This is seemingly an old thread, but I'll add my two cents.
Traeger makes a few nice ones. Great customer service. A lot of people complain about smoke flavor but you can just leave it on the smoke setting longer or get an amazing smoke tube. I like them but make sure you can get pellets locally. Pellet grills are great when you work a lot of over time. Rain is a concern but just put a large plastic bag over the pellet hopper. Make sure you don't cover the fan up. It is on the bottom of the pellet hopper. There are times I use it a lot and times I prefer a wsm. The wsm when I have time and the Traeger when I am busy. The Traeger is under rated imo. Probably because people don't learn how to use them to get the results they want. There is a slight learning curve but it's as simple as just leave it on the smoke setting longer or use an amazing smoke tube.
I guess it depends on price range but the Traeger is a good all around grill and smoker. I like kettles too but to smoke with them takes some planning to get the longest burn you can without refueling. It is a good starter grill that can be used as a smoker.
Does he have the time to manage a fire? Is he busy with work a lot? It just depends on his needs.
Traeger for as close to set it and forget it as you can get.
Kettle grill if he has a lot of free time.
Kamado like this
https://bestoutdooritems.com/best-smoker-grill-combo/ if he can wait for it to warm up but can over shoot temps easily if not careful and it takes a long time for them to come down if you over shoot the temps.
I prefer my Traeger right now because of overtime but my weber go anywhere has gotten a lot of use lately to conserve fuel and I have to come up with meals and deserts that can be done while camping out of a tent. Kind of my New toy. It just depends what you want to do.
Does he grill more or smoke more? Traeger can grill a burger but probably not going to get a sear on a steak.
UDS well they work good and you can probably make a fire basket you can raise up for grilling. They are called ugly for a reason but if you put time into it you can have a pretty one. Not a huge fan myself but mine was built on he cheap and built to be truly ugly as sin. My wife does not care for it.
I guess buy one of every one.
Ask him what he wants to cook and what is most important for him to be able to do. Make sure you can fit a Turkey. Thanksgiving smoked turkey is delicious.
There are many interesting videos on YouTube on this topic.
