Ember vs HotKup
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Ember
This app allows you to precisely control the temperature of your hot beverages using a smart mug. Customize presets, receive notifications when your drink reaches the perfect temperature, and explore recipes. Personalize your mug settings for an enhanced drinking experience.
- Precise temperature control
- Save temperature presets
- Beverage recipes and blogs
- Customizable notifications
- Manage multiple mugs
- Personalize mug settings
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At Ember®, we use temperature control to change the world in ordinary (and extraordinary) ways. With an Ember Temperature Control Smart Mug and the Ember app, you can transform your mornings by making hot beverages set to your chosen temperature an everyday reality. Our redesigned Ember app is simple, easy to use, and customizable. Whether you are a first-time user or a long-time customer, get ready for a whole new temperature control experience. The Ember app seamlessly pairs with your Ember products to precisely adjust your favorite hot drinks to your preferred drinking temperature, saves temperature presets, offers recipes, sends notifications when your desired drinking temperature has been reached, and more. Ember App Features: - Control the temperature of your beverage down to the degree - Use your previous temperature setting for a set-it-and-forget-it beverage experience - Manage unlimited paired mugs on an all-new Ember home screen - Find recipes and blogs you can save and share with friends and family in the new Explore section - Receive notifications when your preferred temperature has been reached, or your battery is low - Customize presets for multiple beverages and engage timers - Personalize your mugs with names and adjust the color of the smart LED - Easily switch between °C/°F and control sounds and haptic feedback in the redesigned Account section - Access Ember x Health with Apple Health
HotKup
This app allows you to control the temperature of your mug, boil water, brew beverages, and maintain your ideal drinking temperature. It offers both app and manual control, with versatile power options including battery, AC, and 12v car power.
- Boil water
- Brew coffee/tea
- Maintain perfect temperature
- App and manual control
- Battery, AC, and 12v power options
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Temperature control mug can boil water, brew coffee or tea, maintain perfect temperature. App or manual control. Battery, AC or 12v car power.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Ember at 3.3 against HotKup's 1.0. Ember also leads on ratings volume (7.4K vs 3) and review sentiment (18% vs 0%). HotKup's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (12.4 vs 16.6). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Ember holds the better App Store score, 3.3 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Ember has 7.4K ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 18% of Ember's written reviews are positive against 0% of HotKup's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and June 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Ember | HotKup |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.3 (7.4K ratings) — better | 1.0 (3 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 18.0% of reviews — better | 0.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 7.4K — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.6 | 12.4 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 63 MB | 19 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Ember Technologies Inc. | Sinospec |
Customer experience
Ember
HotKup
Bugs and requests
Ember
Reported bugs
5 issues- App frequently logs users out
- Mug disconnects from app randomly
- Firmware update process often fails
- App doesn't always detect liquid in mug
- Presets and settings get lost after updates
Requested features
5 requests- Battery level indicator on main screen
- Improved Apple Watch app functionality
- Wireless charging option
- Ability to lock temperature settings
- Automatic temperature adjustment based on volume
HotKup
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Ember
No in-app purchases
HotKup
No in-app purchases









