Someone drinking coffee.

Tired of Cold Cups of Coffee? Try a Smart Mug

What Is a Temperature Control Mug?

A simple but universal problem for tea and coffee drinkers is that a steaming hot beverage does not stay hot for long. You often pour yourself a hot drink, get caught up in your work for a while, take a sip and find it is already lukewarm. This is why a temperature control mug exists.

Of course, you do not want to take that first sip and scald your tongue either. The temperature of food and drinks has an effect on taste, so controlling it is important. There are now various smart mugs, or temperature control mugs, on the market. They especially come in travel mugs, varying in terms of designs, features and prices.

What Is a Smart Mug?

Most temperature control mugs use precision sensors that are embedded inside to relay temperature information to a microprocessor in the base of the cup. They tell the heating element whether to heat up or cool down to ensure accurate temperature control.

Smart mugs use long-lasting batteries to give you more time to enjoy your hot drink. Each sip is uniform due to convention currents at the molecular level that circulate through the hot beverage from top to bottom.

Of course, a smart mug is not really that smart without being able to connect to your phone. You can download an app, turn on the mug and pair the device with the mug. Your smart mug will even remember your preferred drinking temperature and you will have access to firmware and software updates.

Questions to Ask When Choosing a Smart Mug

The questions you need to ask when selecting a smart mug with temperature control include:

  • What is the mug’s capacity?
  • What is the weight of the mug?
  • What is its battery life?
  • How user-friendly is the design?
  • Is the design aesthetically pleasing?
  • Is the mug app-controlled?
  • Does the mug need to be hand washed?
  • What does it cost?

Ember’s Latest Ceramic Mug

Eating cold food was precisely the reason Clay Alexander, CEO of Ember, first thought about controlling the temperature of a plate. When faced with eating cold scrambled eggs in the morning, he decided to try controlling the temperature of the plate to solve the problem and found he was able to do this. The first product released was a temperature-controlled travel mug. Ember’s latest offering is a classic white ceramic smart mug, designed by Ammunition. It would not look out of place in corporate settings and connects to your phone via Bluetooth, allowing you to set the ideal temperature for what you’re drinking. All you have to do is slide an icon on the screen.

The smart mug may look like a normal mug on the outside, but inside the tough ceramic and stainless-steel exterior is the temperature control technology that makes it work. Ember and Ammunition made sure that the edge of the cup feels the same as a normal ceramic mug and that it has the same size, weight and even sound a mug makes when setting it down on a table. The Ember mug capacity is 10 ounces and the temperature range is between 120F to 145F. A more recent version of the ceramic mug is available in a 14 ounce size for U.S. users only.

The battery keeps your drink as hot as you want it for up to three hours on a single charge. If you have the charging coaster, this extends to a full day. The mug “wakes up" when hot liquid is poured into it and “sleeps" when it is not in use. All you have to do to recharge the cup is to place it on a conductive coaster and an indicator light blinks to show you when it needs recharging. Ember has partnered with Apple to sell its smart mug on Apple.com and in Apple stores.

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Smartshow S3 Ceramic mug

The Jimi Smartshow S3 Ceramic Mug is another smart mug with some useful features. The mug has a good battery life and when it is fully charged, you can get 16 hours of battery life, depending on the temperature you set it to.

Simply plug the power adaptor into the charging coaster at one end and the power outlet on the other end. When the indicator light is shows up, place the cup on the charging coaster until Jimi appears on the cup and the real-time temperature is displayed.

You have a choice between setting up the temperature from the mug itself or using an app to get more features. In terms of design, the mug is made of ceramic and stainless steel and looks good. It has a 10 ounce capacity and an excellent temperature range.

Pros and Cons of Smart Mugs

There are pros and cons to every product, depending on your preferences and lifestyle. If you have busy days where you are not able to leave your desk for a refill, a temperature control smart mug may be the perfect solution. It is also useful for those with mobility issues and makes a good gift for those who love gadgets and hot beverages.

Despite this, a smart mug is a considerably bigger investment than an average cup, so you really need to weigh the features and decide how useful they are to you personally.

For any connected mug, having smart features requires electronics and therefore, there are more things that can go wrong with them. Since smart mugs are built using technology, there is more in the foreground than the background and sometimes there are too many buttons or screens; people may find them more of a frustration than a benefit in their lives.

In Conclusion

When it comes to adding technology to everyday life, it should amplify and augment what you do and not make it more difficult and frustrating. If you have gulped down cold tea because you waited too long to drink it or burnt your tongue due to piping hot drinks, you may want to think about investing in a temperature control mug. It will control and regulate the temperature of your drinks to your liking throughout the day.