someone can just make a cracked version people can sideload

I will never throw a brick through the headquarters of Anova, nor would I advocate for others doing it.

I bet the app requires cloud hosting for it to run, and its starting to eat away at the profits they made.

If it needs nothing but bluetooth, then this a pure money grab.

I have two Anova cookers and have never needed the app fwiw

Guess inkbird are going to get recommended a lot more...

For those of us on Android, can't we download the old APK which still talks Bluetooth and just never interact with the web/wifi for these?

I own one of these, and I honestly forgot there was an app. There's literally no reason for it, outside of the timed-start mode that I never use.

Honestly, the biggest mistake was making this an IoT device to begin with.

I have one of these. The sous vide cooker itself is very nice and easy to use, I’d highly recommend it. The app is a bit clunky and not necessary to use the device. I certainly wouldn’t pay $2 a month for it.

The app lets you set a temperature and cook time, but you can also do this using the buttons on the cooker. Sometimes the WiFi pairing is finicky, so honestly I skip the app half the time. The app also lets you view and write recipes. I guess the big advantage is you can click “start cooking” and it automatically sets the device temp and time, but doing it manually isn’t much harder. I’m also not wowed by the in-app recipe selection, and generally just get recipes from the internet.

They do this, because plebs pay...

There is a lesson in there

Lol. Hell no.

Oh good, it's not the joule. That would suck big time. You can only use it via the app.

Y'all should read Unauthorized Bread from Cory Doctorow. This hits so close to home.

I was given one of those. I tried the app once and immediately uninstalled it. It's worthless. The "let's put AI in your computer mouse, toothbrush, and toilet scrubber!" of ten years ago.

Cost or no cost, IoT should not be able to brick devices on the whim - or unexpected dissolution - of a faceless corporation.

Unfortunately too many people are trusting of monolithic entities which promise the moon and then decide what they really meant was "bend over".

I may be channelling a bit of Louis Rossman here.

That said, the other comments here suggest that the device in question still has all features when accessed from the front panel, which is a step up from a lot of other IoT behaviour. Owners who don't want to pay for the app should still disconnect it from any connectivity and keep it that way just in case the manufacturer decides to remove that functionality as well.

And if it stops working altogether without network connectivity, take the L and maybe mail it back to the company's head office with no return address. Let them deal with the e-waste.