WiFi Nomiku Sous Vide Immersion Circulator Review

Full Review: WiFi Nomiku

Nomiku is one of the founding companies to focus on the affordable in-home sous vide revolution.The catchy company name actually comes from a Japanese phrase which translates to “eating and drinking”. Nomiku started their journey in the summer of 2012, led by CEO Lisa Fetterman who we recently had the pleasure of interviewing, after successfully raising over $500,000 on Kickstarter for their flagship sous vide machine. Fast forward a few years, and Nomiku got another huge investment deal, but this time with a shark.

With the support from investor Chris Sacca, Lisa and the Nomiku team launched a new and improved version of their immersion circulator: the WiFi Nomiku. We’ve recently had the pleasure to get our hands on a WiFi Nomiku to test its design, features, and performance. Keep reading to see how the WiFi Nomiku stands in comparison to the many other sous vide machines we reviewed.

Unboxing Nomiku

The WiFi Nomiku comes in a white box with vibrant design- something of a hint at what type of design style to expect overall with this device. Inside, you will find the Nomiku machine itself and various paper materials, such as a setup/get started guide and a promo ad for their Sous Vide at Home cookbook.

While on the subject of the Nomiku cookbook, we had the opportunity to get an early copy of the Sous Vide at Home and it is absolutely one of the best sous vide cookbooks out there. Make sure to check out the two sneak peak recipes we shared including creamy squash soup and salmon with miso-fennel salad. However, it would be really cool if Nomiku was somehow able to include this cookbook along with the device. If customers could get their hands on this goldmine of sous vide recipe for free… It would surely be another powerful incentive to purchase Wifi Nomiku.

Wifi Nomiku Design

The first impression I got when I unboxed Nomiku is that it’s much bigger (wider?) than I thought it to be. From the pictures I saw online, I didn’t envision it to be so robust. On the other hand, it may be that I’m biased after reviewing the ChefSteps Joule from two weeks prior. After all, this immersion circulator was shockingly small. Don’t get me wrong, though, this isn’t a jab at Nomiku by any means. Their device is still way smaller than many others out there. Just take a look at Nomiku vs Sansaire vs Joule below, and you’ll see what I mean:

Nomiku boasts a 2.4” LCD screen with two buttons below it. The menu button pulls up the main screen with all of the options. These include tje settings, quick start, change Celsius to Fahrenheit, etc., and the action button. This physically selects whatever you highlight.

One thing I do love about Nomiku’s design is the recognizable fluorescent green often found in their branding. The vibrant green turn dial is the first thing you’ll notice about the device, and it’s this design detail that makes this immersion circulator stand out the most  The dial is is your main selection mechanism for the entire device. It navigates through all of the settings and temperature adjustments with a simple rotation.

Potential Issues and Downsides

However, while the design truly impresses, the functionality leaves a bit to be desired. This turn dial selection tool might look really cool, but in the combination with the user interface, it feels clunky. For instance, I often turned the dial one click, but the selector moved two spots – other times it only moved once. You can feel set increments as you turn the dial, much like the volume knob on many car radios. A few other concerns we had with these controls include:

• The process of typing in my network password into the device to activate its WiFi feature was a bit time-consuming and slightly frustrating. Even though there is a“quick start” option so you wouldn’t have to go through this ordeal, it didn’t work for us, leaving us with the frustrating manual setup mode.
• Adjusting the temperature of the device took WAY too long. With each dial click, the temperature increase for something like half a degree. Considering that the device starts at 35 degrees and I needed to get it to a 132 degrees Fahrenheit so I could cook a steak, I had to sit there and spin the wheel for what seemed like an eternity.

Another potentially problematic specification I notice on the Nomiku is that its power cord is not detachable. We like this from a design standpoint, but it’s nice to be able to pull out the cord. It makes it so much easier to store away. Joule is another sous vide machine that does not have a detachable power cord.

I believe Nomiku is the only device that has a front-facing clip, as well.  It wasn’t super strong (nothing beats the turn clamps that are found on Anova and PolyScience CREATIVE) but it was definitely sturdier than Sansaire’s clip. You shouldn’t have any issues attaching this to your sous vide container and getting it to stay there securely throughout the cooking process.

Features and Performance of Nomiku

How Fast Does Nomiku Pre-Heat Water?

Nomiku has a 1000 watt heater (the entire device operates at 1100w). As a comparison, Gourmia GSV-140 has 1200 watts, Joule and Sansaire have 1100 watts, and Anova has 800 watts. But the real question is, how fast can it preheat water? Nomiku took over 16 minutes to heat water from 75F to 135F, while it took Joule under 13 minutes to get to the same goal. But, if we’re being honest, no one is going to make a fuss about a 3 minute difference in water heating time. After all, Anova is an Amazon’s choice sous vide cooker and one of the most popular on the market- and it takes over 24 minutes to pre-heat!

Temperature Accuracy of Nomiku

Our review wouldn’t be complete if we haven’t checked if Nomiku was actually heating the water to what it was set at. To test the accuracy of an immersion circulator, we use a simple digital thermometer and infrared thermometer to check the water temperature. This helps us verify that the device heats water within a degree, which Nomiku was. The results of this test reassured us that there are no problems with the device’s heater and that food safety won’t be of concern.

Circulator – How Big of a Container?

The WiFi Nomiku can efficiently circulate 1.8 gallons of water per minute, which means that you can combine this immersion circulator with a sous vide water container up to 8 gallons in size. Once we got the Nomiku going, we were surprised by how little you could actually see the currents’ movement. Many other devices make quite a bit of waves and bubbles as they circulate water. As a result, the Nomiku was unbelievably quiet. Check out this video to see the circulator in action and (attempt) to hear the device.

Tender App and Wifi

At first, setting up my Nomiku device to use the Wifi was a bit difficult. As I mentioned earlier, I the quick setup wasn’t working for me, but after a bit of tinkering I was able to manually connect it. Once I managed to connect, things got easier from there. I downloaded the Tender app for Android, created an account, and paired my device. From this, you can control your device- including the temperature levels. Again, the controls were similar to the user interface on the device, which meant that the navigation felt a bit clunky.

The actual Tender app and website, however, where a pleasant surprise. I have to say, it’s a great move by he Nomiku brand. Tender is a social platform for sous vide enthusiasts to share recipes with one another. We definitely support this endeavor and started using this platform on a regular basis. To make things even better, you don’t have to own a Nomiku to enjoy being a part of a sous vide community – anyone can sign up for an account.

Final Thoughts on the Wifi Nomiku

Overall, ever since the Nomiku made its debut, it garnered attention of many. While it took some time for the company to overcome issues with extensive back orders, once this long-awaited sous vide device hit the market, it became an instant hit with customers. The design of the Wifi Nomiku is fun, young, and creative but it would benefit from some fine tuning in regards to the functionality of user interface.  

The performance of the Wifi Nomiku, including heating times and accuracy, matched expectations and we can’t help but notice that the Tender community is an amazing feature. Also, I recommend EVERYONE grab a copy of their cookbook, Sous Vide at Home. It has some of the most incredible food pictures I’ve ever seen and the recipes are easy to follow along.

Recent Update:

January 28, 2022: The Nomiku is no longer in stock. If you’re interested in this device you may want to check out this related product.