electric smokers and wood-fired pellet grills

Check out BBQ brethren.  That is a very active BBQ forum.  They are a very helpful bunch and lots of experience with all kinds of cookers.

@UncleFred- For years I had a small CookShack Smokette. It done a fantastic job cooking meat. However if you are looking for that deep smoke taste, this was its weak point. But as far as how it cooked, it done about as good as anything. My Smokette was electric, not a pellet cooker. Now on to pellet cookers. If I were to buy one today, it would be one of the combination units that will serve as both a smoker and a grill. Why? In a nutshell, versatility. Kill two birds with one stone if you will. I point you to brother Reeds YouTube series to see the Yoder YS640 in action. It can grill steak or slow smoke brisket to perfection. Like the BGE, the YS 640 will do it all but it is a pellet cooker if that is your forte. I have seen the YS640 in action. It is built like a tank and works like a dream. Again like the BGE, it is about as close to "all around" as it gets. Yoder does make a larger version, the YS1500. If capacity is needed it is the way to go. A quick note on that subject, the 1500 will grill but is designed to be a smoker first and foremost. The 640 is the better "grill" of the two by design alone. If I did not own a egg and wanted something other than the egg as a all around home unit, the YS640 would be my first choice. It's built like a tank, reasonably priced and again it will serve as both a grill and smoker with equal authority. In my opinion it's only downside is that it is a pellet cooker. I don't know if that is really a downside but being old and stuck in my ways I haven't enbraced the pellet technology yet. But if I were to buy a pellet pooper today, it would without question or doubt be the YS640 for the above mentioned reasons. 

I have a smokin-it #3 that I use frequently, and love it (http://www.smokin-it.com/).  Often people associate electric with cheap quality smokers, but that is not the case with cookshack and smokin-it.  I love my eggs, and use them for most of my cooks.  But I have to be honest, when it comes to a big smoke, or one where I don't want the hassle, I go for my electric.  I get the same quality result without the fuss.  But sometimes I want the fuss.

Anyway, if he is going electric, I would recommend checking out the smokin-it.  They have a good user forum too (http://smokinitforums.com/index.php)

My next door neighbor has a high end commercial  electrical smoker. big thing he keeps it in the garage and rolls it out to cook.  Cost a fortune I am sure. His wife is a relator and gives away briskets he has smoked to her clients and home buyers.  He does probably more than  a dozen  medium briskets at one time. Some of the best brisket I have ever tasted comes out of his smoker. Electric does not mean cheap or poor quality.