Kamado Joe sells two 24 inch flagships at one price. The Big Joe Konnected Joe, model KJ15042425, lists at $3,299.99. So does the Big Joe III.
The two share a grate size, a heat range and most of their lid hardware. They split on what fills the remaining budget.
The Series III spends it on ceramic accessories. Its box holds a SloRoller smoke insert, a stainless charcoal basket and a third rack tier. The Konnected Joe spends it on a heating element, a fan and a Wi-Fi control board.
So the question is simple to ask. Is a computer worth more than a smoke chamber on a ceramic this size? A Big Joe I also costs $1,800 less. Is the automation worth that much?
24 inGrate diameter, the largest Kamado Joe body
450 sq inCooking space across the main grate
$1,800Premium over a Big Joe I at maker list
3 yearsWarranty on the electronics, against lifetime ceramic
First Impressions of the Kamado Joe Big Joe Konnected Joe
From a few steps back it looks like any red Big Joe. The dome, the cart and the folding side shelves are familiar. The difference sits below the dome band. A dark panel with a screen and a fan housing replaces the bottom draft door.
That panel changes how the grill feels before any food goes on. There is no hunt for a lighter.
You fill the firebox with lump and press the AFS button. An element inside the grill starts the fire. Then you type a number and close the lid.
The cart is powder-coated steel on four casters, with handles on each side for pushing. The maker’s sheet says 341.7 lbs. Lifting that ceramic onto its stand needs a helper. Plan the move from the delivery point before the truck arrives.
The first cook makes the case quickly. You pick a low smoking target and leave the vents alone. The fan meters air rather than an open slot, so there is nothing to nudge. Chicken thighs came out smoky and even, with no mid-cook corrections.
Key Features of the Kamado Joe Big Joe Konnected Joe
Most of this grill is the Big Joe you already know. What is new lives in the bottom third, behind the panel. The list leads with the electronics. Then it covers the hardware shared with the Series II and III.
- Automatic Fire Starter. A built-in element lights the charcoal at the push of a button. It is the Electric Igniter on this grill, and it replaces starter cubes entirely.
- Kontrol Board. The digital panel sets the cook mode and target and reads up to three meat probes. It also graphs 24 hours of grill temperature. Its screen is the grill’s LED Controls.
- Kontrol Fan. A powered fan pushes air through the firebox to hold the target. Automatic mode hands the fire to it entirely.
- Classic mode. Switch the fan off and run the grill as a vented kamado, by hand.
- Kamado Joe app over Wi-Fi. Set heat and time, watch probe readings, and get alerts from inside the house.
- Multiple Vents or Dampers. The Kontrol Tower top vent holds its setting when the dome opens and closes.
- Stainless steel. Both cooking grates are stainless, sitting on the 2-Tier Divide & Conquer rack system.
- Air Lift hinge. The hinge takes much of the weight when you raise the 24 inch dome.
- AMP Firebox and fiberglass mesh gasket. Kamado Joe credits both with durability, heat retention and smoke control.
- Slide-out ash drawer. Ash drops into a tray you pull from the front.
What is missing matters as much here. No SloRoller insert and no charcoal basket come in this box. Both ship standard with the Big Joe III at the same list price.
A ceramic kamado already holds heat well. Its weakness has always been the operator. You balance two vents against a fire that responds slowly. The Konnected Joe removes that balancing act, and that is the whole of its cooking advantage.
The range is the familiar 225°F to 750°F of every Big Joe. A fan does not lift that ceiling.
What it changes is the long middle of a smoke. Weather shifts, and a passive grill drifts with it. Here the board notices the drift and feeds or starves the fire on its own.
On a 24 inch grate that matters more than on the 18 inch Konnected Joe. A bigger firebox holds more lump, so a single load can carry a longer cook. The larger the cook, the more the fan earns its keep. Searing is unchanged: open the dome, set high, and the ceramic does what ceramic does.
The 2-Tier Divide & Conquer rack still does the zoning. One half can hold a deflector for low heat while the other sits over open coals. The fan steers the whole firebox, not each half. Zones still come from the rack, as on any Big Joe.
The app closes the loop. Probe readings and alerts reach the phone, and the graph shows whether the fire held overnight. You no longer guess what happened at three in the morning.
Build, handling and durability
The ceramic shell is the part that lasts. It is covered for as long as you own it. The metal frame and cart carry five years. The fan, element and control board carry three.
That gap is the honest reliability story of this grill.
So the electronics are the shortest-lived warranty item on a grill built to outlast its owner. Classic mode softens the risk. If the board fails in year four, the cooker still works as a vented kamado. You lose the reason you paid extra, not the grill.
On paper this grill weighs 64.6 lbs less than a Big Joe III. Both carry 450 square inches.
Kamado Joe does not explain the gap. We would not read anything into it without a parts list. The steel cart and aluminum shelves match the Series III build.
Running costs, upkeep and value
The running costs are mostly lump charcoal, as with any kamado. The fan adds a power cord. Lighting adds nothing, because the element replaces the starters you would otherwise keep buying. That saving is small against the purchase price.
The value case needs three comparisons, all at maker list:
- Against the Big Joe III, $0. Same price, same grate, same ceiling. You give up the SloRoller, the basket and a rack tier for automation.
- Against the Big Joe I, $1,800. That buys the electronics plus the Air Lift hinge, Kontrol Tower and mesh gasket.
- Against the 18 inch Konnected Joe, $1,100. That is the price of the jump from 250 to 450 square inches.
Our October 2026 check found Amazon asking around $2,994. The maker’s own page showed it out of stock.
That listing ships from a third-party seller, not from Amazon. Kamado Joe voids the warranty on a sale through an unauthorized dealer. Confirm the seller with Kamado Joe first. These electronics need that warranty more than the ceramic does.
Upkeep is ordinary kamado work, with one new chore. Pull the ash drawer after each cook, brush the grates, and keep a cover on it. The control panel is the first thing on this grill that rain can actually hurt.
Possible Kamado Joe Big Joe Konnected Joe Complaints
- The automation ages faster than the grill. The board, fan and element carry three years against lifetime ceramic. The pinch comes after the third summer. Classic mode keeps the cooker working, but the premium you paid stops paying back.
- It needs an outlet. The controller runs on AC power. A grill at the far end of a yard needs an outdoor circuit nearby. A cord across the patio is a trip hazard.
