Toaster ovens

[Aphrael]

I'm looking to get a new one since my old one is over 10 years old and quite grubby. I'm debating whether to get a Sharp or a Windmere, which is a USA brand that's usually more expensive but on sale right now so it's $10 cheaper. I don't want a fancy one with all glass doors, prefer metal frame and I pretty much just need it for toasting bread and reheating leftovers that can't go in the microwave. Anyone heard of Windmere, and any other recs? I've seen the new ones but they are too fancy and have alot of cumbersome knobs. Especially the Kenwood. Keen on Panasonic but the new designs aren't on display at my neighborhood electrical appliances store.

Also, where should I go for the widest variety?

[Dimples]

Something like this from Philips?

[Aphrael]

Similar, but I'd prefer a Japanese brand, maybe Windmere if I can get more info about it. I don't seem to have much luck with Philips. We used to have a couple appliances - the cordless vacuum conked out within a year compared to a nameless brand I had that worked perfectly, and some other Philips appliance we had just didn't work to expectation.

[Aphrael]

I ended up getting the Toyomi T889 ... simple design with just a quartz timer, but the door hinge is very well made.

Thought I might as well review it. This is a no-frills, well-designed toaster that does what it says - toasts. If you want a fancy grill for raw meats and small poultry, pies etc, this isn't it. We only ever use it for toast and sometimes heating up foods that don't go into the microwave.

The exterior of the toaster is a soft tawny brown, not the most attractive (my last one was a baby pink from Sharp, but the design sucked). The door has a metal frame that closes neatly without rebounding or rattling - I absolutely detest the ones with the door made entire out of glass - glass rattles and if you so much as spill water on it while it's heating, it might even crack. The metal frame moderates the temperature somewhat, and the glass portion is sufficient for me to gauge if my food is adequately browned. (I don't care if it's tempered glass that's supposed to withstand temperature extremes. I had a Pyrex glass casserole shatter on me on the stove, so don't tell me what I already know. But I digress.) The door reaches down right to the bottom, unlike older models which stop at the grilling rack and has a ledge that still collects crumbs. The grill rack is attached to the door and moves seamlessly in a smooth arc - all crumbs fall neatly onto the crumb plate, which can be cleaned easily. The crumb plate is removable and easily cleaned - older models were usually screwed in and you had to tip the entire toaster upside down to brush the crumbs off. If you're as meticulous as I am, you'll love being able to get rid of crumbs/soot daily. The Toyomi utilizes two infra-red tubes top and bottom, which cuts down on pre-heating time. It comes with an aluminium grill plate, pretty standard for most appliances like these.

It comes with a 12 month warranty, and you get 7 days to return/exchange if it doesn't work. Started off a bit slow, but it's up at full power now. A couple pieces of toast takes only 2 min to brown, which is pretty standard.

I don't have the dimensions for this, but it fits two regular pieces of toast, and is the standard size for this type of toaster oven. Saves on countertop space. My Sharp which served me for at least 10 years was about 10cm longer, and we found that it didn't fit as much as it promised, while taking up more space on the table.

The best thing is, it's cheap - I got it at Giant for $36.90, but I did see it at OG Orchard Point for $32.90 - didn't want to bother taking the MRT just for it so a couple bucks' difference was negligible.

My only gripe is the color, but for the design and what I've seen in more expensive models, I still prefer this. Even Kenwood, which was really fancy with adjustable heating options had a really badly made interior - I just don't like seeing mottled aluminium walls in my toaster.

[tabbie]

I use a Tefal one. Have been using it for years. The machine is going strong still.

[taikiat]

What brand oven toaster?

What brand of simple oven toaster with temp is good?Saw from paper SONA & Homeproud less than $100.Actually have convection oven but wanted to get just a oven toaster for toasting or just melt cheese.As less power usage & no need pre-heat & easier for kid to use.