-10°C – 60°C, Humidity Range: 0 – 99%)
  •   7X24h Monitoring: Sensor automatically monitoring temp & hum., records real-time data on device and cloud
  •   Alert Settings: allow settings your desired values and automatically send alerts to your phone at once if exceeds.
  •   Data Tracking: 32,000 records in device (about 20 days), two-year data on cloud, NO SUBSCRIPTION FEE
  •   ALL IN ONE: Govee Home App supports for more sensors connected at the same time, check all on hands via App!

For ease of use, this gets a thumbs up, and the unit appears to be reasonably accurate, compared to both its Bluetooth sibling and other digital hygrometers. Also, the cigars in the humidors that the hygrometers are in smoke fine, the ultimate test, in my opinion. As far as price goes, the WiFi version is almost twice the price of the Bluetooth version, which is a bit steep, but the functionality is worth the extra cash. Are there cheaper items on the market that do the same thing? Sure there are. Maybe they don’t provide the data logging that these units do, nor do they have a family of other home automation products that work with the same app like lighting and doorbells and other fun stuff if you’re into that.

That’s all for now, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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