Delong and Deshort of it. (Delonghi 21 Litre White Touch)

Member Name: wendybull

Product:	Delonghi 21 Litre White Touch
Date:	01/03/08 (474 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Nice and smooth, easy to clean.

Disadvantages: Defrost useage is very complicated

We brought this microwave from Homebase for the princely sum of £44.99. It was a bargain and a spur of the moment purchase because our old one was years old and the display had stopped working along with the power levels.

This new DeLonghi oven is an 800watt oven, meaning it is the higher power level on lots of food types that have microwave instructions.

I like the overall design, although had to get used to the fact that it was white instead of silver. However it has a lovely smooth digital display on the right hand side that is really easy to use. They are simple press buttons that are flat against the background. I have found on the "start" button that the plastic coating has started to crinkle due to the angle I am pressing the button. This is annoying as I think eventually it may split and then it will look horrible although I have no doubt it will still work.

The power levels are adequate for what I need, although I only use two of the settings - full power and defrost. This is one of my major problems - the defrost programme is exceptionally difficult to operate. It does not seem to have a setting where I can just tell it to defrost for 2 minutes for example. It has to be done by weight and then it is meant to calculate it by itself.

However this is difficult if you are just defrosting something fresh as you have to weigh it first. Also I sometimes eat Weight Watcher meals that require partial cooking on the defrost programme and again I have to stick in a ficticous weight in order to try and get close to the required number of minutes on defrost. Very frustrating although thankfully I don't use it too often.

The cooking times are great though and it will cook everything in the times stated, never leaving anything undercooked so far. My old microwave had started to lose its power, not cooking completely.

Cleaning is very easy with this too as the glass turntable removes and so does the rotary wheel inside. A quick spray inside with an antibacterial spray sorts out any unsightly splashes on the walls or ceiling.

We initially chose this one specifically because of the fact that we could fit our plates inside. When I worked in Homebase I brought an entire new dinner service and the plates I think are larger than average. My husband always ends up working late and has to have his dinner heated up in the microwave and the plates would never fit in the microwave. We tried and tested in Homebase before buying this one to make sure the plates fitted inside. This has a 21 Lt capacity or 0.7 cubic feet of space, which is plenty for a larger plate.

It has lots of auto cook options too but in my opinion they are far too difficult to operate and the instructions leave a lot to be desired. If you just want a microwave to heat things up and defrost now and then, then this oven would be ideal and at a bargain price too. However if you cook a lot of meals in their entirety in the microwave then I would not recommend this oven as you need a degree to understand the operating instructions.

I do really like the display though and the clock is the easiest thing of all to set up, however on the main cooking at full power level you have to press the start button to get it going. One press will give you an instant 30 seconds of cooking time and two presses will give you a minute etc. This goes up in 30 second intervals until you get to 2 minutes I think, and then it goes up in 1 minute intervals. This is fine , although annoying at times, if you only want to nuke something for a few minutes but anything longer than that and you will find your finger aching from all the pressing. You should be able to simply type in the minutes you want to cook for and press start.

Overall I am happy with this oven but it could be so much more straight forward for the money and if I was doing anything more than simple reheating it would have to be replaced for the sake of my sanity.

Summary: RECOMMENDED xx

Processing/Quality:
Reliability:
Ease of use:
Noise: