Pit Boss adds WiFi to its latest Pro Series pellet grills

When it comes to pellet grills, Pit Boss has a range of options that can compete with bulk of the competition, but at a more affordable price. The company has been giving backyard cooks the ability to smoke, grill, sear and more for a while now, but much of its lineup was missing a modern standard feature: WiFi. With its new Pro Series 850 and 1150 pellet grills, Pit Boss is offering wireless connectivity for the first time on these models. That allows you to adjust grill temperature, monitor food doneness and more from your phone. And as the weather starts to cool down, being able to that without leaving the comforts of your sofa will become increasingly handy.

Pit Boss already sells Pro Series 820 and 1100, but those slightly smaller grills don’t have the connectivity that’s become a standard in recent years. Traeger, Weber and others have been offering WiFi as a sous chef for a while now. For the Pro Series 850 and 1150, Pit Boss swapped out the controller for a digital PID unit that’s equipped with both WiFi and Bluetooth. Plus, it looks a lot more modern that what was on the previous models. With that component, you can cook at temperatures between 150 and 500 degrees Fahrenheit. When it’s time to sear, Pit Boss gives you the ability to slide a plate out of the way for direct flame searing. The company says temps can hit 1000 degrees when you opt for this method.

The heavy-duty steel grills give you either 850 or 1150 square inches of cooking surface — hence the model numbers. Inside, porcelain-coated cast iron and steel grates hold your food and you can monitor internal temperatures with either two (850) or four (1150) probes at once. However, each model only ships with half as many probes as it has slots, so to employ them all, you’ll need to buy extra (a 2-pack is $30). Both sizes have a shallow folding shelf on the front, and another stationary one on the right side (with tool hooks) opposite the controller and pellet hopper. There’s also a larger shelf underneath the grills. In terms of capacity, Pit Boss says the 1150 can hold up to 32 pounds of pellets and the 850 stores up to 20 pounds when full. The hopper also has a small viewing window, so you can see where your level stands at a glance.

The Platinum Series also offers WiFi connectivity from Pit Boss, but both models in that line are massive. The all-pellet Lockhart has a whopping 2,137 square inches of cooking space, including a cabinet smoking chamber up top. The KC Combo puts a pellet grill right beside a propane option on the same stand. Depending on your cooking habits, one of those might work for you, but for a more “traditional” pellet cooker, the Pro Series is probably what you’ll want. And the best part about the 850 and 1150 is they’re the same price as their predecessors at $499 and $599 respectively. Pit Boss added WiFi and threw in some updates to the design details without raising the price. Not too shabby.

There’s no word just yet on when you can buy one of these new grills, but Pit Boss’ parent company Dansons says the latest Pro Series models will be sold exclusively at Lowe’s home improvement stores across the US. Lowe’s already carries a range of Pit Boss products, so this agreement isn’t too surprising.