The grill itself works very well *WHEN ITS WORKING*. I have had the grill about 3 weeks now and withing the first week (3rd cook) the Lid switch failed. Between the 4th & 5th cook, the AFS element failed. KJ's customer service is, well, horrible. They will NOT provide you with a phone number, although they did respond *eventually* to my emails. Supposedly they are sending replacement parts, which I will have to install myself.On the plus side: When it works, the grill itself does deserve 5 stars. (KJ customer service deserves minus stars)The grill holds temperature well, and the accessories are well thought out and work well. (e.g the Joetisserie. I don't really like chicken wings all that much... but I do now!) The Divide and conquer system allowing multiple ... MoreThe grill itself works very well *WHEN ITS WORKING*. I have had the grill about 3 weeks now and withing the first week (3rd cook) the Lid switch failed. Between the 4th & 5th cook, the AFS element failed. KJ's customer service is, well, horrible. They will NOT provide you with a phone number, although they did respond *eventually* to my emails. Supposedly they are sending replacement parts, which I will have to install myself.On the plus side: When it works, the grill itself does deserve 5 stars. (KJ customer service deserves minus stars)The grill holds temperature well, and the accessories are well thought out and work well. (e.g the Joetisserie. I don't really like chicken wings all that much... but I do now!) The Divide and conquer system allowing multiple combinations of the placement of cooking surfaces and heat deflectors is a game changer. It allows you to mix and match for different cook types in one session (eg searing and then indirect heat)Despite the problems and frustrations, I do really like it. I grew up with my parents having an actual Japanese Hibachi (Kamado) grill, so this is cool.NOTE: The KonnectedJoe is an 18" grill so its not going to handle a lot of product (e.g 10 steaks) simultaneously, and when using multiple cooking surfaces, which are half size, such as a Cast Iron grate you will only accommodate ~3 steaks at a timeOverall, customer service is non-existent, so buy at HD so you can return if you have to, but the grill does work fantasticly when it does!

This is a solidly built grill. It looks great sitting in my back yard in all it's Red glory. The grill is WiFi enabled and lis linked up to my network and phone. It's nice to be able to see the grill status on my phone screen. I like how well the grill holds it's temperature. This is important on long cooks. I experienced a problem when I first ran the grill: It kept tripping my GFCI breaker. Customer service recommended that I do a manual startup and run it for a burn in cycle. This resolved the problem and since then it's been doing great. Since the temperature range is up to 700 degrees it's easy to sear a steak to perfection. I just needed a couple trial runs to get the timing right. It's also easy to clean with the slide out drawer for ash removal. I'm looking ... MoreThis is a solidly built grill. It looks great sitting in my back yard in all it's Red glory. The grill is WiFi enabled and lis linked up to my network and phone. It's nice to be able to see the grill status on my phone screen. I like how well the grill holds it's temperature. This is important on long cooks. I experienced a problem when I first ran the grill: It kept tripping my GFCI breaker. Customer service recommended that I do a manual startup and run it for a burn in cycle. This resolved the problem and since then it's been doing great. Since the temperature range is up to 700 degrees it's easy to sear a steak to perfection. I just needed a couple trial runs to get the timing right. It's also easy to clean with the slide out drawer for ash removal. I'm looking forward to cooking with some Mesquite charcoal next. That ought to really rock my steaks. I also love the electric start.

As simple as gas, but way better.

Simply one of the most amazing things I've ever bought. I've had gas BBQs for many years, as charcoal ones were just too much hassle. When the last one rusted away, I fancied a Kamado, but was put off by the fact that all the ones available in the UK are charcoal fired.However, after much research I decided to go for the Konnected Joe, and it's just amazing. Emptying the ash and refilling the charcoal takes a coupe of minutes, then it's just a case of dialling in the temperature and pressing the ignite button. It reaches temperature very quickly, usually less than 30 minutes, and after that it just maintains whatever temperature is set, whether it be a 6 hour slow cook, or a 5 minute grill.The results are stunning, particularly on the slow cooks, with the most ... MoreSimply one of the most amazing things I've ever bought. I've had gas BBQs for many years, as charcoal ones were just too much hassle. When the last one rusted away, I fancied a Kamado, but was put off by the fact that all the ones available in the UK are charcoal fired.However, after much research I decided to go for the Konnected Joe, and it's just amazing. Emptying the ash and refilling the charcoal takes a coupe of minutes, then it's just a case of dialling in the temperature and pressing the ignite button. It reaches temperature very quickly, usually less than 30 minutes, and after that it just maintains whatever temperature is set, whether it be a 6 hour slow cook, or a 5 minute grill.The results are stunning, particularly on the slow cooks, with the most amazing flavour and moistness.The WiFi and the app work perfectly as well.It's going to cost me more to run than gas, but well worth it.

Best grill on the market!

I bought this grill in January 2024. It has been transformed my grilling experience from my 15 plus years using a Traeger pellet grill. I purchased the Doe Joe and the Rotisserie. Everything is quality built and function fabulously. The connected app shows me cook times and temps and allows ramp up-down seamlessly. It holds the pizza oven temp at whatever temp I choose to create the best cooked pizzas I have ever done. I seriously have thought about buying another for my cabin, I like it that much! If you’re in the market don’t dismiss it. This grill lets you cooked perfect smoked meats or no smoke tender fish! Tumbling veggies in the rotisserie is an awesome result as well.

Excited to Learn More About Smoking

I had been talking about getting a smoker for quite some time. My wife and kids made the decision for me for my birthday. I couldn't have been happier then when the delivery truck pulled up and brought me my surprise present. I have been able to use it twice in the past few weeks and am blown away with how easy it is with this smoker. I have watched a lot of videos showing how to smoke but with the technology that has been put into this model, non of those made any sense. About the only thing that I have to focus on is the type of meat and which rub I want to use. It is just a mater of plugging it in and watching it work. The smell of the smoke and the cooking of the meat makes my mouth water in anticipation of the end product. My first adventure was to try to smoke ... MoreI had been talking about getting a smoker for quite some time. My wife and kids made the decision for me for my birthday. I couldn't have been happier then when the delivery truck pulled up and brought me my surprise present. I have been able to use it twice in the past few weeks and am blown away with how easy it is with this smoker. I have watched a lot of videos showing how to smoke but with the technology that has been put into this model, non of those made any sense. About the only thing that I have to focus on is the type of meat and which rub I want to use. It is just a mater of plugging it in and watching it work. The smell of the smoke and the cooking of the meat makes my mouth water in anticipation of the end product. My first adventure was to try to smoke a Pork Shoulder. It came out smelling and tasting amazing. My second experience was doing a smoked Turkey Meatloaf. It too came out amazing. It was so good that my wife and I had it finished in a couple of days. I am looking forward to my next chance to try out something on my smoker. It is so much easier than all of the video that I had watched in the past.

First Ceramic Grill - What Amazing Taste!!

My wife bought this grill a month ago for my birthday and I can't stop talking about it. Used it the day it arrived, after only 1 hour of assembly. Smoked a brisket and just couldn't believe the flavor from the wood burning heat source and its "blue" smoke. After using a gas grill for over 30 years of my life, I now know why wood burning grills are popular - taste, taste and taste!! Since that first grilling experience, my wife and I have endeavored to grill at 4-5 times a week, trying all different cuts of meat, including a whole chicken several times. Even had lobster tails with some firends that far out did high end restaurant offerings. I'm so glad I choose the Konnected Joe, as for a first time charcoal griller, it's so easy to ready, start, maintain ... MoreMy wife bought this grill a month ago for my birthday and I can't stop talking about it. Used it the day it arrived, after only 1 hour of assembly. Smoked a brisket and just couldn't believe the flavor from the wood burning heat source and its "blue" smoke. After using a gas grill for over 30 years of my life, I now know why wood burning grills are popular - taste, taste and taste!! Since that first grilling experience, my wife and I have endeavored to grill at 4-5 times a week, trying all different cuts of meat, including a whole chicken several times. Even had lobster tails with some firends that far out did high end restaurant offerings. I'm so glad I choose the Konnected Joe, as for a first time charcoal griller, it's so easy to ready, start, maintain temperature and even clean up (just push around the charcoal and empty the ash drawer). Just love the electronic thermostat control and access from your iPhone. Makes grilling fun again!!!I have had two issues that were taken care of by customer service immediately. First one was a chipped heat diverter from transport which they replaced quickly and then after a 500+ deg C cooking session, the temperature reading started acting up. Working closely KJ Customer Service, they determine the root cause and sent out a replacement top lid thermostat. Two grills later the problem has not reoccured. Thanks KJ Team!!

Game changer

I’ve had mine for about four months. The only ‘con’ is it pulls current so you can’t run a long extension cord. The WiFi can be flaky but rarely and even when it is, just go to the grill to check/change.The pros?? This thing is amazing. Follow the instructions and take the guesswork out of getting to/holding a temperature. I realize some may feel this is somehow cheating but the freedom this gives me to do other things and be confident in the grill is priceless.Cooked a 6 lb prime rib for Easter. 15 min at 500 degrees. Then reset the temp to 325 degrees. Never opened the lid. When the temp probe in the roast got to 125 degrees it was done. And it was perfect.Additionally it is very easy on charcoal and I have been using it a lot. From larger groups to grilling ... MoreI’ve had mine for about four months. The only ‘con’ is it pulls current so you can’t run a long extension cord. The WiFi can be flaky but rarely and even when it is, just go to the grill to check/change.The pros?? This thing is amazing. Follow the instructions and take the guesswork out of getting to/holding a temperature. I realize some may feel this is somehow cheating but the freedom this gives me to do other things and be confident in the grill is priceless.Cooked a 6 lb prime rib for Easter. 15 min at 500 degrees. Then reset the temp to 325 degrees. Never opened the lid. When the temp probe in the roast got to 125 degrees it was done. And it was perfect.Additionally it is very easy on charcoal and I have been using it a lot. From larger groups to grilling salmon for myself.The ease of use is wonderful.

Kamado Game Changer

Being new to charcoal and tKamado cooking world, I was apprehensive about the purchase due to my lack of knowledge on obtaining and modulating temperatures. The Konnected Joe purchase did not disappoint in the ability to fire up with the electric start burner and get to temperature quickly. Product came extremely well packaged. Set up and operation was straight fwd. Bought in late October and with the aid of KamadoJoe cooking class video made my first Thxgiving turkey weeks later which came out exceptional! We now use it for our routine pizza ritual. Endless cooking versatility. Great option to get into the world of Kamado style cooking. Would highly recommend!

POOR DESIGN; BEWARE!

I have had this grill for four months. At this point, I have had three warranty claims. First one; grill keeps on tripping the GFCI outlets when the auto ignition starter is used. Second claim was for the cheap, plastic blower fan melting under normal use and no excessively high temp cooks. The fan maintains the cook temperature selected for the cook and is Essential for operation of the programmed cook. Why in the world would they use a plastic fan in a grill that heats up to over 500 degrees?? Third claim was for disintegrated connectors within the wire harness. I am not the only/ person with these issues. Look on the kamado joe blog sites; many people are dealing with same problems. I asked kamado joe for a replacement grill; they told me warrantee does not cover ... MoreI have had this grill for four months. At this point, I have had three warranty claims. First one; grill keeps on tripping the GFCI outlets when the auto ignition starter is used. Second claim was for the cheap, plastic blower fan melting under normal use and no excessively high temp cooks. The fan maintains the cook temperature selected for the cook and is Essential for operation of the programmed cook. Why in the world would they use a plastic fan in a grill that heats up to over 500 degrees?? Third claim was for disintegrated connectors within the wire harness. I am not the only/ person with these issues. Look on the kamado joe blog sites; many people are dealing with same problems. I asked kamado joe for a replacement grill; they told me warrantee does not cover replacing an obvious lemon. Concept of the grill is great, but the end product has cheap components and poor engineering which need to be fixed

Thoughts after a year of heavy use

I've had this grill for over a year now and have hundreds of cooks on it. Everything from low and slow smoking to direct fire grilling, griddle cooks, Joetisserie cooks, pizza and pretty much every type of cook I could throw at it.I wanted to do a year review because the early adopter reviews are outdated. So anyone reading these reviews should consider that this is a tech product. That means it has received updates over the past year that have improved performance, added new features, fixed bugs, fine tuned temp algorithms, improved wifi connection stability, etc.........previous reviews before the last firmware update in May 2024 are not reviews of how the current Konnected Joe performs. Although it still performed well back then........but it performs much ... MoreI've had this grill for over a year now and have hundreds of cooks on it. Everything from low and slow smoking to direct fire grilling, griddle cooks, Joetisserie cooks, pizza and pretty much every type of cook I could throw at it.I wanted to do a year review because the early adopter reviews are outdated. So anyone reading these reviews should consider that this is a tech product. That means it has received updates over the past year that have improved performance, added new features, fixed bugs, fine tuned temp algorithms, improved wifi connection stability, etc.........previous reviews before the last firmware update in May 2024 are not reviews of how the current Konnected Joe performs. Although it still performed well back then........but it performs much better now.KJ has added session graphs to the app, which is very useful for looking up past cooks. Actually, the grill didn't even have a graph feature when I first got mine, so that is one improvement.As mentioned, they have also improved temp stability and wifi stability. It will hold a steady temp as low as 150°f and up.The wifi range can be fairly short by todays standards but it's long enough for most patio and deck placement. If not, it's as easy as just adding an outdoor wifi extender or an indoor extender closest to the grill. Mine is probably 30' from my router through 3 basement interior walls and a cinder block exterior wall. It took 2 or 3 tries to do the initial connection but after that it has found and connected to my router on its own every time and has not dropped the signal that I could tell. That said, KJ also added a WiFi signal strength indicator on the grill display to aid in the placement of your grill for strongest possible signal or in determining if you need a wifi extender. This was a great improvement IMO.They also made some subtle UI changes to the app which has made it more polished and refined. I like it. It's very simple to use and everything is clear and concise compared to 2 popular add on controller apps that I also own and use for my regular KJ2 and KJ3.The build quality is great. I have not had any problems with my production model hardware components.I have mine plugged into a weather resistant outdoor outlet in a weatherproof covered box and have not had any issues with tripping a breaker. GFCI outlets are very sensitive and can occasionally nuisance trip when the heating element is warming up, so I just avoid that altogether with my WR outlets.Clean up is simple with the included ash clean out system. I just use a 4" brush to sweep the ash down through the remaining charcoal and grate, into the pan below. Empty the pan and I'm good to fire it up.I love the convenience of being able to prep the grill the night before, get home from work, push the AFS ignitor button and set my temperature before even walking into the house. After 10-20 minutes my grill is preheated and ready for food. Just long enough for me to gather my prepped food and grill tools.I also love that I don't have to install and remove the controller like I do with my 2 addon controllers for my other KJs. I loathe having to unpack those, untangle the wires, plug everything in and install the adapter and fan each time....... remove it all again afterwards.The different cook "modes" work great as well.I use the griddle mode and normal cook mode the most but use Joetisserie mode when using that accessory.I don't have a classic size DoJoe so I can't comment on that mode, other than to say that I use it when wok cooking and it works great.I use the large KJ Karbon Wok with the X rack and a vortex accessory to focus the heat to the bottom of the wok. I then engage DoJoe mode so that it will stoke the fire at 100% fan speed with dome open. This gets a hot focused fire for true wok cooking. I then cycle the power off once I'm cooking and open the bottom draft door to keep the fire going but not as intense.For durability, my gaskets are still good after well over a year. Controller is still great and the grill is mostly uncovered but under a sun shade. So it gets wet but not like being hosed down.Other than a few app wish list items that aren't deal breakers, I do wish the KJ charcoal basket worked with the AFS heating element.......but again, thats not a deal breaker.Overall, this grill has spoiled me. I have a Big Joe 2, Classic 3, Jr. and Pellet Joe. This one gets used 90% of the time. It just works that good and is that convenient.