Oh I am sorry. I must have read it wrong. You mean a thermometer for the foods. Sorry.
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The Dot is much simpler. It’s just a thermometer that you can set an alarm to go off at a certain temperature. If you don’t need all the features on a ChefAlarm, why spend the money? I think I got my ChefAlarm before they came out with the Dot. The Dot would work just fine for me - I use it for meat in the oven.
I also put the probe in my freezer and snaked the cable to the outside where the display adhered magnetically to mr fridge door. I could then walk by and see the temp without opening the door. The freezer was dying. Got a new fridge before it was too late.
ThermoWorks now makes something called a Square Dot that measures both the oven temp and the meat temp. I just ordered one to give somebody who is having issues with their oven temp.
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Makes sense. Simpler is often better.
Here in Australia they pricing isn’t too different between the two (and very expensive) so that is why I started looking at the less basic options.
What do you use the second probe for on the SquareDOT? Is it for ambient oven temperature, or do you use it if you have a second roast?
Edit: you answered the question while I was typing
gmta 
I do think the make something for multiple roasts …
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I have a couple of 25+ years old Maverick probe thermometers that are still doing me good for cooking brisket or roasts on the grill.
These are leave-in probes. They’re supposed to communicate temp to a remote reader. But after 25 years, they’re not doing that well so I have to read directly instead.
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I used to use Taylor’s
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Just doing some reading and it turns out the SquareDOT actually can be used for two roasts if you just replace the oven probe with a meat one. Just in case you ever find yourself in that situation.
I use a Thermoworks Square DOT too, just got it a few months ago. I keep the oven (air) probe in the oven all the time, and I stick the base unit to the side of my refrigerator which is about a foot away from my oven - the base unit has magnets on the back. I keep the meat (penetration) probe in a drawer and just attach it when needed. It works pretty well. You can set an alarm for each probe separately.
Oven probe can clip onto a rack
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I have a discontinued Thermoworks corded leave-in I use all the time. It has a loud alarm–no bluetooth needed. It’s much like the current ChefAlarm. It lives on the stovetop. IMO, its only disadvantage is that it won’t also measure air temperature.
IMO, if you use your oven (or BBQ) much, you need some corded setup, so you don’t have to open your oven or pit to check.
I need several different thermometers in my work and cooking, but for most people a great solution is to have one Thermapen, maybe an IR, and also a multi-channel base unit that can accept different Type K or T modular probes for air, contact, different length penetration tips, etc. Thermoworks has lots of options, including models with armored cables.
I have and like the ThermaQ 2-channel unit. It has a convenient, strong magnet for mounting.
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Same. I have a simple leave-in thermometer too. With a cable that comes out of the oven. I can set an alarm for when the temperature hits my target. All very simple and straightforward.
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Do you ever run your oven up to around 550°F/288°C, like for fast pizza cooking, and will the probe wire handle that kind of temperature?
Strangely enough while going through a junk drawer I found a loose probe but couldn’t figure out what it was supposed to plug into. It sure didn’t fit any of my other stuff. I finally remembered that it came with my oven, 10+ years ago, and there’s a spot for it to plug in on one of the oven walls. Maybe this year I’ll dig out the manual and figure out how to use it (making sure it calibrates against others).
It took me almost 3 years to figure out how far off my oven was. It just took a lot longer to bake recipes than they called for, and I often would just add 20 degrees to the instructions. I finally got a leave-in bimetal thermometer and when it and the Maverick probe agreed the oven was running 30 to 35°F lower than set temp (30 at lower temps like 275, 35 at higher temps like 500), I googled how to recalibrate. It won’t permit me to add more than 35, so I guess I’m lucky that was the extent of the miscalibration.
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I was just reading about this: The probe cables on the Square DOT can withstand up to 700F
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That’s impressive; thanks. The Mavericks (admittedly this is 30+ year old tech) have woven-wire leads that crap out over 450F or so. (I’ve had to replace a couple)
Might be time to upgrade my cave kitchen!
YW. Thought I’d share given I had just read about it. Unfortunately, it’s going to be tricky to find a Square DOT in Australia, so might have to go back to the drawing board.
From the sounds of it you’ve already got a prettily well-equipped cave kitchen
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You can get all kinds of different probes, separately, for ThermoWorks thermometers.
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I have used the leave in with cords, usually while smoking meats on my electric smoker, but more recently purchased a “Meater” and a “Yummly”, both of which are cordless, Bluetooth, and have phone apps.
I mainly use the Meater, and I use it for small cuts , like steak and chicken. I don’t know how accurate it would be for large roasts.
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I also use Yum’s wireless thermometer for short cooks. For long smokes I use ThermoWorks Smoke X2™ Thermometer
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Actually, it is the Yummly I end up using. Using it now. The app is more intuitive.
Just as important is the lead’s abrasion- and kink-resistance. You have to balance that, because the spiral-wound armored leads probably will not allow your oven to fully close.
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