I’ve reviewed Traeger’s Timberline and Ironwood connected grills that allow you to control and monitor the machine remotely. The connectivity offered via that company’s WiFire tech is extremely useful, especially during longer cooks like a brisket or pork shoulder. Trager’s app has a massive library of recipes and you can automatically set grill temperature based on the recipe you choose. The software does offer some guidance, but it’s not quite on the level of what Weber Connect will provide.
Weber Connect runs on JuneOS, the technology that powers the June smart oven. Essentially, the oven uses algorithms and other tech to help you produce perfectly cooked meals, whether that’s juicy chicken or a well-cooked steak. The smart oven has a meat probe that monitors internal temperature to ensure things turn out like they should. Weber is bringing this tech to the backyard, equipping SmokeFire grills and the Smart Grilling Hub with the ability to tap into the cooking knowledge of JuneOS.
For at-home grill masters, Weber Connect will provide you with step-by-step guidance on how to prep the grill, prep your meat, when to put it on, when to flip, how long to rest it and more. The system can even give you an estimated completion time based on the type and weight of meat or seafood you tell the app you’re cooking. Inside the Weber Connect app, the steps are queued up in order, so you know what’s next and how long you have until you need to move to the next step. Both the grills and the Hub will send real-time temperature readings to the app for up to four food probes. And in the case of the Grilling Hub, you can designate one of those for ambient grill temp.
Not every aspiring pitmaster will want this level of oversight. However, I can tell you that I’ve experienced first-hand how liberating it can be not to have to walk outside every hour or so to check the temperature, even if you don’t open the grill to visibly inspect things. It’s also a massive upgrade to be able to monitor things when you need to run to the store, or while you’re doing other things that aren’t within Bluetooth range of the grill. And with Weber Connect, the estimated completion times will take all of that convenience a step further. If I have an idea of when a 14-pound brisket will be done, I can better plan sides and the rest of the meal. I’m not just relying on a thermometer telling me when the meat hits target temperature. Trust me, that’s far from an exact science when it comes to timing.
This week at CES, I got to see the entire Weber Connect setup in use. The company’s pitmasters were smoking and grilling beef ribs, steaks, brisket and more on both Weber’s SmokeFire pellet grills and Weber gas models with the Smart Grilling Hub. Both options produced some stellar food, and the amount of smoke flavor from the pellet grills could’ve easily convinced me that the meats were cooked in a wood-fired pit. Both SmokeFire and the Hub work as advertised, and the staff were relying on Weber Connect to track when things needed attention or were ready to come off.
