I've seen cordless grill cleaners around for a while, but I thought they were gimmicks. When I saw this, it brought back recent memories of cleaning the grill at our summer house in preparation for winter storage. In the grand scheme of things it wasn't terrible, but it shouldn't have gotten that bad. Let's face it though, who really wants to give the grill a thorough cleaning after you've just eaten a good meal? Waiting until the grill cools down is the standard excuse, then it stays dirty until the next day, or more often than not, until the next time you use the grill. Am I right?
This actually works pretty well. However, if you want to use the mesh chain head on the entire grill surface you're either going to have to rotate the grill grates, or swap the brushes to their opposite sides. It's not really a big deal though. If you tend to cook in the middle of the grill and rarely use the outer sides, it's not an issue.
My concern with something like this is the proprietary cleaning surfaces. Two each of the scouring pad and sponge pads are included. How long they last remains to be seen, but replacement pads are available (about $1 each for a pack of 20). However, I could not find a replacement chain mesh head. This device is a little on the pricey side, and while I don't really mind paying for consumables, I want to know that they're actually going to be available.
There's nothing that says whether the cleaning heads can be placed in a dishwasher, but I really don't see why not.
I don't really like wire cleaning brushes as the wires eventually rust and fall out. Sponge type brushes don't last very long either. I'm hoping this will eliminate the need for those. It certainly will make cleaning the grill a lot easier especially after cooking something sloppy with lots of BBQ sauce, burnt cheese and that sort of thing.
Is it better than cleaning with an old-school brush? If you like gadgets (and I do), then yes. If it gets you to clean your grill more often, that's a good thing. It is a bit expensive though. As others have said, it would make a great gift. Wives, if you don't know what to buy your husband for Christmas or his birthday, you probably can't go wrong with this.