Thinking of buying a convection oven. Any experiences?

[Lisa0825]

I have a very old toaster oven and a very old microwave. I have been browsing combination microwave-convection ovens, and also looking at buying them separately. I can only spend about $3-400 on it. Does anyone have experience or knowledge about the combo models? Are they good, or is it like many things in life, where combos are not as good as dedicated models? I need a countertop model, not the kind installed over a range.

I live alone, and hate to use the full sized oven in the summer because it heats the house up so much, so I use the toaster oven pretty often. I don't use the microwave for much other than for basic heating, but I like the convenience of it.

[Warpy]

1. My own feeling is that combination appliances should be avoided

because in my experience, they tend to do everything badly. In addition, microwaves are cheaper than dirt these days and they're what tend to wear out sooner because of constant use reheating stuff.

Offhand, I'd probably go for the stand alone microwave and one of the tabletop convection ovens for chickens, roasts, and the like. Reviews for those are quite good and you could probably get one plus a microwave for far less than the combo.

Still, the best way to research anything is to type in what you want, the brand name, and "complaints" and see what people who have had them for a while have run into.

[Lisa0825]

2. Thanks for the input!

Yes, I have been reading Amazon reviews. But nowadays, you can't even trust online reviews because companies have been caught "stuffing the ballot box." So I wanted to ask a community I know "personally" to supplement the research I have done.

[freshwest]

3. I got one as replacement for my microwave as they bug me. I got a combo convection oven.

It's the Oster Countertop Convection Oven #6081.

http://www.amazon.com/Oster-6081-Countertop-Toaster-Oven/dp/B001BF8CBC/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1333595545&sr=1-1-catcorr

I actually bought this at a department store which had it on sale. It has a broiler pan and rack but I would never use that, I always enclose anything that would be broiled and have small glass and metal cooking items. It takes frozen entrees, pies, small pizzas, etc. It's actually more roomy than I expected. I bake up to half a dozen small potatoes at a time, or 3-4 large ones.

It has several settings, broil, toast, pizza, convection bake, etc. I liked the way it looks as it matches my kitchen and has knobs so I figure it would last longer. I've been using it for a year or so and never use my large oven anymore. I once baked cornish hens and turkey breasts, cornbread, dressing, cakes, etc.

The main drawback is that it ticks away and sometimes if the load isn't heavy enough or I don't close the door, it vibrates while on convection. It takes a lot longer to cook than a microwave, of course.

For me it's been a good investment since it takes up very little counterspace. I'd recommend it for cost, durability and flexibility for one person like myself who doesn't cook much in an oven.

I hope that helps you to make a decision. Good luck.

EDIT!!! That was what came up on Amazon, it doesn't say Convection. My model says 6081/6085.

No matter what it says, it is the 6-slice toaster oven, but it is a convection oven as well. The Amazon doesn't say that but it's the same thing. Here it is at Lowe's:

http://www.lowes.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10151&catalogId=10051&cId=SEARCH&productId=3305952&cm_mmc=SCE_pricegrabber-_-PriceGrabber-_-PriceGrabber-_-Oster%206-Slice%20Convection%20Toaster%20Oven

[Phentex]

14. That's very similar to my Toaster Oven From Hell!...

Which is an Oster convection toaster oven. Ok, it was great as an oven. Large enough to so some real cooking, but for toast? HORRIBLE! The settings never worked right so you had to babysit your toast or it would burn. We burned toast all the time. Who needs to babysit a toaster?

Everybody hated it but I could not find a way to kill it (and it had been a gift from spouse).

I couldn't take it anymore so it lives in the closet now and I have a basic TOASTER for toast and bagels. This toaster does what it's supposed to do, lol. I still pull out the Oster when I want to use it as a smaller oven.

[freshwest]

15. Ah, I never intended to use it as a toaster since I already had an Oster toaster.

I don't cook much but have four appliances on the counter for making juice, and a crock pot that I go for months without using.

I have a wheatgrass juice extractor in the cabinet since I don't use it, and don't use my power juicer, either. I used to blend carrots, apples and parsley in it, or made my raw ginger, grapefruit, garlic and red onion drink. It's not as awful as it sounds, but the fumes are strong, and then you have all that pulp to deal with.

I got tired of all that prep and the mess at the sink. I decided to simplify, just blend things and strain if necessary. I used to make a mess straining almond milk, but now I toss it all in the drinks and chew it.

And I'm not making carrot juice, I buy it, and just chop up the ginger and the Osterizer handles all of it. As far as juice extracting greens, cilantro, parsley, etc, I just blend it. I figured it's all going the same way and fiber isn't a problem and I'm just eating the apples now.

I keep all bread items in the freezer and the toaster is good for warming them, if I just have to have some. Most of my cooking is on the stovetop now, and not much of that, like zucchini, mushrooms, whatever. I don't think I'd like to move that Oster oven in and out of a cabinet here, it'd be kind of heavy for me now. Thanks for telling me your experience, I agree, not that great a toaster at all.

[Warpy]

4. That's why I go directly to "complaints" and bad reviews

because I really want to know the worst that people have found in actual use of the product.

Bad reviews don't often discourage me because it's usually something I can live with if there aren't too many of them.

Glowing reviews of most items don't interest me much.

[grasswire]

5. I bought a GE tabletop convection oven last year and regret it.

1. It takes forever to cook anything. Trying to use the toast function is absurd. Almost 20 minutes to toast a piece of bread. It never has gotten up to full temp on the bake function, topping out at about 325.

2. It radiates a LOT of heat into the room. Good in the winter maybe but probably not very efficient use of energy.

3. It has gotten worse over the past few months. I'm going to get rid of it and buy an inexpensive toaster oven. I had one of those for ten years and used it nearly every day with good success. The only reason I got rid of that is that it began to look a bit disreputable.

Oh yes, it ticks. For many months the border collie would leave the room and go upstairs when the appliance was turned on.

[Major Nikon]

6. I have the Breville Smart Oven

Everyone I've heard about that has one loves it. If mine broke tomorrow, I'd buy another one just like it. I haven't heard too many good things about the combo microwave/convection ovens. I suppose if you were space limited, this might be a good option.

They are $244 at Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Breville-BOV800XL-1800-Watt-Convection-Toaster/dp/B001L5TVGW

[Denninmi]

8. I bought a GE Microwave/Browning/Convection combination oven.

I thought it would be really nice. Turned out it was awful. As a straight microwave, it was ok, but kind of slow compared to others I had had in the past, even though it was 1100 watts. But, the browning/toasting function was a joke. It worked, kind of, very slowly, took about 4-5 minutes to toast bread on one side, then you had to flip it. Didn't work very well at all in the combination mode to brown things like a chicken, mostly it came out soggy with just a little brown skin on the very top.

And, to add insult to injury, it came with a one year manufacturer's warranty. I kid you not, one year and ONE DAY after I bought it, it literally died in a puff of smoke, I put something in to cook and the next thing I knew some part inside apparently went bad and there was a small fire coming out the top right side of it on the inside.

So, I was out close to $200 for a crappy appliance that no one would stand behind.

OTOH, I bought a cheap $50 Emerson brand countertop convection oven about 3-4 years ago. I use it all of the time when I don't want to use the big oven to cook a small dish. Works great, even has a rotisserie for doing meat. Love it.

[sinkingfeeling]

9. I had one I bought from JC Pennys in the early 1980's. It weighed a ton.

I used it as both a microwave and a convection oven until the microwave part wore out about 20 years later. I then donated it as a 'convection' only to Goodwill.

I would recommend getting one. I don't think the newer ones weigh anything close to that oldie.

[cbayer]

10. I had one for several years while living in a house and liked it very much.

It allowed me to cook things about 25 degrees lower and was a significant energy saver, imo.

[Donald54]

11. Go with the Breville Smart Oven

I also have the Breville Smart Oven and love it. It has just about replaced my wall oven for most of my cooking/baking needs. The convection fan is a really nice feature and the oven is very user friendly. I highly recommend it.

Someone else already gave the link to it on Amazon which you can check out, but in case you don't feel like reading all of the reviews (there are quite a lot due to its popularity) and just want a good summary of it, here is an overview of the good and the bad of it:

http://thebesttoasterovenreviews.net/reviews/breville-bov800xl-smart-toaster-oven-review/

[Jazzgirl]

12. Breville's are great but two months ago I bought

the Cuisinart convection microwave grill oven and have not been disappointed. I read a lot of reviews before I got it. I am really happy with it. It's the perfect size for me and extremely easy to operate.

[Lisa0825]

13. Thank you SO MUCH for the great input!!!

I really appreciate it! I am going to spend some time this weekend reading reviews again, and try to narrow it down.

[TreasonousBastard]

16. I bought a Hamilton Beach convection oven (with rotisserie) at K-Mart a few years ago...

http://www.kmart.com/shc/s/p_10151_10104_011W003773576001P?prdNo=1&blockNo=1&blockType=G1

when it was on sale for around 80 bucks and it's still going strong. I've roasted chickens and baked muffins and cakes in the thing-- use it at least three or four times a week, and it's never let me down.

[shaun40]

18. Hamilton Beach convection oven

Last edited Mon Oct 24, 2016, 08:39 AM - Edit history (1)

80 bucks seem good to me for this convection oven, I checked the link that you have provided but it doesn't have the product. I will check on Amazon as well.

[fleabiscuit]

19. Check the date of the thread. nt

[TreasonousBastard]

20. It just worked for me-- and the price is now 75 bucks.

[Bluefish44]

17. Experience with Whirlpool model WOC54E

We bought a Whirlpool Model WOC54E last year. It all works well except that the fan is awfully noisy--for the convection oven it doesn't go off until the oven cools down sufficiently. It's a good safety precaution I guess, but it's extra-irritating if the dining room is anywhere close and you have guests over.

And for a completely unknown reason the fan does not go off at all when the microwave stops running until the door is opened. The 15-second beep is enough to remind that something is still in the microwave, so there's no reason for the very loud fan to keep going.

The four beeps when the microwave is done is also excessive. Two beeps would do. Beeps can be turned off entirely if desired, but that's not at all a good choice--a brief reminder is a good thing....but four beeps (like a big truck backing up) is maddening.