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Prestige GS25
by TheGoodSurveyer
I bought this microwave oven for a reasonable price, or so it seemed at the time. I got it from Comet, where I was advised that it was one of the best microwave ovens, which they were selling at the time. It cost me seventy pounds, and they were trying their best to persuade me that I must purchase the extended warrantee. The appliance ... alone was expensive enough, and I had no intention of spending extra money on warrantee, because I've never before had a microwave oven that lasted less than four years, while the warrantee would only cover three years. The appliance was fully functional for an entire year, in which there wasn't even a single fault. A few days after the warrantee ran out (a year after the date of purchase), the heating system in the microwave oven failed. The plate continued to rotate, the light worked fine, and the food remained cold.
The microwave oven looks great from the outside, has a good capacity, but the short life-span considering the cost drags down its rating.
The microwave oven has a very simple interface, with the basic requirements of a general microwave oven and built-in grill. It doesn't take much effort to learn to operate it, and to make things easier, the door has a handle which can be used to open it, which I'd say - is a more practical design for the appliance than a push button design.
The power cable isn't particularly long, but not too short to need to use an extension cord, unless the mains socket is over a metre and a half away. In our kitchen, that's never been a problem.
This microwave oven would have been an excellent appliance, had the life-span been a few years, rather than only one. What I found a bit strange is - the microwave oven's heating system worked perfectly, and only failed when the warrantee ran out. This somewhat suggests that the appliance may be made to last an accurate length of time, as long as its usage level is average. The other thing is that replacing the heating system is quite costly, even if the labour costs are cheap or you repair it yourself. The parts aren't so cheap to get, so you'd be better off buying a new microwave oven.
I'd say avoid purchasing this microwave, unless you like to eat all your food cold - and you like to watch your cold food moving around in a heat-free microwave oven.
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Siemens HF15M552B
by europe-chick
When we moved into our new house just under a year ago it had just recently had a brand new kitchen installed. All of the kitchen appliances that they had installed are Siemens appliances which I do know to be an expensive and a premium quality brand.
The microwave that we have is this built in microwave by Siemens. I'd never ... had a built in microwave before, I'd always just had a cheap and cheerful free standing microwave. However I'm definately now a convert to built in microwaves, it just frees up so much space on your worktop, it's definately the way forward.
For the purpose of this review I've just quickly googled our microwave to try and find a price as we didn't actually buy it ourselves, and I'm actually quite gobsmacked - they are between £300 to £350! Maybe I'm not such a convert after all, as I'd previously never spent any more than £50.00 on a micowave and I thought that this was expensive!
So as I said the microwave is built in, it is positioned above the oven, here's the only gripe I have with the fact that it's built in. It's actually positioned slightly too high for me, we didn't fit the kitchen so it can't be changed, if we had of been doing this ourselves I definately would have positioned the microwave a bit lower. I guess thats the drawback to built in appliances though, once they're in they're in and that's that, no changing position. I do find that I'm up on my tiptoes when checking whether something is cooked or not, and I'm slightly dubious safety wise when I'm lifting hot things out as I have to reach up and lift them down. I also find that I have to stand on a stool when I clean the inside of the microwave. So as much as I love the fact that it's built in for a number of reasons such as keeping the worksurface clear, and just the aesthetics of the kitchen, I do think that if you are going to install a built in microwave then you need to think and plan very carefully where it will go and the height that you want to set it at.
The microwave is a brushed stainless steel finish, and the door itself is set in a larger brushed stainless steel surround as well. It does look sleak and classy, however I do find that it's a bugger for showing up fingerprints. I must wipe it over a dozen times a day! It does match the oven below it perfectly and they work well together. The microwave has a dark glass door, and the side control panel has an LCD display and all of the function buttons, which are silver coloured plastic, but they don't look cheap they do blend in with the stainless steel.
The interior of the microwave is stainless steel and it's very easy to keep clean, just a quick wipe over with a damp cloth and kitchen cleaner once a week is all it needs. The glass turntable is easy to lift off, not too heavy, and dishwasher safe. I just pop the glass turntable in the dishwasher once a week and it's fine. It also slots easily back onto the turning ring.
You can set the LCD display to show the time when the microwave is not in use, this is quick and easy to do and I did do this at first, but now I just prefer to keep the display blank as the oven below it also shows the time and so I felt that both was a bit overkill. I do reset the time occasionally if I've got the timer set for a long time on the oven, and then it's as simple as pressing the clock button, rotating the rotary dial to the correct time, and then pressing the clock button again. When I want to remove the time again I just need to press the clock button and then stop, and then the LCD display is blank again.
The microwave is very simple to use, initially I just fiddled around with it to get it to work rather than riffling through the instruction manual. It really is quick to use, you literally just choose the wattage that you require, and then automatically a minute will show on the LCD display, to increase or decrease this time just swivel the rotary knob in the correct direction around to the duration that you need and then press start. Or alternatively you can do this the other way around, choose the time duration first, and then the wattage, and then press start. Either way is quick and simple. You can stop the microwave mid way to check or stir your food, and then start it again where it left off.
This is an 800 watt microwave, however it does have 5 different power settings; 90 watts, 180 watts, 360 watts, 600 watts and obviously 800 watts. It also has 3 weight automatic cooking programmes, and 4 weight automatic defrost programmes. I have to admit that I haven't used any of the automatic programmes as I just prefer the quick start option.
The microwave also has a memory function so that you can create your own programme. This is useful if you prepare one dish particularly frequently. I do use this setting all the time, mine is set to heat my bowl of milk for weetabix in the morning. It is simple enough to set the wattage and the time within the memory programme, and then all you need to do to start your stored programme is press 'M' and start.
I have to admit that at first I was a bit unhappy with the tone to signal the end of the cooking time. All microwaves obviously have some sort of a tone to tell you that the cooking cycle has finished, however I felt that ours was a bit excessive. It had 30 (yes 30!) beeps!!! It was only on reading the instruction manual a few weeks after moving in that I realised that you could change this to be just 3 beeps! So I changed it quick smart!
The microwave does have a cooling fan inside which switches on as and when it's needed, the cooling fan does continue to run for a little while after the microwave has stopped. I have to admit that this was a bit disconcerting at first as I used to think that I'd left the microwave on with nothing inside it, and I would be forever going back to check it. I'm used to this now and so it doesn't bother me anymore.
Overall I am happy with the microwave, it's very easy to use, and we've had no problems whatsoever with it. I do think that it was very expensive though, but I guess that it does match everything else, and does look great built in. I would reccomend it if you are looking for a built in microwave and don't mind spending the money.
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Morphy Richards EM820CPT F-PM
by supersonic75
*~*Introduction and reason for purchase*~*
Last year I helped my best friend out with child care as her child minder let her down last minute. I didn't mind in the least as I've known my friend's little girl since she was born and was happy to help but my friend was adamant on trying to pay me. When I kept declining she ... 'threatened' she would get me something in return. Around a week before my birthday in November my microwave decided to blow up (well not literally but near enough) and in conversation with my friend I mentioned I was going to look for a red coloured one to match the majority of my kitchen decor. On my birthday my friend turned up with a huge box and no prizes for guessing what was inside - a red microwave! To be specific a Morphy Richards EM820CPTF-PM Solo Touch microwave.
*~*Appearance*~*
The microwave is actually predominantly black in colour with just a hint of red in the form of two strips across the front of the door and the side panelling. The black parts of the microwave are all in a matte finish whereas the red strips on the front are made from a shiny material and whilst the red isn't a bright red, it stands out due to the sheen making the whole appearance of this machine very eye catching and attractive.
Down the right hand side adjacent to the door is the 'control panel' which features the settings and a large digital 24 hr clock right at the top.
Underneath this are the various setting buttons in rows of 3 which are:
*Time Cook, Time Defrost, Weight Defrost
*Power, Clock, Alarm
*Popcorn, Potato, Pizza
*Frozen Vegetable, Beverage, Dinner Plate
*Numbers 1 to 9
*Stop/ Cancel, Timer, Start
Directly underneath is a manual press button to release the door to open.
*~*Specifications & Settings*~*
*Whilst this review is written by me the specifications are courtesy of the instruction manual which came enclosed and similarly they can also be found on the Argos website*
The microwave measures:
Height: 26 cm
Width: 43 cm
Depth: 33 cm
Weight: 11.5 kg
The microwave has a power input of 800 watts and has a capacity of 20 litres.
Other features include:
*10 power levels
*6 programmes
*99 minute timer
*Touch control
*Child safety lock
*24.5 cm rotating glass turntable
*~*Price, packaging & availability*~*
As this was a gift I was still aware of the price as my friend gave me the receipt in case I needed to return it if faulty and at the time of her purchasing it in late November 2011 it cost £69.99. A recent search tells me that this can now be picked up for £72.99 and is available seemingly only from Argos as I can't seem to find it anywhere else so is probably just an exclusive line to them (though I'm only hazarding a guess there).
This microwave came in a reasonably sturdy cardboard box though not as thick as I would have expected. Although the microwave itself seemed adequately packaged within in a thick wedge of polystyrene I don't think it would have sufficed enough had the box been dropped or even knocked. Luckily everything was in good condition and the glass turntable plate comes packaged separately to the microwave and both were thickly encased in a combination of polystyrene and thick card.
*~*Setting the microwave up*~*
There isn't much physical setting up required as there is only the turntable to install, which as with the majority (though not all) of microwaves is easily removable to clean as well as to 'install' by placing in the centre of the designated ridges normally accompanying the circular disc underneath.
Although I didn't set the clock up myself - leaving it for my husband as he likes 'tampering' and setting new appliances up - I have had to reset it recently when a power cut called for this. A very simple procedure of simply pressing the hour button to the correct time along with then the minutes - voila.
*~*My experience of using the microwave and my own thoughts on the appliance*~*
I'd had a few microwaves in mind as I knew that my old was on it's last legs before it's demise. Having seen a nice looking red one online I was less than enthused when I saw it up close in store as it looked far too bright and slightly cheap despite the hefty price tag. I was looking for something simple - I didn't need one with a built in convection oven or grill and wasn't interested in something that was all singing and dancing just a plain and simple to work microwave that looked pretty as shallow as that sounds.
My kitchen is predominantly painted white, with a large wall with white tiles but with red grout so I knew that I could get away with either a microwave in white, red or even black as some of my appliances are this colour. When I opened this box on my birthday I was not only surprised at how thoughtful and kind she was but extremely pleased with her choice as it really is a stylish looking piece of equipment.
The microwave manual that was enclosed was easy to read though as with the clock I left this to my husband though I did flick through it myself and found the instructions to be clear, precise and easy to understand.
On first using this I was surprised at how small the capacity actually was as I've always had 'regular family size' microwaves in the past so found that certain pyrex dishes I used in older machines simply wouldn't fit in this new machine. Although it was a pain at having to buy some new dishes that could accommodate this smaller sized microwave it certainly wasn't the end of the world and I have since got used to using smaller sized dishes when cooking. I rely on my microwave more than I thought as I went a whole week when my old one broke to getting this new one from my friend so I was eager to take the best possible care of it by making sure I wipe it down inside after each 'messy' use and 5 months later it is still in fine working condition.
*~*Would I recommend this to others?*~*
Aesthetically this is wonderful - it's sleek and sexy in bold black and shiny red veneer and is the focal point in my kitchen. If I hadn't have been given this as a gift then I probably would have considered this though it wouldn't have necessarily have been my number one choice for the following reasons:
All the buttons here are touch sensitive and whilst they look attractive they are not really very practical as I have pressed a particular setting on many occasion only to find that it hasn't activated so I've had to do it again which may not sound much but can get annoying. I'm not a great fan of anything touch screen/ buttons related anyway so had this been a choice if I was choosing this it would have been heavily against it.
Another is the capacity, I know I've mentioned it previously but this really is quite small inside and as a family of 4 isn't really ideal but that's just personal opinion as for a couple, a single person or even a family that only occasionally uses a microwave then there is no reason why it wouldn't suffice, but as a home that uses ours several times a day then it is on the small side for us.
On it's plus side the settings are very easy to use, though I will admit to only using the basic ones - I don't tend to use specific settings for potatoes and don't cook pizzas in the microwave so cannot comment on each individual settings capabilities but the ones I have used have all delivered the goods so to speak as it heats sood through thoroughly. The most commonly used button in our home is the 'Start' button as when pressed it gives an automatic 30 seconds of cooking time and I simply keep pressing to the required time.
The button for the door is quite large and slightly cumbersome though I have not encountered any problems to speak of so far and when pressed it has opened with ease by 'springing' the door into action though it does need to be pressed quite firmly.
The clock is bold and bright and as our kitchen is next to our bathroom (we live in a tiny cottage) I often nip in for a drink of water if I've had to go to the bathroom and the clock is bright enough to emit a subtle glow in my kitchen and even without my glasses on I'm able to see the time quite clearly and as our last microwave had no digital clock (shock horror) I found this to be a welcoming feature especially on a night.
So all in all this microwave is recommended by me if as mentioned above you are single/ a couple or just use it now and again but not if you are a larger family as I don't think it's adequate enough in size despite it being a powerful 800 watts. It looks stylish and complements my kitchen decor and is easy to clean both inside and out and because of this I am awarding it 4/5 stars.
(This model is also available in purple and white though I think the black/ red combo looks the most stylish).
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