prodigalpunkerI can't speak to thermapen but I use this one (sesame) for brewing beer. I actually use it for everything now that I think about it. It was purchased originally for beer though.
I really like the hold button, I'm not sure if that's on other comparable models. Amazon had a sale on this model last year so I didn't do a ton of extra research.
After spending twice this on cheap crap thermometers that broke after a few batches I would highly recommend it.
prodigalpunkerMy Thermapen is end of life. The battery door has broken a few times (it's a design flaw and they'll send you new ones for free), and now the casing itself is cracking. So I bought a Tanita product as a replacement, but it takes way too long to register the temperature.
According to their respective websites, the Thermapen has a couple of operative advantages, but nothing major: (1) the accuracy is 0.4 degrees C for Thermapen, 0.5 for the Javelin, and (2) the Thermapen needs to be insterted 3 mm, while the Javelin needs 5 mm. These small things may or may not even be real, given the plus-or-minus or doing these kinds of tests.
The latter is the bigger issue, since I cook a lot of thin pork and chicken, but I'm already in the habit of poking the sensor of my Thermapen in at a 45 degree or more angle.
The Javelin seems a little too clever (minimum and maximum temperatures, seriously? simpler is better), but the price is almost a third of the Thermapen, so it seems like something I want to get.
CloacaMy Thermapen died a little while ago, and i got an upgrade to the new version. But i also have an older Lavatools unit which works just as well. I tend to use the Lavatools one for brewing, and the Thermapen for cooking.
Both work well.