Bosch PIL615R14E

Love it – After seeing a demo in store, I fell in love with the induction cook tops. Once you have one of these you will never go back to a standard one. I love all the features it has to offer, the reason we bought this particular one was due to the design layout of the pots. Lets face it, how many of you use all 4 burners at once ? I know I never have and I much prefer to have one less and make one a larger size, perfect for those larger frying pans. And even if you don't need the whole space allowed for it, it will only heat up enough surface area for the size of the pot/pan you are using, so there is no waste by using smaller cookware. Heating up is super fast, forget using a micro wave, honestly by using induction it can even be much quicker than a microwave oven. It has a 'Boost' feature which I often use especially when heating up water before adding rice or pasta. It will literally start to boil before you eyes. The only negatives about this product is the touch panel which is right at the front can easily be turned off if wiping over. When in use don't place anything on top of it as you can switch it off, or else it will just make a loud beeping noise to let you know that something is over the panel. Sometimes during cooking I need to wipe over the stove top, especially if cooking with oil and as I like to clean as I go, I can forget about the touch panel and wipe over it and more often than not I will accidently turn the whole stove off, and can be annoying to get all your settings re set. Great if you have small children who like to turn knobs and the likes in the kitchen as does my 2yo who nearly burnt our kitchen down with our previous standard electric cook top when he turned on one of the elements and placed a plastic bowl and tea towel right on top of it....... thank God for smoke alarms !! With the induction cook top it will only generate heat if the correct cookware is put on top, wont work if plastic ware or material is put over it, and once turned on and if nothing suitable is placed on top it will beep to let you know. I believe induction cook tops are a must if you have small children or plan on having them. Can never be too safe with these precious little souls. I love every thing about induction, a must for every home with children, love the 3 cookware layout, no wasted space. Accidently touching the control panel and turing it off during cooking, wiping over it during cooking will do this

So far, very happy with the design – We've only owned this cooktop for a few weeks, but we are very happy with the design of the three burner induction top. We considered the standard four burner options, but realised we never used four at one time and the larger cooking area was more comfortable and practical for big pans and pots. The technology of induction is really impressive, and the only area that heats up is that which connects to the pan. This uses less energy, and is a great safety option because the stovetop stays cool around the outside of the pan. We were concerned that we would have to replace some cookware, but it all works. It's easy to tell if your cookware will work with induction by sticking a magnet to the pot/pan. If it sticks, it should be fine. We do have one cheaper quality pan that works okay, but we have to start at the highest level of heat (9 with power boost), and then when it recognises the pan we can lower the heat. Most of our daily cooking is done on cast iron (some Le Creuset, but mostly cheap stuff intended for camping), and it all works great and cooks very evenly.

The speed is fantastic, and it's fun to watch water boil so fast. Almost instantly, the water starts to swirl. This benefit of induction is also why it saves so much power, often cutting out 10 minutes of 'heating up' time compared to a normal electric stovetop. The cook times are easy to get used to, and the manual has a convenient chart of suggested cooking times for common dishes. The controls are pretty basic and responsive, although not too responsive causing drops of water or something to change the setting accidentally. Of course the flat top is simple to clean and looks sharp, it's greatest advantage over gas.

We hope to have kids in our lives soon, so safety was a big bonus for the induction top. The cooktop is obviously hot after taking the pan off, however it isn't nearly as hot as most cooktops. In fact, I have touched the cooktop immediately after boiling water, and while I certainly wouldn't lay my hand flat on the surface (duh!) it wasn't hot enough to burn my hand with a quick touch. Also, because the cooktop has to have a magnetic connection to work, it will quickly turn itself off if a pan isn't present. This is a great safety advantage!

We looked at many different brands, and chose Bosch for their reputation and German quality. The price was also much more reasonable than some comparable brands. The warranty is standard with two years of coverage. Buyers beware though: I noticed that some import companies online have really cheap prices, but in the 'fine print' it becomes evident that these do not have the same warranty and might only cover the cooktop for 2 months.

Happy cooking! Fast, safe and energy efficient.