CalmDo Indoor Smokeless Grill, Electric BBQ Grill and Non-Stick Griddle Plates with 3 Temperature Control, Removable Drip Tray, Tempered Glass Lid and 14'' X 7.9'' Grilling Surface

Honestly, I was really interested in the Power XL as it's the most popular indoor grill on the market. I watched Youtube reviews to really understand what it offers and it sounded great and wanted one. However, as I was looking at the Power Store's feedback on Amazon, I instantly became hesitant to order the XL. As of Jan 2021, they had 5 separate listings for their 2 grills at different prices. The top 4 of 5 most "helpful" reviews are all 1/ 5 stars and pretty much say: 1. the fan stopped working shortly 2. it has heating issues 3. they ended up returning it for a refund. There was also confusion as if you'd get a flat griddle or a coupon for a "free" one but you had to pay shipping for it.With that being said, I searched for alternative products and stumbled upon the CalmDo Indoor Smokeless Grill. From what I can tell, it essentially functioned the same way as the Power XL. At the time of purchase, this product had only 1 review so I was iffy, but I checked the CalmDo's store, and most of their product feedback showed 4s or 4.5s for their ratings, so I figured I'd gamble ordering this grill since it seemed less likely I'd have to return the product since I hate doing returns.I have a small apartment/kitchen, so when I use my cast iron, there's usually a decent amount of smoke. I'd have to cook with my door open due to the lack of ventilation. I don't mind doing that in the summer, but it's around the 30s/40s in winter right now so that's why I was really interested in the smokeless feature.The smokeless feature works by turning on an inner fan that sucks in the smoke goes towards the liquid at the bottom drip tray. The grill does not take too long to warm up. The first time I turned on the grill, I forgot to turn on the fan and it smoked of course. But when I did, I literally watched all the smoke get sucked inside of the grill and I was impressed.Grilling on this is great so far. I've used it primarily for chicken, chicken wings, and KBBQ. I did use the lid for chicken and I was really impressed with how moist the chicken came out. The grill marks are nice and always adds to better texture and taste. I tired some beef bulgogi and it works for KBBQ at home. It's no sit down restaurant grill, but still does the job. Can't wait to try this on my next date night really.Just a quick note on hot spots from my research of the Power XL. The Power XL did not seem to provide consistent heat across the grill from the reviews I've seen and the edge appeared to be the noticeably cooler. I do not have a thermometer gun to do an accurate reading, but with the CalmDo Indoor grill, the heat actually seemed pretty consistent across the grill plate. From what I could tell, the general right half towards the power source seems to be hotter as the grill marks showed up there faster, but wasn't anything drastic in terms of making a difference for cooking time. Did not have any issues cooking meat at the edge. I don't have a dishwasher, so I had to handwash this. It's primary just 4 things to clean up: the drip pan, the removable metal tray inside, the grill surface plate and the lid. The instructions recommend not layering tinfoil on the inside. The design layout for where the drain in the metal tray and drip pan are on the left which is nice since you can choose to cook on the left only to reduce the amount of clean up needed.Although I have not used it yet, but this DOES come with a flat griddle plate as part of the packaging.My only cons I have is that the grill plate has some harder to reach spots at the underside that a standard hand sponge can't reach. Not the worst thing to deal with since I can probably find something at the store for that. Also the design of the temp knob generally shows 3 temps. It is a free turning dial that doesn't lock, so I'm assuming you can reach temperatures in-between the degrees if you can figure out the precise point it needs to be on.Overall, I'm glad I went with the CalmDo grill. I know I've listed a lot of the negatives for the Power XL, but I just wanted to share whatever research I've found so you aren't investing as much time I did on a $120 grill. This runs the same price as the Power XL, but it did have a $20 coupon and it 100% comes with everything listed, so I'd have to say this is the safer and better value purchase.

Excellent indoor grill! Easy to clean and the grill/griddle are dishwasher safe unlike the George Forman grill I used outdoors. The electric connector and heating element are separate from the grill unlike the Forman unit. I grilled two, 2lb steaks indoors with my fingers crossed and.. no smoke! Or very little. Just remember to fill the drip tray with a cup or two of water which helps keep it smoke free, (I actually read the instructions for once in my life). I'm very, very pleased! I can now grill in the dead of winter!! Hmmm.. Ham steaks and corn on the cob tonight?😋

I first heard about an appliance on an info mercial, a friend of mine purchased one because they missed eating Korean BBQ, I tried it and just had to have one for myself.. because hubby will only eat grilled burgers..I’ll admit I was worried that it would still emit some sort of grease filled smoke into the air, And destroy my cabinets. But it doesn’t At All!!I grill as much as I can and the ideal of 'grilling' indoors had me sold! No more freezing in the middle of winter anymore!!It was packaged really well for shipping.Assembly was simple!The control panel is very easy to figure out. Simply turn the power on, turn the fan on and set the temperature. I cooked a 18 ounce Tomahawk and it took about 35-40 minutes.I do have an electronic thermometer to check the temp, but there were no flare up burns or anything like that.The steaks were cooked evenly all the way through. The fan really does pull all the smoke in. Turn the fan off for a second and you can see what it is actually doing.It is so quick and easy to clean.This was an awesome purchase and I am completely happy! Worth the price!!

Your browser does not support HTML5 video.  There is a gift offer to write a review, but this is an honest review and unbiased as possible.My house doesn't ventilate well so I thought I should look into buying a smokeless grill. I chose this brand because I believe there were honest reviews, although the reviews were not many. Plus, I didn't want to spend more than I needed.Upon opening the package, this item was well packaged. It came with the power cord, glass top, flat plate and a grill and the body. Pulling out the whole grill, it is a beautiful appliance. Very clean and sleek looking.Using the grill plate first: there's not much to assemble. It was easy to put together. The plates sit right in and the heat source has a little groove it sits under (see picture) to keep it protected from the oil. The heat wasn't hot like it would be on a pot, on the stove, but it was sufficient. I can hear the sizzle and I can see a little smoke but overall the vent system seems to suck it all in. The house smelled like I just grilled meat on the stove but the smell was significantly less intense. My house is an open concept to the smell generally travels, but my husband didn't know I had grilled any meat. The smell dissipated quickly. I'm loving this aspect of the smokeless grill. The grill plate left grill marks (see picure). The cover is nice to have and it shows just how little smoke there is. The unit is a little loud. I definitely can tell when the vent is in and off and when it's off, you can see a difference in the amount of smoke. I'm very pleased with it so far. Next, I'm making pancakes for my kids.Clean: there's a number of parts to clean. I only cooked a skirt steak on it so I didn't do extensive cooking and so there wasn't much grease. I cleaned the unit after dinner and it was easy to clean despite the 3-4 parts. The parts needed cleaning were the plates, the metal pieces around the heat source (needed wiping with a damp cloth), the drip tray, and the glass top (if used). All the cleaning required soap and warm water.I may just consider buying one for my mother in law to use for KBBQ. That will be the ultimate test as KBBQ grills meat, vegetables, and etc...right on the spot.