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Pit Boss has been on a tear releasing new grills lately, most notably the new Pro Series, and the Phoenix kettle grill that can grill with pellets or charcoal. They weren’t done though because they just released the new Navigator pellet grill line, which I’d say is their best grill line that isn’t a retailer exclusive.
The Navigator comes in three different models, the 850, the 1300, and the massive 1600. They also released two Navigator vertical smokers, the 3-Series and the 6-Series. We’ll get to the model differences but between the 850, the 1300, and the 1600, the sweet spot for us is the 1300.
Features and Specs
- The 1300 retails for $799 (check price)
- Colorful touchscreen controller with WiFi and Bluetooth to control the grill with your phone app
- 1,329 square inches of cooking space, which easily enough space for 6-8+ people
- Has all the latest pellet grill tech like an easy ash cleanout and a rapid ignitor
- Includes 2 meat probes to keep an eye on your food
- Has a Flame Broiler lever for direct access to the flame, and high heat cooking
- Roll top lid design that’s easy to use and is more space efficient
- Folding front shelf and a stationary side shelf give you lots of prep space
- A massive 30 lb pellet hopper will have you cooking for days
- Pellet hopper cleanout on the bottom, so you can easily change pellet types
Built-In Prep Station
This is a really cool feature that the 1300 and 1600 have, that is unique to the Navigator line. I can’t think of any other pellet grills that have this feature.
The side shelf has a garbage bag holder, a paper towel holder, and a removeable cutting board. This is a feature that I’ve used and really liked on griddles, so I’m excited to see it make the jump to pellet grills. It adds quite a bit of convenience while your working to get your food on the grill.
Model Differences
- The 850 retails for $649 (check price) and has a good feature set in it’s own right. It gives you WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity, but it doesn’t have the latest touch screen like the other models. It ditches the roll top lid, for a conventional lift style, and has less cooking space. It also only comes with 1 temp probe, and doesn’t have the prep station on the side. It still offers a solid grilling experience for the price, just without some of the bells and whistles.
- The 1300 is as describes above in the features and specs.
- The 1600 retails for $999.99 (check price) and appears to have all the same features as the 1300, but in a larger package at 1,593 square inches of cooking area. This is perfect if you routinely grill for lots of people, but I think the 1300 offers better value.
Vertical Pellet Smokers
If you need as much space as possible to smoke meat, then a vertical pellet smoker is what you need. The new Navigator vertical pellet smokers offer tons of smoking ability, with a connected experience for convenience.
- 3-Series retails for $499.99 (check price) and gives you 1,118 square inches of smoking space. To make use of that space, there is a giant 50 pound pellet hopper, for days worth of smoking. It also has conveniences like an easy ash cleanout, and four casters to move it around. It has a temperature range of 130 degrees F to 420 degrees F, which is really solid for a vertical smoker.
- 6-Series retails for $649.99 (check price) and has a cavernous 2,224 square inches of cooking space. They equipped it with a massive 75 pound pellet hopper, and the smoker is wide enough to fit two water pans side by side.