My very first freezer - and it's a good one (Pro Line PBF55W-U)

Member Name: eilidhcatriona

Product:	Pro Line PBF55W-U
Date:	03/08/09 (225 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Easy to set up, ideal size, good performance

Disadvantages: Short cable

Earlier this year I moved into a new flat, which had other white goods but no freezer. At first I thought it was fine, I could use the ice box in the fridge for things like chips, veggie mince and the odd ice lolly - I've lived without a freezer before and thought I could do it again. Wrong. Having had a freezer for the last two and a half years, my shopping and cooking habits have changed. And the ice box was useless.

So I decided to invest in a freezer of my own. However, space in my flat is limited - there is nowhere in the kitchen, and although I have a small utility area, it has the washing machine in it and needs to be clear to access the bathroom. It occurred to me though that a small tabletop freezer could sit in the middle of this space without getting in the way. I made some measurements, and starting looking online for what I needed.

As my parents happened to be visiting soon with their car, I decided that rather than mess about taking time off work waiting for a delivery, I would reserve something in store and we would collect it - I don't have a car and I was realistic enough to realise his was one item I would not manage on the bus.. Having looked at the large electrical retailers, I realised that each of them only sold one tabletop freezer. Argos was out as it was home delivery only, as was Currys because their freezer was £50 more than Argos and Comet. So the Pro Line PBF55W-U Tabletop Freezer from Comet it was then - the choice had little to do with the brand or features of the freezer, and was simply about the convenience of buying it.

Having reserved online and collected from store, we got the freezer home and unpacked it. It is very easy to unpack, although the packaging isn't ideal if you realise you need to return it - as of course it must be returned in original packaging. The box consists of a cardboard tray which the base of the freezer sits on, and the remainder is like a lid which lifts off the top. This is held together by those nasty plastic strip-bands, which you have no option but to cut to open it. Inside the box, the freezer is also packed in polystyrene, so it is well protected. The freezer's dimensions are W44cm x H51cm x D49cm, and the packaging adds around 5cm each way. It fit comfortably in the rear seat of my parents car.

Reading the instructions, I discovered I had to leave the freezer to sit for 2 hours before switching it on, so that the fluid in it (I had no idea that freezers had fluid in them) could settle. Once switched on, the freezer had to be left for another 2 hours before putting food in it.

It is really easy to get the freezer up and running - you just plug it in and it's on. The temperature control is at the back, so if you are putting is against a wall (mine isn't), make sure you select the temperature you want first, whether mild, normal, super chilled or fast freeze.

The instruction book which comes with the freezer is very straightforward. Bear in mind that this is the first freezer I have ever owned, and so although I've used them plenty, I've never had to set one up before. Therefore I read the instructions from cover to cover. Most of it is common sense and fairly superfluous, but the information about leaving it to sit before switching it on is something that I wouldn't have known. There is also all the obligatory electrical information, plus lots of hints and tips on buying and storing frozen food.

In terms of performance, I couldn't be happier. Once the freezer was ready for food, I put in my rather pathetic half bag of veggie mince and a tub of home made curry which were in my ice box. Fortunately, two days later the nice man from Tesco delivered my shopping complete with lots and lots of frozen items. Maybe too many frozen items...I looked at the pile of shopping, and the size of my freezer. The specifications had told me it was 1.6 cubic feet - but what does that mean in the real world? How many pizzas is that?? Amazingly, however, I managed to fit everything in fairly easily. I was delighted. We're talking about three packs of burger type things, chips, veg, ice lollies, frozen fruit, fish, two pizzas...it holds a lot more than I expected.

It also keeps everything nicely frozen. It really is a mini freezer - not a large ice box. I use it on the normal setting, and all my food is frozen solid, and when I put in fresh food to freeze, it freezes that very quickly, within an hour or so. The door has a very good seal on it, and I've had no problems whatsoever with it not closing. The freezer is not one of these newfangled frost free ones though, so does require defrosting occasionally - but to be honest, that's not really a problem with something of this size, it's not such a headache as with a large freezer.

On a practical note, the cable is around a metre long. I'm not sure if this is standard or not, but it seems rather short to me. As a result I have it plugged into an extension lead, which isn't a problem as it is in my utility area, but perhaps not ideal if you want to sit it on top of kitchen counters. Noise-wise, the freezer does hum and buzz occasionally, but it seems to be silent more often than not on normal mode. Again, this is not something which bothers me as there is a closed door between the utility area and the main area of my flat.

I'm really pleased with my purchase of the Pro Line PBF55W-U Tabletop Freezer. At £99.99 it is expensive considering you could get a freezer double the size for not much more, but then for me that wasn't an option - an the chances are, if you are considering a tabletop freezer, a normal sized one isn't an option for you either. There are some other tabletop freezers out there, but I would strongly recommend this one - not only does it perform very well, but Comet as stockists are very good, giving the option of buy in store (but do check stock first, not all stores have this, only the larger ones) or home delivery.

Summary: An ideal tabletop freezer

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