I just checked out the Weber Grill website to see what new products they were launching in 2021 and found quite a few surprises!
Not only was I surprised but I confess I walked away a little confused as well 🙂
The Weber Pulse Electric Grill
The first huge surprise is the introduction of the Weber Pulse electric grill.
I had heard about this grill a year ago when it was introduced in Europe but hadn’t paid much attention to it.
Weber has been selling electric grills in the US under the Q brand with the Q1400 and Q2400 electric grills. I hardly ever see the electric grills in a store so I have been making the assumption that they were not very popular.
Weber is going all in with the Pulse. The Pulse has dual variable heat control elements and looks pretty stylish. What shocked me about the Pulse was the price tag of just under $900!!!
Weber is selling an electric grill that costs just as much as a full sized Weber Genesis. Wow!
Weber Traveler Portable Grill
The Traveler is a direct response from Weber to the extremely popular Road Trip grills produced by Coleman.
Unlike Weber’s other small gas grills, the Q Series, the Traveler is specifically designed to fold down and roll for easy transport. This is going to be a “Tailgate Special”.
I bought a Traveler and am loving it so far!
The Travel has a surprisingly low price point of $299 so it will be interesting to see how much they cannibalize sales from the Q Series.
Weber Smart Grills
Weber has taken some of their Genesis and Spirit gas grills, fitted them with WiFi and Bluetooth and called them “Smart Grills“.
These “Smart Grills” are a little underwhelming as all you can really do with them is monitor the temperature of the included meat probe. You can’t use the app to control the temperature of your grill or do anything else interesting.
I think you could get all of the benefits of a Smart Grill by purchasing a standalone WiFi enabled meat probe.
Master Touch Premium
Weber has a new version of the Master Touch, the Premium version, that has some really cool features.
The Master Touch Premium is a 22 inch kettle that has a hinged lid along with a charcoal ring and metal heat diffuser! This kettle looks like it could be a serious high capacity Low and Slow cooker without having to use something like the Slow n Sear.
I read some of the initial reviews and it sounds like some people are having problems with the hinged lid.
Apparently the hinge is preventing a tight seal between the lid and the body which makes using the grill at Low and Slow cooking conditions difficult. This seems like a minor problem though and I am sure there will be a fix available soon.
Weber Summit Gas Grills
The big surprise with the Weber Summit is that Weber did not change a single thing.
The Summit series has been due for a refresh for about a decade. In recent years Weber has completely revamped the Spirit and Genesis series, launched the Traveler, developed pellet grills, etc. But they have not taken the time to refresh the outdated Summits.
There was a time when the Summit grills were the best and biggest Weber had to offer. That changed in the past few years when Weber introduced the massive Genesis II S 435 which is even larger than the prestigious Weber Summit 670.
I am surprised that Weber is still allowing a Genesis grill to be the Belle of the Ball.
Smokefire Pellet Grill and Summit Kamado
Weber has banners saying that the new Smokefire pellet grills and Summit kamado grills are “New” and “Coming Soon” but I can’t tell what has changed.
The Smokefire pellet grills were a bit of a bust when they were first introduced. The pellet hopper would slide pellets into the auger, the grill cooked unevenly and suffered from flareups. I would love to understand how they addressed those issues with the new models.
The Summit Kamados worked great as originally designed and I really can’t see any differences with the new design. There was always an issue with the price point of these grills but that is pretty standard for kamado cookers from just about any company.
What’s Next?
If you have any insights into these new grills, especially as to why someone would want to pay $900 for an electric grill, then leave a comment down below!
I would love to hear from you!