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hi all newbie here. just have 2 quick questions regarding devices

solidute

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just have a couple of quick questions

i dont have a program as yet as just doing kits n bits stuff until set up for biab, but want to get a feel for whats out there, pro's and cons of each system etc before working out what i want to do

1: what is everyone's preferred device for running beersmith? eg. smartphone, ipad/tablet, or laptop/desktop etc?
          -i am thinking ipad/tablet would be the most portable method but...

2: can beersmith be run across 2 different devices with the same account and one download? eg have on laptop/computer for the bulk of setting up a recipe or preparing for brewday but using the ipad/tablet for actual brewday?

thanks for your assistance
 
solidute said:
just have a couple of quick questions

i dont have a program as yet as just doing kits n bits stuff until set up for biab, but want to get a feel for whats out there, pro's and cons of each system etc before working out what i want to do

1: what is everyone's preferred device for running beersmith? eg. smartphone, ipad/tablet, or laptop/desktop etc?
          -i am thinking ipad/tablet would be the most portable method but...

2: can beersmith be run across 2 different devices with the same account and one download? eg have on laptop/computer for the bulk of setting up a recipe or preparing for brewday but using the ipad/tablet for actual brewday?

thanks for your assistance

1. Laptop and or desktop.

2. No, you would need a key for each.

3. I prefer to do extract or all grain BIAB efficiency is lower than if you used for example a robobrew, best $450 investment you can make hands down. Great system I get over 84% efficiency every brew. I highly recommend it as a step up from the beginners gear.

 
To answer your questions, I prefer having BeerSmith on my laptop (it is a big one).  We use tablets at work and they are a pain in the posterior.  maybe it is just the windows machines we have, but they left a bad impression on their ability to be useful.  It really comes down to personal preference and experience.

Read the BeerSmith FAQ (http://beersmith.com/faq/) as it addresses the use on two machines.  I would caution you that some people have had issues with doing their own cloud storage of the recipes and accessing it from multiple devices.  If you use the BeerSmith cloud storage, it is easier to transfer files between computers, but that comes with limited recipe storage or additional costs for greater storage capacity.
 
cheers folks much appreciated. gonna wait n check out a mates set up once he has a few personal issues sorted out and will go from there
 
The desktop version is much more robust. I have the mobile version on my iPad but I don't like it as much.
 
I use BS2 exclusively on my computer BUT when I want to brew I just print out the Classic Brewsheet. For any recipe you choose to put on the cloud you can just go to the website on any device and look at it there.
When it comes to equipment there are now a ton of options for many different budgets.

For all-grain at the cheapest cost I recommend any of these: Brewer's Edge Mash & Boil, Northern Brewer Gigawort Electric Brew Kettle, or Keg King Robobrew. All of these are $350 or under but  they are not RIMS [if that's important to you], but the Gigawort is more like a BIAB system so you'll have to sparge into another vessel. Mash & Boil and Robobrew have grain chutes that can be lifted and used to sparge into the mash tun. The mach tun can then be used as the boil pot.

If you want a cheap RIMS system: Grainfather and Robobrew with pump [the new model] are the cheapest both being under $1,100.

If you want to spend more of have a more "complete and complex" system: Blichmann BrewEasy [if I had the room this is my dream system, available in multiple sizes], Spiedl Braumeister [my dream system for my space constraints, available in multiple sizes], and Picobrew [several models with differing batch sizes].

There are many other systems that I am sure I'm forgetting, and probably some even in the same prices ranges, but checking these out is a good start but I do feel I'd be remiss if I didn't point out how much extract has improved in the past 10-15 years. You can make high quality homebrew now using all or mostly all extracts so if you LIKE your current setup there is no need to spend more on equipment....just spend more on kits and bottles so you can keep more beer!
 
KipDM said:
I use BS2 exclusively on my computer BUT when I want to brew I just print out the Classic Brewsheet. For any recipe you choose to put on the cloud you can just go to the website on any device and look at it there.
When it comes to equipment there are now a ton of options for many different budgets.

For all-grain at the cheapest cost I recommend any of these: Brewer's Edge Mash & Boil, Northern Brewer Gigawort Electric Brew Kettle, or Keg King Robobrew. All of these are $350 or under but  they are not RIMS [if that's important to you], but the Gigawort is more like a BIAB system so you'll have to sparge into another vessel. Mash & Boil and Robobrew have grain chutes that can be lifted and used to sparge into the mash tun. The mach tun can then be used as the boil pot.

If you want a cheap RIMS system: Grainfather and Robobrew with pump [the new model] are the cheapest both being under $1,100.

If you want to spend more of have a more "complete and complex" system: Blichmann BrewEasy [if I had the room this is my dream system, available in multiple sizes], Spiedl Braumeister [my dream system for my space constraints, available in multiple sizes], and Picobrew [several models with differing batch sizes].

There are many other systems that I am sure I'm forgetting, and probably some even in the same prices ranges, but checking these out is a good start but I do feel I'd be remiss if I didn't point out how much extract has improved in the past 10-15 years. You can make high quality homebrew now using all or mostly all extracts so if you LIKE your current setup there is no need to spend more on equipment....just spend more on kits and bottles so you can keep more beer!

The robobrew is $550 with a pump.

Grainfather is $1100

Mash and boil is $400 with tax but it's cheapo and low quality
 
cheers for the replies folks.

have gone for BIAB gas fired for now 50l keg as my pot. will be easy enough for me to get started until i can get some better cash flow.

i have decided to go for the mobile app for now as its something i can take with me to work to tinker with recipes, set up for brew day, etc. also the mate that i was waiting to check out his set up has it on his mobile so i can bounce ideas off him if i feel stuck - though we're both novices and he had someone else set his up.

i havent had heaps of time to explore this forum so im going to pop this next question in here and if it should be somewhere else then you can point me in the right direction, cheers.

so now i have the app what info do i need to set up my equipment? i have no details other than its a 50l keg gas fired BIAB. still waiting on parts to install a tap.

cheers

damo.
 
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