Microwave Ovens Buyers Guide

More than Just Baking a Cake

Gone are those days when ovens used to be meant for manly baking cakes and cookies. Microwave ovens have come a long way and have firmly established their position in almost every kitchen. Whether you wish to simply warm up your dinner or cook up a lip-smacking delicacy in a jiffy, a microwave oven is the right thing for you. Microwave ovens are not things that you can term as being cheap. Hence, in order to make sure you purchase an oven that is worth every penny you spend on it, you need to consider various things.

Fundamental features

Initially microwave ovens were used to warm food only. Also, microwave ovens were priced at steep prices. These days it is no longer so. There are several features that can be found in most microwave ovens while there are many more features that a microwave oven can have thereby requiring you to buy an oven has the features you need. According to the model you have opted for you will be able to set your cooking conditions on the basis of time, power level, heat, carousel/ shattered beam, etc.

Some innovative microwave oven makes come with cooking sensors that is able to check the water content in the food. Some even have a facility that allows you to set the cooking time and forget about the entire thing. The cooking stops according to the pre-set time. Special heating methods can even add a golden tinge that is not possible in all ovens. The convectional variety of oven offers a more thorough cooking option while ovens that cook with the help of quartz-halogen bulbs can produce crispy food stuffs.

While checking the various features that a microwave oven possesses there is a certain factor that you must bear in mind. Do not go for an oven that has too many features that you will never use. Think about what features you would need and opt for an oven accordingly.

Over-the-range units

These are small microwave ovens that have built-in facilities. The space occupied by these units is negligible and these can double up as lighting and ventilation hoods. These options can even offer you the combination cooking options and thereby reduce your cooking time a great manifold. The small size of these units is, however, often considered to be a disadvantage. The ventilation fans in these units generally have two speed limits and produces loud sounds.

Sizes

Microwave ovens come in variety of sizes. When you decide on the size there are various factors you need to consider. Firstly, you need to consider whether the kitchen wares that you will put inside the oven will fit into the one you are contemplating to buy. The full-size variety of oven measures between 1.5 to 2.1 cubic feet and is ideal for huge groups of people. There are various facilities that you can accommodate in these large sized ovens. A family sized microwave oven would measure between 1.2 and 1.4 cubic feet. These are suitable for smaller groups of people and smaller cooking areas. The ovens measuring lesser than 0.9 cubic feet are the compact varieties of microwave ovens. These are neat looking ovens are great options for kitchen counter-tops or shelves. Among the smaller varieties you may even choose to opt for the over-the-range units.

Purpose

It is extremely important to understand the purpose you are going to use the microwave oven for. You may require for merely heating the food in the microwave oven. A simple microwave oven without too many features will serve your purpose appropriately. Again, you may have time constraints or other reasons due to which you may wish to prepare your entire meal in the oven. You will require a better oven with more features for your meals. Hence, analyze your needs before purchasing your microwave oven.

Key Features

Key Features   Capacity   Cooking Power   Power Levels		With over 600 microwave ovens on the market, key features such as Capacity, Cooking Power & Power Levels are important factors when buying. These features not only effect the performane and quality of the microwave oven you choose, but also the price. Shown below are price guides for a selection of microwave ovens focusing on the key features: Capacity, Cooking Power & Power Levels.

Capacity 3 liter £38.00 28 liter £210.00 25 liter £273.00 24 liter £347.00 38 liter £540.00 * 20 liter £235.00

Cooking Power 700 Watts £52.00 1100 Watts £200.00 900 Watts £298.00 750 Watts £315.00 * 900 Watts £298.00

Power Levels 7 £78.00 6 £147.00 5 £203.00 4 £475.00 9 £540.00 * 5 £203.00

* Taking into account all current microwave ovens on the market the most desirable would be a microwave oven with 20 liter Capacity, 900 Watts Cooking Power and 5 Power Levels.

Price Guide

Min    £37.74 Avg    £278.58 Max    £735.56		Microwave Ovens cost anywhere from £37.74 for a basic microwave oven with few features to around £735.56 for a fully featured microwave oven.

Brand Guide

Popular Brands     Panasonic     Sharp     Sanyo     Samsung     NEFF     Daewoo		The most popular microwave ovens brand is Panasonic. The most expensive microwave ovens brand is NEFF. If you're looking for a bargain then look out for Micromark branded microwave ovens as generally they offer the cheapest microwave ovens.