EAST OAK 30" Electric Smoker for Outdoors | Built-in Meat Probe & Up to 6× Longer Smokes on a Single Load | Side Chip Loader for Uninterrupted Smoking | Bigger Batches with 725 sq in Cooking Area

So far so good, seasoned it and used it the first time for a nice rack of ribs. Makes good smoke unlike the char broil and master chef ones i had. I appreciate the display telling me what the temperature is plus what i set it at....This smoker has a three year warranty but I plan to purchase a main element spare since historically , I've ended up replacing one on each electric smoker i've ever had. My fear these days is that manufacturers do not always support previous products after a few years. I'm not going to incur a warranty for an element. This does a great job. I do not miss the glass door. They are a pain in the butt trying to keep them clean anyway and most of the time you can't see though them while using (smoke, remember?).. Get the East Oak cover too --- very nice>

East oak has nailed it with this smoker. For the little investment I made some of the best ribs yet in this unit. The unopening and set up was easy and between initial cleaning and prep I was ready to start smoking meat in no time. Note when wiping down and cleaning use latex gloves some edges inside unit are still sharp as I did get a nice metal cut. Also make sure to register product has a nice 2 year warranty. I also bought the stand as seen in photo and cover which also fits snug. Another some improvements I recommend to east oak include stainless screws when possible for outdoor use already getting rusted. Also try the deck box to store your supplies made by oak wood as well.TLDR: awesome product , great results and easy to use and set up! Already recommending to co workers.

Why did you pick this product vs others?:I was looking for a smoker, and east oak was on sale. Also, I wanted one that used wood chips. The reviews of the smoker were also good. I called customer service about a smoker box, they responded very quickly, were polite, and helpful.In terms of the east oak smoker, it works really well. I like the smokiness you get in the meats cooked. You can vary the amount of smoke to get the right amount of smoke for you. I have used the smoker in winter and summer, and in cold weather it works just as well at holding a temperature, as it does in summer.

I've owned two electric smokers before this one. One thing I learned is that it's too much of a pain to keep smokers with a window clean and clear enough to be useful. I stick to the windowless ones now, plus I think they offer even better insulation than a windowed smoker. For the money, this East Oak 30" smoker is the best you can get by far.This smoker arrived very well packaged, though it took far too long for it to arrive; a full two weeks. Shipping could definitely be quicker! Installing all the parts is easy, especially if you have prior smoker experience. I recommend following the instructions to make sure you don't miss anything. I noticed a mistake was made at some point during manufacturing, because the water bowl max fill line is actually spelled backwards, lol, but no big deal. What's most important is that everything seems very well made! I was a bit nervous purchasing this smoker since it's from a brand that's new to the smoker world, but after my initial experience I am completely happy with it.My favorite feature of this smoker is that is uses a wood chip loading tray that can be pulled out without opening the smoker door. This is something that I've only seen with the patented design that Masterbuilt has on their smokers, but this design is different because the shape and size of the tray is larger, allowing for a longer-term smoke. I love that, as I can load it once and not worry about it. 3-4 hours should be plenty of time to get the smoke flavor into anything you're making. If you need more time than that to cook a larger meat such as a turkey, ribs, or brisket, then finish it in your oven. Not only will this save on your smokers heating element by increasing its lifespan, but you can also take that time between swapping from smoker to oven to wrap the meat in foil and add a small amount of water to allow the meat to steam/tenderize better in the oven. Smoke only penetrates so deep into the meat anyway, so what some people don't realize is leaving meat in the smoker all day long isn't going to give it any more smoke flavor.Know that this model is cheaper than most but the only shortcut it seems to take is not to include Bluetooth to connect an app with your phone for temp controls and timing. I find that once I've set the temperature I rarely if ever change it, so that's not a problem. I also use a wireless meat thermometer of my own choosing in order to track internal temp without having to open the smoker door and check it manually. I just smoked some pork loin and salmon today and was able to route the cable for the temperature probe through the smoker ventilation outlet, which ensured I could keep the door area completely free of any obstructions.One thing to note - please read the instructions and be sure to perform the initial seasoning steps as outlined in the product manual. I've seen some of the reviews here state they took everything out of the box and cooked right away as if they skipped that step. That means your meat was getting the factory fumes and residue into the meat itself. Gross! My advice is to perform the seasoning steps, then let it cool down, then add water to the water reservoir, fill the chip tray with your smoking chips of choice and just let it run around 220-225 for about 3 hours. That will further take care of any odd smells/taste before your first smoke with food!The first thing I smoked was a rack of ribs which I included a picture of on this review. They were in at 225 degrees for about 3 hours and when I took them out to move them to the oven I noticed the bones were already exposed about half an inch, which is a good way to know that they are already getting tender.** Update as of 1/6/2024 **I noticed after several times using this smoker that no matter what I cooked in it, the meats were getting done much quicker than suggested times said online. I picked up an oven thermometer the other day and hung it from the center rack, turned it on to run a cycle with just the water tray filled to proper line, and some smoking chips. I set the temp to 225 and let it heat up. I came back and checked, and found the outside temp was reading 230. I opened the door and it was up to 265! That's 45 degrees hotter than I set it to. I then let some of the air out and set the temp to 200. Gave it time to settle and discovered that my 200 setting was displaying 197 degrees but actual interior temp was right around 225.Be careful when cooking, as mine seems to run hotter than it's supposed to. Now that I figured out this out, I know to run it lower to get a more accurate cooking time. I knew there was no way that the ribs I had been smoking were getting done so fast, or that I was able to cook a brisket in 4.5 hours. I also ruined my first smoked turkey experience because I went purely based on time for pound, and even though I checked it early it was already way overdone and crispy. Perhaps my smoked meats will be more juicy and tender once I figure out the proper temps.I had to knock a star off due to the inaccurate cooking temperature. That aside, I do love everything else about the smoker. The price has gone up about 30% since I purchased it though. Maybe wait and see if it goes on sale, or else it might be worth going with a name brand you trust if it's near $300.