Found a microwave I like!

[T]

Hi All,

On Topic? What ??? Go figure ...

The state of microwave overs is tragic with the market begin taken over by 3C (Cheap Chinese Crap) manufacturers: they last a year, flame out, start on their own, etc. etc. etc..

I finally found a microwave I absolutely adore. It only have one optoelectric rotor knob. And it has no turntable. It have some kind of scattering technology that cooks more evenly than a turntable. And it is easy to clean. Built like a tank. I expect to outlive it. It is twice as heavy as a 3C model. It is really, really easy to operate! It is quiet too.

Guess what, it is the same microwave you find operating at 7-11

Sharp R-21LCF Medium-Duty Commercial Microwave (Dial Timer,

1000-Watts, 120-Volts) $265.00 at Amazon

Cost comparison, not including fire damage, fire extinguishers, switched electrical outlets, wear on ones nerves, etc.:

Cheap Chinese Crap (I own one too, unfortunately): Toshiba EM925A5A-BS Microwave Oven with Sound On/Off and ECO Mode,0.9 Cu.ft. 900W, Black Stainless Steel $89.17 at Amazon

By the way, it is not made by Toshiba. Some 3C manufacturer bought the rights to sell it under Toshiba's name.

Cost of Ownership:

Twenty year life: Sharp R-21LCF 1 x $265.00

3C Toshiba EM925A5A-BS 20 x 89.17 $1,783.40

Making the Sharp 6.7 TIMES cheaper to operate.

-T

The Sharp is made in Thailand, not China.

[hubops]

.. must be good to be outsourced FROM China ! :-) John T.

[trader_4]

Wow, big F difference. Maybe you should go to work for Consumer Reports. But I don't think they'd approve of your methods.

In reality, it's not just where it's made, it's who's making it and controlling the process. There are really good products coming out of China and similar countries, eg Thailand, and there are crap products. Apple products, for example, are made in China.

[rbowman]

You're safe with a microwave. Hisense, a 3C company, is licensed to sell TVs under the Sharp name.

[Linda Cobb]

. If you can open/close the door and set the controls with a single clean finger, I'm all in.

[T]

The door is very easy to open. And yes, you can rotate the knob with your nose if you want. We both fell in love with this thing very quickly.

The one quirk, which I presume is a safety feature, is that you can't set the timer unless you open and close the door. And it will time out in about 30 seconds if your don't set it right away. So, you have to open the door again.

[Thomas]

That sold me.

[Davej]

I think I've only owned three microwaves in my life. What is the problem? When they do fail it is usually just a bad safety switch or some other cheap part. I usually kill the beeper.

[T]

Oh ya, the old ones lasted 20 years or more. The latest offerings are shear crap. They turn on on the own, they over heat, they catch fire, etc.. They are only good for a year. I installed a switched outlet for the ones I had. They are switched off when no one is in attendance. And we have a fire extinguisher at the ready. 3C = Cheap Chinese Crap

[hubops]

Maybe you shouldn't shop at Honest Bob's New, Used, Scratch & Dent, Returns & Re-Furb Discount Outlet .. My 3 year old $ 120. Panasonic Inverter unit is doing fine and actually works better than the 20 year old one that it replaced. I'm not expecting 20 years but I'll get 10 + methinks. John T.

[Frank]

We tossed our last one which was maybe 5 years old and working fine because my wife did not like the rust spots in the chamber which enameling over did not help. These things are like toasters today to be tossed after a few years for a new one.

[trader_4]

That's what I have here too, Panasonic, about 7 years old, works great, no problems. The light bulb did burn out, but I don't feel like taking the whole damn thing apart to replace it. And like yours, it cost less than half Mr. T's commercial one.

[Art Todesco]

And, the new Panasonic inverter ovens have LED lighting which will probably never burn out in the oven's life.

[Wayne Boatwright]

On Mon 22 Oct 2018 09:27:40a, told us...

We love our Panasonic Inverter ovens. We have two of them.

[trader_4]

Same here. This is what Mr. T got for $265:

Lighted 6-minute dial timer

1-stage cooking, 100% power only

That would be totally unacceptable here. Only 6 mins and only 100% power? Forget about it. I use less than full power more often than full power. Thawing something out, for example. The Panasonic even has a defrost mode, where it does about 30% power, in cycles on and off, giving the food time to disperse the heat. It defrosts it without COOKING it, which is what you want for say frozen hamburger meat. If I'm heating something up from the fridge, usually use 50% power, because otherwise it overheats part of the food. You have parts of it too hot, starting to spatter, etc. And 6 mins? A frozen eggplant parm or lasagna takes about 10 mins, you'd have to restart it.

[gregz]

Probably going over 10 years with Panasonic inverter. Far more power than others I have used. Also has variable power.

Greg

[gregz]

My big Sears microwave/Turbo oven, has a lot less power on microwave. The turbo mode is too slow, as it takes too long to preheat, and has no direct radiated energy. My first in 1971 was a Heathkit. I had to work on that a few times. I got a hold of a couple Norelcos, and made one work with a simple timer, disconnecting control board. The Norelcos had a temperature probe feature, which I could not use without control board. The Sears has a neat multi control knob, which I can add or subtract time in real time while heating. It can also cycle between microwave and turbo for more browning or drying items.

Greg