The SideKIC has a very simple user interface: just a single clickable wheel and a color display screen. It is designed to hang on the edge of a stockpot or other cooking vessel: the depth of the pump outlet is not adjustable, and is quite shallow compared to other immersion circulators on the market. If you've been eyeing the SousVide Supreme Sous Vide Water Oven or perhaps even the PolyScience Standard Immersion Circulator, 120 VAC and intend to use the product at home, the SideKIC is a serious contender at a fraction of the cost.
To test the SideKIC I hung it over the edge of a 6-quart stockpot and added five liters of water at 18.3°C. I set the temperature to 50°C and turned it loose: it took 27 minutes to come to temperature. It overshot by 0.7°C before decaying back down to the set temp. According to my Thermapen, however, when the reading on the device was 50.0°C, the actual temperature of the water was 50.4°C. It held that temperature within 0.2°C while it was running, however, in an uninsulated stainless steel vessel sitting on a countertop (basically a worst-case scenario). It think the device is probably useful for most high-precision cooking provided that you check the temperature with a more accurate thermometer and compensate accordingly before adding your food. I also recommend starting with pre-heated water to minimize startup time.
The device itself it basically silent: the hum of the pump is very quiet, and is mostly covered up by the actual splashing of the circulated water. It does not appear to have a buzzer of any kind--it does not make a noise to indicate that the set temp has been reached, or that the countdown timer has finished, so I am assuming this means it does not have the means of doing so.
Physically the device requires that your water level run relatively close to the top edge of your cooking vessel, and there is not a great deal of margin to accommodate level changes when adding food. The best way to deal with this is to use a relatively wide, shallow cooking vessel, rather than a deep, narrow vessel, to minimize the water level change when adding the food (of course, then you will definitely want a lid of some kind to minimize evaporation). The pump is strong enough that in my standard stockpot the water is pretty close to the rim when it's running: I'd prefer a little more margin.
The countdown timer has a minimum five-minute granularity when being set: the minimum time you can set it for is five minutes and a maximum of 59 hours and 45 minutes. When the countdown timer reaches its conclusion the timer flashes on the screen for five seconds, and then begins counting up to tell you how far over you have gone (the pump does not stop running). It appears that it will only count up to the initial value of the timer: when I tested it I set it for five minutes, and when it had gone over time for five minutes, it reset to zero and started counting up again. I'd guess this is a software bug that has to do with how the device is checking for the timer completion, and is obviously very minor. However, in my opinion, without an audible beeper the timer is basically useless. In addition, it lacks sufficient granularity for cooks that last under 30 minutes (when a one-minute granularity is necessary, IMO), and cannot be set for longer than 59:45 so you can't do a 72 hour cook based on the built-in timer.
Finally, I killed the power externally to simulate a power failure: the device turned back on and remembered the set temperature, but not the cooking time or countdown timer. It did not turn the heater or pump back on when power was restored. If power failure is a concern you will want to take additional measures to deal with it.
My initial impression of the device is that even as it stands right now the SideKIC is well worth the amount it costs, when compared to the alternatives: it has some flaws, but if you have a decent thermometer and your own cooking timer most of them can be easily mitigated. I also think that with some very minor changes (some just software) it could be made an even better value. Obviously this is not a final verdict, since how well it holds up over time will clearly be important.
Pros:
* By far the lowest-priced immersion circulator on the market
* 300 watt heating element is adequate for most home sous vide uses
* Temperature accuracy and range is enough for most sous vide cooking
* Build quality is good (home-appliance level)
Cons:
* Built-in timer is useless
* Maximum set temperature is 185°F/85°C, precludes some vegetable preparations
* No power-failure detection or recovery
* Temperature accuracy is questionable for very delicate items
UPDATE March 2, 2012. The ICA Kitchen team has addressed several of my concerns in the latest version of the device. The built-in timer now includes a beeper and allows you to set it in finer-grained steps, completely eliminating that concern. The maximum temperature was raised to 95°C, making the device suitable for nearly all high-temperature vegetable sous vide tasks. Also, I've used the device a few dozen times now and not had any issues with the temperature accuracy for delicate items (eggs, in particular). For me the only major remaining con, and the item preventing me from giving this item five stars, is the 300W heating element. There are workarounds (use a well-insulated cooler with a lid, add a supplementary non-controlled heater, etc.), but 300W by itself is a stretch at higher temperatures.
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UPDATE: 5/13/13 It's a shame but I think the manufacturer may have gone out of business. Does anyone have more information?In my opinion this is the best option for cooks interested in a low cost sous vide circulator, at least at the time of this review (April 2012).
While this is an exceptional value, I couldn't quite bring myself to give it 5 stars because of the relatively low wattage heater and the short immersion depth of the heater. These issues don't prevent you from using the unit but contribute to slow warm-up times and additional care needed for long cooking times.
To give you some perspective, I've tried several different devices over the past 3 years. In 2009 I was lucky to score a laboratory grade circulating water bath with digital controls on eBay for $65. I still use this unit but gave up hope of finding another at such a low price once sous vide became popular. My next unit was the DIY $75 design from the seattlefoodgeek.com site (and recently featured in Make Magazine). I built two of these and am pretty happy with them. After introducing friends and family to sous vide cooking last year, several of them bought commercial units that I have used. These include the Sous Vide Supreme and PolyScience Sous Vide Professional. A few weeks ago I purchased a SideKIC from Amazon to check it out. Of these I strongly recommend the PolyScience unit, the seattlefoodgeek.com DIY unit, and the SideKIC. I don't think the Sous Vide Supreme is a good value and it's not likely you'll find a lab grade circulator for a good price any more. PolyScience makes a nice unit but at $700 it's too spendy for me.
If you're new to sous vide I should explain that it can be addicting and at some point you may want to have two or more heating units to cook different foods at the same time. I've made single meals with 4 different water baths (egg, meat, vegetable, and fruit). Each needs to be cooked at different temperatures.
The SIdeKIC is (sort of) a simplified and nicely packaged version of the DIY unit. It has less heating power but the control menu is hands down easier to use, the control unit is separate from the immersion unit (which seems safer), and of course you don't need to build it. Both use the same type of immersion heaters your aunt used to have for making tea in her apartment. SIdeKIC has a single heater while the DIY version uses 3. This allows the DIY version to heat more quickly and heat larger volumes of water. The SIdeKIC heating unit doesn't extend as far into the water bath as the DIY version does. This makes control of water level more critical with the SideKIC.
After using the SideKIC for a few weeks I've determined that the lower power isn't much of a problem but the immersion depth does still concern me. If you start with hot water (or add boiling water) you'll be up to temperature quickly. However, when cooking for long periods it's important that you cover the water bath with a styrofoam insulating cover to slow down evaporation and the problems that occur when you add water (which could take a while to get back to the correct temperature) The immersion depth issue is a concern when evaporation occurs because the water level could drop below the heating element, causing the element to burn out. At first I was concerned that the SideKIC immersion unit wouldn't be stable in the water bath since it doesn't have a thumbscrew or other device to secure it. This hasn't been an issue for me, the immersion unit stays in place even when I cooked a bag that floated and bumped into the immersion unit.
It does take some practice to estimate the correct water level when filling the unit. If you guess too high the water may overflow when you add the food. If you guess too low, you'll have to top it up to ensure the heater is fully submersed. If your top up water is too cold or warm this could possibly affect the end product. What I usually end up doing is to fill to the proper level. When the water is up to temperature, I dip in a pyrex measuring cup and remove 2-4 cups of water. After adding my food bags I top up the water bath using the heated water in my measuring cup and cover with my styrofoam cover. As a small gripe, I had to mark the suggested water level on the unit, this is something the manufacturer should have done. The manual includes a diagram that shows the water level between the lower and upper 'windows' but this is apparently not the optimal level and I can imagine users forgetting this detail after not using the unit for a period.
To be fair, there are many differences between the SIdeKIC and the DIY unit. SideKIC uses something other than a thermocouple for temperature measurement and provides a customized, sous-vide specific user interface on the controller. The DIY unit uses an industrial PID controller with a pretty spartan interface. I don't know enough about how the SideKIC controller was made to say whether it uses inferior or superior temperature control technology but in my testing I haven't noticed any temperature control problems. The control interface on the SideKIC is simple, attractive, and easy to use. I was initially confused about the need to select a 'Start' menu item before the unit started heating but when I thinkk about it that's an important safety feature that allows you to safely remove it from the water without unplugging power.
One reason I'm comparing this unit to the DIY version is that after using the SideKIC for a few weeks I doubt I'd build another DIY circulator. Even though it costs twice the DIY unit, it's smaller and doesn't have the control unit perched above the water bath. Of course it's fun to watch people's expression when you tell them you made your own cooking appliance!
Here is an excellent thread discussing this product that includes honest and helpful comments by the manufacturer.
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First one came out of the box with the heating element broken, so while the water circulated, the built in temperature gauge told me that the water wasn't getting any hotter. Amazon promptly refunded my money after I returned it, and then I went and tried to buy a second one to replace it, thinking I just got a bad unit.This current unit which I am now repackaging to return probably has a working heating element but I have no idea because while the water circulates, the temperature gauge is stuck at 00.0 degrees fahrenheit. There will be no third time, I'm taking the refund and looking for another solution. Darn shame as I like the controller, the setup was easy, but there's something wrong with the build of this device.
