Weber’s latest gas grills have Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and digital screens

Weber is expanding its line of barbecues connected to the Internet to cover its popular gas models, including the company’s entry-level Spirt line, offering Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity for temperature tracking and an integrated digital display.

Connected grilling is not a new concept for Weber: the company has been offering a line of iGrill meat thermometers for years as add-ons to its existing grills and, last year, debuted its second generation of Weber Connect smart grill hub accessory, which offers a newer and more advanced Weber Connect application. It also offered Weber Connect smart grill features on its SmokeFire pellet smoker (similar to Trager’s WiFIRE smokers).

Including smart technology to control things like temperature or monitor cooking makes a little more sense for a pellet smoker – which, by the very nature of his cooking technique, requires longer cooking times at lower temperatures. The ability to keep an eye on the performance of a chest or to adjust the temperature inside the house are useful additions for a pellet smoker. A gas grill, with its much less demanding burners, looks like a less natural fit.

That said, the Weber Connect additions look like fun. Wi-Fi-connected temperature probes are a useful tool for grilling, especially for younger chefs or when working with larger or roasted steaks. The app also promises recipes and step-by-step grill guides, complete with countdown timers, instructions on how to set the grill temperature for each cooking stage, and even notifications for things like turning burgers.

Perhaps more useful, smart grid propane models can monitor the amount of gas left in the tank and notify you via the app when it is running low.

However, you will still have to do the actual barbecue: although Weber is proud of how his new Smart Series grills bring “70 years of Weber know-how, technique and experience to a grill’s fingertips through cooking programs Weber Connect intelligence ”, the algorithms are not cooking a steak for you.

The new Weber Connect grids are divided into the company’s Genesis line with the Genesis EX-315 ($ 1,029), EX-335 ($ 1,239) and SX-335 ($ 1,349) models, which offer more premium features, such as a heating and integrated LED lights for grilling at night. The company is also offering a smaller smart grill with the $ 849 Spirit SX-315, on top of its entry-level Spirit line, which reduces space for grills (but at a lower price). However, you are paying a premium for these integrated Wi-Fi and Bluetooth smart devices: the “normal” version of the Spirit SX-315, for example, costs $ 599.

The new line of smart barbecue grills Weber Connect is due to be launched this spring.