Best Smart Chess Boards (2026): Chessnut, Millennium | WIRED

Overview

Playing chess can be challenging, fun, and at times frustrating. Garry Kasparov called the game “mental torture.” With virtually limitless possibilities, chess offers unparalleled depth, and you could easily fill a library with books on how to play it. The internet has opened up a wealth of potential competitors, and smart chess boards enable you to play anyone online or off, not to mention dabble in a variety of chess programs.

I’ve been testing smart chess boards for the past month or so, with the help of my chess-mad eldest, and these are my top picks.

Details

For my opening gambit, I’m recommending the Chessnut Pro. With a classic wooden design, the Chessnut Pro feels like a regular board, but there are smarts hidden within. The beechwood pieces are beautifully weighted, an important but often underestimated feature. They feel great in hand, and the set includes a pair of extra Queens. This is a full tournament-size board (55 cm or 21.7 inches), so you’ll need space for it.

The board is very nicely made, with subtle red LEDs hidden in the corner of each square that light up to show moves. I love 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 to hook it up to your computer, laptop, or smartphone. There’s no need to press down with each move, as every piece has a sensor chip inside that’s automatically detected.

We used the Chessconnect Chrome browser extension to play matches on Chess.com and Lichess.org, and it was quick and easy to get up and running. The official Chessnut app features AI opponents, but they're a little weak and lack variety. It isn’t great, but you don’t have to use it, and you can link up to different online services with a bit of tinkering (check out Graham’s Programs for some better options). Online play was occasionally a little glitchy. Sometimes there’s a slight lag, and we had to click to reconnect for every game. Battery life is quite good (we got seven to eight hours), though it takes a while to recharge (best to leave it overnight).

If you understandably don’t want to spend that much, the Chessnut Air (

Folks seeking a built-in AI computer might consider the Chessnut Evo ($630). It has a large screen on one side, but plastic pieces and a more modern look. I prefer a board that can hook up to my devices, since you can always upgrade them, and compatibility with services and programs is likely to be much wider. There’s the extra step of connecting, but the risk with an all-in-one device like the Evo is that you are reliant on the manufacturer for updates. It’s also not as nice to play in-person games on, or even for your own training and analysis, because of the plastic construction and the screen at the side.

In some ways, the Millennium Supreme T2 surpasses the Chessnut Pro. It’s another classy, real wood, tournament-size board. The high-quality, heavily weighted wooden pieces are slightly bigger than my top pick. I prefer the Chessnut set, but I can see why some folks may prefer these. They come with two silky, drawstring bags for storage and a pair of extra Queens.

The board is also wooden and good-looking, but it is thicker and heavier than the Chessnut Pro, so you don’t want to have to move it around much. The LEDs work well to indicate moves, but neither of us like that they are visible in the corner of the squares even when off. The board connects to your devices via USB or Bluetooth, and the pieces 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 moves onscreen and moves on board, compared to the Chessnut. It also stays connected between games, so it may be better for playing online. Battery life is excellent (around 15 hours), but this board took ages to charge up. (Definitely leave it plugged in overnight.)

I tested the Millennium Supreme Tournament All-in-One Set, which includes the Chess Classics Element chess computer ($239) with two built-in chess programs (The King by Johan de Koning and Chess Genius by Richard Lang). Honestly, it’s a little glitchy, and the wooden and plastic mix feels dated, but once we figured out how to get it going, it worked very well and played quickly. It’s a nice alternative to online play and plugs into the board directly.

Millennium has a range of other options. The M828 (

Particula Harry Potter Go Chess for $350: This smart chess board could be a great way to get Harry Potter fans into chess. Based on the giant chess game in the Sorcerer's Stone movie, these sculpted pieces are nicely detailed and movie accurate. The board (35 cm or 14 inches) has colored LEDs and a built-in chess bot with 32 difficulty levels. There’s also a hint system, so lights turn green to show which pieces can move, blue to show legal moves, purple to show good moves, and red to show blunders you shouldn't make. While this could be great for beginners to learn how pieces move, there’s no explanation of why certain moves are good or bad. There’s a phone stand and Bluetooth pairing, and you can use the app to play online through Chess.com and Lichess. Battery life is around six hours, and you can charge via the USB-C port. The board sometimes failed to pick up on moves, though. You have to be precise with placement, as there’s no individual piece recognition. Everything is plastic and feels a bit cheap. It’s not a board I would want to use for in-person games.

Chess Up 2 Smart Chess Board for $400: This is another beginner learning board with handy light-up squares to display legal moves and offer hints. There’s also a small built-in screen, onboard AI coaching, and Wi-Fi connectivity to play matches online through Chess.com or Lichess without having to connect your phone or computer. The pieces and board are OK but feel a bit cheap and are made entirely from plastic with mold lines. There is individual piece recognition, but it sometimes takes a while to register moves. It's also not particularly durable: Our board did not survive a fall. The top came loose, and even after reattaching, the board wouldn’t register pieces.

Key Takeaways

• Playing chess can be challenging, fun, and at times frustrating
• I’ve been testing smart chess boards for the past month or so, with the help of my chess-mad eldest, and these are my top picks
• For my opening gambit, I’m recommending the Chessnut Pro
• The board is very nicely made, with subtle red LEDs hidden in the corner of each square that light up to show moves
• We used the Chessconnect Chrome browser extension to play matches on Chess