Customer Reviews

Oregon Scientific Cable-Free Indoor/Outdoor Thermometer

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

First and foremost, it's a great thermometer. It works just as advertised. I set my remote sensor 50 feet away on the fence and it records the temperature perfectly!

That said, I do have one caution. The unit was developed to give a warning once the temperature drops below 2 degrees C (About 37F). I had placed the monitor unit in my bedroom and the first night that I put it up, the warning went off. I was half dressed before I realized it wasn't my alarm clock going off at 2:00 am! You can bypass this feature by setting the switch in the back to unit 2 or 3. I encourage you to do this unless you live in an area that doesn't get cold in the winter!

When the Oregon Scientific Cable-Free Indoor/Outdoor Thermometer model MTR101 came up in my Gold Box offer, I checked out the specifications on Oregon Scientific's web page. This is what I found:

Displayed range: 14.2 degrees Fahrenheit to 158 degrees Fahrenheit (-9.9 degrees Celsius to 70 degrees Celsius)

I trust Oregon Scientific's quality as I have used their products in the past. However, this particular unit would not be much use to me because I live far enough North that it can get down to 20 degrees below zero Fahrenheit. 14 degrees Fahrenheit is a heat wave around here, especially after the cold, cold winter that we've had this year. Anyway, this is a perfectly fine and extremely well-priced unit for warmer parts of the world.

This thermometer belongs to an older line of offerings from Oregon Scientific. The new models are out. One problem is that the sensor from this thermometer will not talk to the newer main units. So unless you plan to buy 3 these older units right now, you may have problem getting sensors for all three channels used by this thermometer.

As for the quality of Scientific Oregon thermometers, they are great. I have 3 units, 2 from their older line and one from their new line. They are all very accurate, the readings from my 3 sensors and 3 main units varies by no more then 0.7 degree F.

The design and idea of this is great. However, even though I remember reading that it is accurate to the low twenties I have never seen it go below 37 degrees. Right now it is Jan. 3, I am looking out the window and there is frost on the ground. The radio announced it is 27 degrees out. Two other thermometers here read below thirty. However, the Oregon Scientific thermometer reads 37 degrees! Also, the indoor reading in the bottom right corner reads 2+ degrees higher than two other thermometers. I would return this, but I bought it last spring and it is too late.

I bought the first of these several years ago, putting the remote sender out on my screened porch and the receiver in the kitchen. I like that the outside temperature is displayed in large, easy to read digits and that the inside temp is displayed at the same time - no need to push a button or wait for an alternating display. A bonus is the max/min memory, something many similarly-priced models omit.

After 4-5 years, the sender seemed to mysteriously quit. Changing batteries, reset, etc. did no good. But I still thought so much of the model that I bought a second one from Amazon. So now I have two receivers and one sender - the second receiver I put in the bedroom so I can see what the outside temp is like in the morning.

Others have commented on the freeze warning that goes off when the outside temp falls to 35 or so. This IS mentioned in the instructions, but the type is tiny and hard to read. If you don't want this feature, select radio channel 2 or 3. Don't forget to push the reset switch after changing batteries.

I find that a set of good alkaline batteries lasts a year or more in both sender and receiver.

The only reason I give this four stars instead of five is the failure of the sender, but it endured several sub-freezing winters so I suppose I shouldn't complain too much. The sender does have a gasket on the battery cover to prevent moisture entering, but I would avoid placing it where it is directly exposed to precipitation.

I bought two sets so that I could have a remote in the basement wine cellar (remote #1) and one outside (remote #2). Both indoor displays are able to "read" from both remotes so I now can monitor the temps in my basement and outside from either the bedroom (display #1) or the office (display #2).

Every so often I'll lose the outside signal in the office but that's because the distance is probably reaching the 100' max -- not to mention that there's an entire house in the way -- but the signal returns after a while. The cellar remote signal has been stable from day one.

I can't really tell if the temps are accurate to the tenth degree but when I set the display units side by side and give them time to settle down they read only one or two tenths different. Not enough error for me to care since I wouldn't notice a tenth of a degree difference anyway.

The units are well made and the bracket for the remote is a nice touch. One thing that I don't like are the extremely tiny screws that are used for the battery cover. Using larger and sturdier screws or a sliding cover would be a major improvement on an already good product.

Fun and entertaining gadgets for not much money -- man, can it get any better than this?

I purchased this thermometer because my ordinary round analog thermometer would not stay taped to my window here in Baghdad. Since I have used this thermometer here it has seen temperatures from 135 degrees in the day to 77 degrees at night. I highly recommend this thermometer to anyone looking to buy a new one.
Sincerely, SSG Jeffrey Parker
US Army/Baghdad

I am using this device to monitor the temp. of a meat storage room and it's working fine. Great value for the price.

This thermometer is functional, which is good considering how cheap it is. However, it has a "frost warning" that beeps when the temperature drops within a few degrees of freezing. Not a problem if you live in Hawaii. However, we live in Chicago, and the reality of winter is temperatures around or lower than freezing (if we are lucky). There is supposedly a way to override the beep, however if the temperature changes (even 0.1 of a degree), the beeping starts again. This is really annoying in the middle of the night, when it keeps going until you pop out the battery. If all you want its something to occassionally tell you the temperature ( once or twice a day), then it is worth the money.

Ever wonder who watches the Weather Channel? Lots and lots of people, and these are the people who will love this product. I gave it to my husband for Christmas. He's usually very difficult to buy for, but this was a hit! He was always looking outside at the outdoor thermometer, which wasn't all that accurate to begin with, and difficult to see at night. Now he can sit in the comfort of his easy chair and tell you exactly what the temperature is, indoors or out, any time of the day or night. He can put it on his nightstand and see it when he wakes up and use the information to help him select the right clothes to go outside. The alarm feature that operates when the temperature drops below zero was evidently disabled when we got it. However, the directions tell you about that so you don't have an unpleasant surprise in the middle of the night. My next gift would be to add a couple of additional remotes - he thinks it would be useful to know what the temperature is in the garage. If you want to know the temperature, you'll enjoy this product. One thing I think would make this product better would be if the display was lighted to make it easier to see in the dark. Perhaps the more expensive models have this feature?