Playing chess can be challenging, fun and sometimes frustrating. Garry Kasparov called the game “mental torture.” With virtually unlimited possibilitieschess offers unparalleled depth and you could easily fill a library with books on how to play it. The Internet has opened the door to a multitude of potential competitors, and smart chess boards allow you to play against anyone, online or offline, not to mention take on a variety of chess programs.
I’ve been testing smart chessboards for about a month, with help from my chess-mad oldest, and here are my top picks.
The smart chess boards I recommend most
Chestnut
Professional electronic chess board
For my opening bet, I recommend the Chessnut Pro. With a classic wooden design, the Chessnut Pro looks like a regular board, but there are hidden tricks inside. Beech wood pieces are beautifully weighted, an important but often underappreciated feature. They feel great in the hand and the set includes an extra pair of queens. This is a full size table for a tournament (55 cm or 21.7 inches), so you will need space for this one.
The board is beautifully made, with subtle red LEDs hidden in the corner of each square that light up to show movement. I like that it looks like a regular board when you’re not playing online. There are discreet controls on one side with a USB-C port and Bluetooth connectivity for connecting it to your computer, laptop or smartphone. There is no need to press with every movement, because each piece contains a sensor chip that is automatically detected.
We used the Chessconnect Chrome Browser Extension play matches on Chess.com And Lichess.organd getting started was quick and easy. The official Chessnut app features AI opponents, but they’re a bit weak and lack variety. It’s not great, but you don’t have to use it and you can connect to different online services with a little tinkering (see Graham’s programs for better options). Online play was a bit problematic at times. Sometimes there is a slight lag and we had to click to reconnect each game. Battery life is pretty good (we got seven to eight hours), although it takes a while to recharge (it’s best to leave it overnight).
If you naturally don’t want to spend that much, the Water chestnut ($250) is a much more affordable option. It is also made of wood but much smaller (33 cm or 13 inches), with lighter parts and visible LEDs. THE Air+ ($400) is the same size but with premium weighted wooden pieces and subtle LEDs on the board. Functionally, both give you pretty much the same experience as the Pro.
People looking for a computer with built-in AI might consider the Chessnut Evo ($630). It has a large screen on one side, but plastic parts and a more modern look. I prefer a card that can connect to my devices because you can always upgrade them and the compatibility with services and programs will likely be much broader. There’s an extra step of connecting, but the risk with an all-in-one device like the Evo is that you’re reliant on the manufacturer for updates. It’s also not as enjoyable to play games in person, or even for your own training and analysis, because of the plastic construction and screen on the side.
In some ways, the Millennium Supreme T2 outperforms the Chessnut Pro. This is another sleek, real wood, tournament sized board. The high-quality, heavily weighted wooden pieces are slightly larger than my top pick. I prefer the Chessnut set, but I can understand why some people might prefer them. They come with two silky drawstring bags for storage and an extra pair of queens.
The board is also wooden and beautiful, but it is thicker and heavier than the Chessnut Pro, so you don’t want to have to move it around a lot. The LEDs work well for indicating movement, but none of us like the fact that they are visible in the corner of the squares even when they are turned off. The board connects to your devices via USB or Bluetooth, and the parts have sensors inside for automatic recognition that works flawlessly.
The Millennium was very easy to set up with the Chessconnect browser extension and proved slightly more responsive, with even less lag between on-screen and onboard movements, compared to the Chessnut. It also stays connected between games, so it may be better to play online. Battery life is excellent (around 15 hours), but this card took a while to charge. (Definitely leave it plugged in overnight.)
I tested the Millennium Supreme Tournament All-in-One Set, which includes the ChessClassics Element Chess Computer ($239) with two integrated chess programs (The King by Johan de Koning and ChessGenius by Richard Lang). Honestly, it’s a little buggy, and the wood and plastic mix seems dated, but once we figured out how to get it going, it worked great and played quickly. It’s a good alternative to online play and plugs directly into the board.
Millennium offers a range of other options. THE M828 ($679) offers you an electronic board and a 40 cm or 15.75 inch chess computer but requires the Chesslink M822 Module ($89) to play online. There is also the Millennium M831 Electronic Chess Computer ($339) with the built-in The King program and a small screen, although it comes with plastic parts.
Other Smart Chess Boards I’ve Tried
Particular Harry Potter GoChess for $350: This clever chess board could be a great way to introduce Harry Potter fans to chess. Based on the giant chess set of Sorcerer’s Stone film, these sculpted pieces are beautifully detailed and precise. The board (35 cm or 14 inches) features colorful LEDs and a built-in chess robot with 32 difficulty levels. There’s also a hint system, so the lights turn green to show which pieces can move, blue to show legal moves, purple to show correct moves, and red to show mistakes you shouldn’t make. While this may be great for beginners to learn how pieces move, there is no explanation as to why certain movements are good or bad. There is phone support and Bluetooth pairing, and you can use the app to play online via Chess.com And Lichesse. Battery life is around six hours and you can charge it via the USB-C port. However, the board sometimes failed to understand the moves. You must be precise in the placement, because there is no individual recognition of the pieces. It’s all plastic and feels a bit cheap. This is not a board I would want to use for in-person games.
ChessUp 2 Smart Chess Board for $400: This is another beginner learning board with handy light-up squares to display legal moves and offer clues. There’s also a small built-in screen, built-in AI coaching, and Wi-Fi connectivity for playing matches online through Chess.com or Lichess without having to connect your phone or computer. The parts and board are okay but feel a bit cheap and are made entirely of plastic with mold lines. There is individual room recognition, but it sometimes takes a while to register movements. It is also not particularly durable: our board did not survive a fall. The top came loose and even after being reattached, the tray did not register the parts.
