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Thermomix TM6

September 13, 2021

4.5 Million Thermomix Owners are Using the Cookidoo Online Recipe Platform

While a number of companies are trying to build cooking robots for the home, the closest thing to a do-everything cooking appliance on the market today is the Thermomix.

And nowadays, it seems a lot of homes have a Thermomix, at least according to a recent post by the company.

According to the post, Thermomix sold one TM6, the latest generation multicooker, every 23 seconds in 2020, which translates to about 1.37 million for the year. While that may seem like a drop in the bucket for an industry that moves almost 700 million units annually, it translates to big numbers when you consider the price of the product. At $1,500 per unit, topline revenue for the TM6 pencils out to about a little over $2 billion, which would be a significant market for any countertop cooking appliance. In fact, compare that to the estimated total pressure cooker market size of $5.5 billion, which puts the TM6 market alone at almost 40% of the market for Instant Pot and all its various copycats.

And that’s not even the most interesting part of the update. According to Thermomix, there are now 4.5 million total Thermomixes connected to the company’s digital cooking platform, Cookidoo. That number includes both TM6 models and the previous generation TM5s. That’s up from about 1 million total users for the appliance’s digital cooking platform since 2017.

Engagement is also pretty high. According to Thermomix, Thermomix users make about 750 thousand meals a day using Cookidoo, which translates to about one in six Thermomix users each day.

As regular Spoon readers know, the company’s recipe platform has come a long way since four years ago. The company has enabled the platform to connect to other appliances for coordinated cooking and last year added the ability to shop for food via the Cookidoo platform. And this year, the company rolled out a new companion appliance in the Thermomix Friend in select markets (the Thermomix Friend is not yet available in North America), which coordinates cooking with the TM6 from one screen.

June 16, 2020

Thermomix and Hestan Cue Connect Up With ‘Smart Cooking Bundle’ and Jointly Developed Recipes

Sometimes the smart kitchen doesn’t feel all that connected, especially when it comes to pairing tech-forward cooking systems from different brands. It doesn’t make much sense if you think about it since the beauty of a connected home is, well, connecting things.

Thermomix and Hestan Cue are trying to change that – at least for Father’s Day – by creating what they’re calling the “Smart Cooking Bundle” and “Smart Cooking” recipe collection.

The bundle part includes a pairing of the two systems at a discount – the TM6 multicooker and the Hestan Cue system (pan and induction burner) for $150 off ($1,749) – but the more interesting part to me is the recipe collection the two companies jointly developed.

The Smart Cooking recipe collection features recipes specifically designed to use both with the Thermomix and Hestan Cue systems. Examples include eggplant with seared tomato sauce or pan seared scallops, where the TM6 is used for prep steps like chopping and steaming, and the Cue is used to finish off the meal by frying, searing or braising.

The recipes will be accessible on both the Thermomix Cookidoo recipe platform on the Thermomix TM6 touchscreen and through the Hestan Cue app.

This isn’t the first outside integration for Thermomix, which announced a partnership with Drop last year. With the Hestan pairing, one can see how Thermomix is positioning the TM6 as a sort of central command cooking hub where they orchestrate cooking with other appliances. While Drop isn’t powering the Hestan integration, I can see the Drop’s “kitchen OS” approach helping the TM6 unify multisystem cooking experiences down the road.

If you’d like to try out the new recipe collection, you can get the Smart Cooking bundle through Father’s day.

October 8, 2019

Thermomix Partners with Drop for Smart Appliance Control and Grocery Ordering

Thermomix is adding Drop’s smart kitchen software to its all-in-one kitchen appliance, the two companies announced from the stage today at the Smart Kitchen Summit (SKS) in Seattle.

Through the partnership the Thermomix TM6 will connect with other smart kitchen appliances and third-party applications through the device itself. According to a press release sent to The Spoon, Thermomix will now soon be able to preheat an oven, order groceries and optimize recipe content with the push of a button. Thermomix said the first integrations will hit the market in 2020.

The TM6 has more than 20 culinary features including chopping, mixing, blending, different types of cooking including sous vide and fermentation. The device also features guided cooking for more than 50,000 recipes. All that functionality ain’t cheap, however, as the device itself costs $1,500.

But that hasn’t been a daunting price tag for people outside of the U.S. where the device is more popular. What’s more, people aren’t just buying the device, but as we also learned at SKS this week, the company has a crazy high subscription conversion rate:

People love their Thermomixers so much that of the 3 million connected devices they have sold, those who use their app have a 50% conversion to a subscription. That is an insane conversion rate. #sks2019

— Stacey Higginbotham (@gigastacey) October 7, 2019

In addition to appliance control, Drop’s software also does recipe discovery and re-sizing, ingredient swapping, and grocery lists. Thermomix is not the first all-in-one cooker to integrate Drop’s software. Last month Drop announced that it would expand its partnership with Kenwood to be on the CookEasy+ multi-function cooking appliance. Today’s press announcement also said that 40 million Drop-enabled appliances from brands such as GE Appliances, Bosch, Electrolux and LG Electronics will ship over the next three years.

March 8, 2019

Here They Are: The Full Thermomix TM6 Specs

I wrote earlier today about the launch of the TM6.  While I highlighted the features I thought were important, a few people have asked for the full specs and,  since I have them, here they are!

This is directly from the TM6 spec sheet sent to me from Thermomix. Enjoy.

Thermomix TM6 Features & Specs

HARDWARE

Outer dimensions & motor of hardware remain unchanged:

Dimensions Height = 13.4”, width = 12.8”, depth = 12.8”

Weight 17.5 lbs

Material High-quality synthetic material, stainless steel

Motor Maintenance-free Vorwerk reluctance motor
500 W rated power, speed continuously adjustable from 100 to 10,700 revolutions per minute (gentle stir: 40 rpm), special speed settings for dough preparation and stirring without chopping

Knife Four blades, maintenance-free sharpened stainless steel

Mixing bowl 2.3-quart stainless steel mixing bowl, integrated heating system and temperature sensor

NEW: Processor

  • Smartphone-like storage & working memory
  • Quad core processor
  • 16 GB Flash
  • 1GB DDR Ram; endless potential for new features and functions to be added through regular over-the-air software updates.

NEW: 6.8” Display Bigger, more brilliant touchscreen, even more intuitive operation

NEW: Heating Precise heating from 100°F up to 320°F in 1-degree steps, with integrated sensors to maintain a constant, precise temperature in the mixing bowl.

NEW: Scale Improved weighing during food processing allows an accuracy of 0.1 oz. throughout the whole weighing range, up to 105 ounces per weighing step. Also weighs negative values for extracting a precise amount of ingredients from the bowl.

FUNCTIONS

NEW: Functions

Cooking

  • High temperature settings to brown onions, meat and fish as well as for creating caramel, honeycomb and more
  • Slow Cooking Function for first-class, succulent meat
  • Sous Vide Function for tender meat, fish and vegetables
  • Fermentation Function for yogurt or kimchi

On Top

  • Pre-Clean
  • Kettle
  • Automatic Blending

Classic Functions mixing, steaming, blending, weighing, stirring, grinding, whisking, emulsifying, simmering, kneading, cooking, chopping

Guided Cooking: The guaranteed successful cooking method that takes users through recipes step by step with clear on-screen instructions to achieve perfect results. Temperature and timings are set automatically by the Thermomix®, so even sophisticated recipes can be followed with ease by chefs of any skill level.

ACCESSORIES

Varoma: 3.3 l capacity for steaming

Butterfly: Stirring attachment

Lid: Bowl lid with measuring cup insert

Measuring Cup: Improved measuring cup for easier usage

Spatula: Improved Spatula with softer, easier to use material

Basket: Improved simmering basket

COOKIDOO®

NEW: Fully integrated Cookidoo® access for even more experiences (explore, inspire, search, cook, plan, how-to) directly on the Thermomix® screen; a second device is no longer needed.

The world’s biggest cookbook with more than 40,000 delicious recipes from all over the world that work with the unique success guarantee. All available directly on the device via Cookidoo® and via web app, iOS and Android. The Cookidoo® personalizes through tailored recipe recommendations and inspirations. How-tos and tutorials are available for easy or elaborate meals.

PLUS: Personalized customer service, cooking classes

HOW TO BUY

Direct sales: More than 60,000 Thermomix® independent consultants worldwide serve as personal local contacts to ensure high-quality personalized service in more than 40 countries, on all continents.

Online: Thermomix.com

Price: $1,499 includes all accessories, a six-month Cookidoo® membership, a personal introduction to the product world

Website: www.Thermomix.com

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March 8, 2019

Meet the TM6, Thermomix’s Latest Generation Do-Anything Cooking Appliance

Back before there were Instant Pots, cooking robots and smart ovens, there was the Thermomix.

And today, the original all-in-one kitchen appliance got a little (or maybe a lot) smarter with the launch of the TM6, the sixth generation of the cooking appliance popular with everyone from the world’s top chefs to working moms and dads just trying to put something tasty on the table.

The new appliance, which will cost $1,499 in the U.S. when available later this year, is available for purchase today in Vorwerk’s native Germany as well as Austria, and will be rolling out to other European countries over the next few months.

While I can’t go over in detail every single difference between the TM5 and TM6 (there are a lot), I’ll highlight the major ones:

Integrated Connectivity

While the original TM5 didn’t ship with embedded Wi-Fi, Thermomix did a relatively good job playing catch up by later offering their connectivity module in the Cook-Key (Thermomix tells me as of this month there are 2.2 million Cook-Keys in the field).

With the TM6, both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are integrated directly into the appliance. While you might be thinking “big deal,” since pretty much everything seems to ship with connectivity nowadays, it’s significant for the Thermomix because it will enable things like over-the-air functionality upgrades and access to the ever-growing Cookidoo guided-cooking recipe library.

Speaking of the Cookidoo…

Cookidoo Becomes a Core Integrated Feature 

If there’s a company that has done well at making the concept of guided cooking valuable for both kitchen newbies and old-hands, it’s the Thermomix. I’ve used my TM5 to fearlessly cook lots of new dishes since the appliance walks me through the recipe and helps me create a good-the-first-time effort.

In fact, it’s this ability to cook most any recipe well the first time that makes you want to keep trying new recipes (as Wired’s Joe Ray writes about here), but the problem with the TM5 was you had to add new recipes chips or — after the introduction of the Cook-Key — periodically download the new recipe collections.

That all changes with the introduction of the TM6, which gives users instant access to 40,000 recipes out of the box. And sure, because Thermomix recently launched its Cookidoo 2.0 platform it’s effectively giving any TM5 users with a Cook-Key an all-access pass for the full Thermomix recipe library. But with the TM6, they are fully available from the start.

Bigger Processor, More Memory

While most cooks probably don’t consider how much processing power or memory their cooking appliance has (and they shouldn’t), for a device like the Thermomix it’s an important factor. With a new quad-core processor, the TM6 will have the same processing power of a modern smartphone, and also packs in about 16 GB of memory (the baseline for an iPhone 6) to enable storage of new software features, media-rich recipes and more.

Bigger Touch Screen Display

If there is a complaint I had about my TM5, it’s the screen size. The small screen often has me struggling to read instructions and probably limited what the Thermomix could do (for example, the TM5 doesn’t show videos or images on the device).

With the TM6, the device has a 6.8″ touch screen display, which is a game-changer. Not only will users have a much bigger display to view media-rich recipes, but with a bigger touch screen, they’ll also no longer be limited to a dial as the primary recipe interaction interface.

You can see a close up of the screen here:

The Thermomix TM6 touch screen display

New Cooking Functions

While you’ve always technically been able to do sous vide and other popular cooking techniques with the TM5, those required more manual operation than many of the more straightforward recipes on a Thermomix.

With the TM6, a whole host of cooking functions have been integrated as core features. In addition to sous vide, the TM6 will have a browning feature as well as those for slow cooking and fermentation. These features will take advantage of the same core German-engineered capabilities, including a robust motor that powers stirring, chopping and all the things that set the Thermomix apart and make it a do-most-anything appliance.

And Finally, the First Do-Anything Appliance Enters the Smart Kitchen

Earlier this week I wrote that the Instant Pot was the Millennial generation’s first cooking appliance they could call their own.

However, despite popular opinion, the Instant Pot didn’t usher in the world of do-it-all countertop cooking. That was the Thermomix, which was fostering communities of devotees well-before the creation of the first Instant Pot Facebook group.

But while the Thermomix has had fans going back to the ’60s, the company’s methodical and one-model-at-a-time approach has meant each generation would last for the better part of a decade. The TM5 is five years old at this point, and probably based on decade-old technology since development likely started well before its release in 2014.

This isn’t necessarily bad; having one device that works really well is a pretty good formula for success. But in an era when digital features like guided cooking and recipe libraries are some of the biggest draws for a new appliance, it was clear the Thermomix was ripe for an upgrade.

And while the features I mentioned above are all welcome capabilities of a more modern Thermomix, I think we’re likely only scratching the surface of what’s possible.

What do I mean by this? For one, I think we could see the Thermomix TM6 become a central kitchen hub that works seamlessly with other appliances. While the company started dabbling with this last fall, efforts so far have been hindered by the limitations of the TM5. In the future, we’ll see the TM6 not only communicating with other appliances, but possibly even acting as a central command center as it takes control of other appliances (TM6, turn on my GE oven) through the TM6 screen.

Theromix’s U.S. president, Kai Schäffner, says the company is also looking at integrations with smart-home interfaces like Alexa and Google Home.

Bottom line, the move into the smart kitchen by Thermomix is welcome and, in a way, necessary given the accelerated pace of competition and a generational shift towards digital-powered cooking. While pressure cooker based multi-cookers like the Instant Pot don’t have nearly the feature set of an appliance like the Thermomix, they are much lower cost and can still do plenty. Meanwhile, others are entering this space with Thermomix-like appliances, including kitchen appliance giant KitchenAid.

Thermomix has told me that the TM6 will make its way to the U.S. later this year in late summer.  Like with the TM5, you will be able to buy it both through the direct sales model (the only way to buy it in Europe) and online.

You can find the full spec sheet with all the features for the TM6 here.

You can find out more about the TM6 at Thermomix’s website and watch a video intro to the Thermomix TM6 below:

TM6™: The all new Thermomix®

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