Customer Reviews:
 Does the job nicely... December 27, 2007
captive8122@hotmail.com (northern Ireland)
19 out of 19 found this review helpful
My old toaster (a Tefal) had finally conked out after several years of loyal service - its lever refused to stay down, and wrestling with it every morning wasn't doing much for domestic harmony in our household. So I had a look at the range of possible replacements on Amazon; everything from a tempting looking Philips to a rather bafflingly priced Dualit. I almost went for the Philips but was scared off by a reviewer's complaint that ordinary sized bread didn't fit properly (the horror!). The Dualit was a swish looking piece of work, but I'm afraid that if I splashed out nearly 200 on a toaster I'd expect it to not only produce toast, but supply breakfast in bed along with a daily morning massage and the occasional operatic serenade. Also, I'm not quite that daft or aspirationally pretentious yet, I'd hope.
In the end I took a chance on this fellow, even though it had no reviews, as it was half price and I've always had good experiences with the Russell Hobbs brand. Very pleased I did! It's a sturdy looking specimen, shiny finish and easy to wipe clean. It doesn't take up too much precious surface space, and thankfully Kingsmill and Hovis type bread fits perfectly sideways due to the generously roomy slots. The lever is very easy to push down, it can be done comfortably with your little finger, and the mechanism is virtually silent, even the popping up of the toast is pleasantly soft.
There are no controls on the front of the toaster, they're all at the side. There is a small lever/dial for controlling the browning, and 4 buttons - an instant eject option, frozen bread button, reheat function, and a bagel button which allows for toasting on one side of the bagel only. If you want to use any of the latter three options, you just press the button after you've pushed down the toast lever, and a red light flashes on next to the corresponding button to make your choice clear.
As for the toast, it's great! Speedily produced with even browning, and easily retrieved from the toaster without any burnt fingers. The outside of the toaster remains perfectly cool during use, and the extra lift feature should come in handy for crumpets and small pancakes. There is also a crumb tray which is simple to remove and replace after cleaning. The browning control lever offers a choice from 1-6, 1 being the lightest, and I found that toasting 2 slices of Hovis medium sliced square white sandwich loaf on a browning level of 3 meant that I had to hit the eject button before the end of the programme to avoid too much brownage. Level 2 should be more than enough for most tasks.
All in all, I'm delighted with the toaster. Looks good, operates quietly, quickly and efficiently, and produces great toast. Speaking of which, I'm off to make another slice...
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