Patio season is coming up in much of the world, but living in a smaller apartment shouldn’t stop you from enjoying a good steak at home. At the same time, most indoor cooking devices make you choose between convenience and real grilled flavor. Cozytime Lumo attempts to offer both by combining infrared cooking with AI automation that always picks the ideal settings for different foods.

Currently on Kickstarter, the device is designed to be low-maintenance, easy to clean, and smoke-free, allowing you to spend time with family or guests instead of watching the grill. It can be used both indoors and outdoors, whether on a balcony, at a picnic, or in an RV.

Lumo is pretty compact, measuring 374 x 308 x 176.5 mm (14.7 x 12.1 x 6.9 in) and relatively lightweight at 6.5 kg (14.3 lb). It can cook six sausages, seven skewers, a 7-inch pizza, or two steaks in one batch, which is enough for a couple, but definitely not that much if you have a big family or are hosting a party.

The grill uses a double-sided infrared heating system designed to cook food quickly – reportedly four times faster than traditional smokers, with almost instant preheating (about 0.2 seconds). The system directs all the heat straight onto the food and distributes it evenly from edge to center to prevent burning or excessive drying. It can handle steaks up to 6 cm (2.4 inches) thick and also cook frozen meat, although this might take slightly longer.

While infrared technology typically degrades over time, the creators guarantee 12,000 hours of use – basically over 16 years, if you use it for two hours every day.

One of the standout features is AI CookPilot. A built-in scanner can recognize 40 types of food and determine size, thickness, and weight to automatically select the optimal cooking program, saving you from guessing.

The device also connects to the Lumo App, available on both the Apple App Store and Google Play. The app allows you to adjust time and temperature, and lets you monitor the cooking process remotely. It also includes a recipe library and supports custom recipes that you can add manually.

As its core, the device is built around the TriForma StateShift System, which allows the top part of the grill to adjust into three different cooking modes. Let’s look at each of them.

In Indoor Smoker Mode, the chamber is fully sealed so smoke can’t escape outside. Operating at up to 230 °C (446 °F), it essentially functions as an oven and can handle anything you’d bake or roast – pizza, slow-roasted steaks, and even bread. For that nice smoky outdoor flavor, you can use a Flavor Module to load a small amount of pellet fuel or wood chips into the tray. The system circulates smoke evenly around the food. The Flavour Module can also be pulled out for searing, simmering sauces, or melting cheese.

In Fast Grill Mode, the temperature can reach up to 270 °C (518 °F) with a semi-open lid, making it ideal for skewers, steaks, ribs, wings, and brisket. This configuration concentrates heat for faster grilling while keeping meat juicy.

Flat Grill Mode operates at 250 °C (482 °F) with the device fully open. This mode is designed for roasting vegetables, cooking cheese fondue, and a variety of meats – quick and efficient for preparing shareable dishes for dinner parties.

Cleaning the grill is probably the worst part, but Lumo addresses that issue as well. Food comes into contact only with stainless steel grill grates and grease trays, both of which are easily removable and dishwasher-safe. Other parts don’t require much maintenance, apart from an occasional simple wipe.

Kickstarter backers can get Cozytime Lumo for a pledge of US$329, while the planned retail price is $499. If the campaign is successful, shipping will start in July.

Sources: Kickstarter, Cozytime

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