As to the problem with birds that Joe Kissell has, I’d suggest checking out Alton Brown’s show about the subject. He’s addressed the problem and worked on solutions (including one that allows stuffing which he had previously been solidly against due to the rest of the bird being cooked when the stuffing still is below a safe temperature). I have a way of making the entire turkey entirely tender, moist, and completely cooked (to safe temperature), but stuffing not allowed and it’s somewhat of a pain to do (albeit required of me thanksgivings for the last ten years or so).

The probes on the other models fold against the body of T’pen which protects the probe, protects any hands reaching into a drawer with the T’pen in it, makes the T’pen easier more convenient to carry.

The new models only fold to a 90-degree so either the probe sticks straight out or you have to disconnect and reconnect it every time you use the T’pen.

I imagine they’ll change this in the future, but unless you need to use a large number of probes the cost in durability, safety, and convenience outweighs the flexibility of the plug in model.

It looks like a digital timer, but it has a switch on the back to display the temperature reading ( in Celcius or Fahrenheit). It has a removable wire with a probe on the end that you leave in the bird while it’s cooking. You set the temperature you want, stick the probe in the bird, put the bird in the oven, and set the thermometer on the kitchen counter. When the bird reaches the temperature you set, the alarm beeps.

The great thing is that you don’t need to keep opening the oven and losing heat to check the temperature, and watching the numbers rise reassures you that it’s really working.