Derrick Riches who writes all their reviews for grilling seems to be a straight shooter.
"The last few years have seen an explosion of Kamado style grills, but most of these have been little more than variations of the famous Big Green Egg. Of course there was the Bubba Keg, which was made out of steel instead of ceramic and in quick order changed into the Big Steel Keg, and then the Broil King Steel Keg. The thing is, most of these grills listed for prices in a pretty narrow range around the $700USD price point. Now the people at Char-Griller have shattered the price barrier and offered up this metal Kamado grill for $300USD.
So, what exactly is this? The Char-Griller Akorn has a larger grilling space than the large Big Green Egg and many of the same features of the Broil King Steel Keg. Actually, some of the parts are uncomfortably similar to the Steel Keg, in the way that lawyers would probably drool over. However, this is a competent grill/smoker for a ridiculously accessible price and bound to be a big seller."
