Panasonic SD-ZB2512

Embodiment of a "Dummies Guide To Breadmaking" – Caveat .. I haven't had it long enough to comment on longevity but previous Panasonic products have all been of excellent quality. I wanted a bread-maker to fit out my caravan, which already has a high solar 240 volt capacity. Traveling in the remote North/West of Australia, bread is a luxury as it doesn't keep well in the heat and is too bulky… Read more ·  1

to use up the limited space in the freezer. Because of its size, a bread-maker is a bit of a luxury item in a caravan but one I felt was worth while. It only weighs 7kg and draws 500 watts so neither is a problem.

Having had a simple bread-maker in the past, I bought this model because of its all-in-one approach. All I need to do is to take a couple of minutes to weigh out the ingredients, add water, press a button and go off and do whatever until the buzzer sounds to say the bread is ready. All the cheaper bread-makers require me to proof the yeast and wait around to add any other ingredients such as dried fruit.

Over the month I've made a number of loaves and all have turned out, even the rapid-recipe.

So -- 5 stars with the proviso that you are willing to pay the extra for the convenience

381.65

Tastes so much better than store bought bread! – This felt like an extravagant purchase at the time, but I haven’t thought that again once since we took out the first loaf. We love this because: - It is super easy to use - a few buttons and it’s going; - It is super fast to use - I can throw on a loaf in a matter of a few minutes; - There are so few parts that it is super easy to clean… Read more ·  1

afterward; - The bread never sticks; - It’s super quiet, so we can set a timer to start baking in the middle of the night without worry it’ll wake up the kids, and wake to the smell of fresh baking bread; and - The bread tastes SO much better than store bought bread.

We eat a lot of bread, and since buying this machine have added a few more favourites to our list ... like fresh homemade pizza dough! Hello Saturday night family pizza night!

Very good bread machine, works well every time – I've had the SD-ZD2512 bread maker for about a year and it has worked perfectly, we use it every day and have rarely bought a loaf of bread from the shops. Good selection of recipes and the rapid option is very handy as you can bake a loaf of bread in about 2hrs, most normal settings are about 4hrs. The timer allows you to set the machine in the… Read more

evening and to have bread ready for you first thing in the morning. I use the medium size as this is about right for a family of 4 for breakfast and lunches. the L and XL sizes work great too but you do get a very tall loaf, this is unavoidable due to the size of the pan. I bought the machine from Myer online when they had a 20% off sale and paid $269 AU, I think this was a good deal as i often see the same machine for quite a lot more. The only minor complaint is that the yeast dispenser is quite noisy and it makes a loud clicking sound as it dispenses the yeast, this only happens once per loaf with 4 or 5 loud clicks then back to the normal quiet noises, but overall its a great bread machine.

Amazing Breadmaker – We are very happy with this breadmaker. It works perfectly and looks nice on my benchtop. We use it at least three times per week. Making Sourdough is so easy. Most complaints I read are as a result of people not following the instructions exactly. Show details ·  1

Very happy with machine, 2 years so far – I make all my bread in the machine, very rarely buy commercial bread. I had three lower end bread machines before this one, which unsurprisingly is far better. I bought a couple of bread machine recipe books designed for UK market ( more suited to Aussie bakers than US recipes) and also the Beechworth Bakery book and adapted those recipes to… Read more ·  1

machine use so I can confidently say I have made an enormous variety of breads with overall successful results. I even make sourdough bread using a culture given by a friend and no added yeast. I almost always add bread improver (Wallaby brand). I have occasionally used Laucke or Simply No Knead bread mixes but prefer making my own. Have used pretty much all the bread programs except gluten free and have used wholemeal, rye, buckwheat, spelt, kibble grain, oats, barley, polenta as well as bakers’ white flour. I almost always use the machine for the entire process including baking even for recipes which recommend making dough then baking in oven. Except hot cross buns of course! Overall very satisfied with the machine and hope it keeps on going for many more years.

Panasonic Breadmaker – I have never been able to make a good loaf of bread from scratch. My local bakeries including Coles and Woolworths just have bland tasting bread.This is wonderful, success using Laucke crusty bread kit which includes yeast. My only failure was with the yeast, the instruction in the manual suggests storing yeast in the fridge, it was too cold and… Read more ·  1

didn’t activate in time to make the bread rise. Suggest storing in sealed jar in packet at room temperature, even though I live in a hot humid climate.Breadmaking is home science at its highest level and requires very detailed instructions get it right and you never look back, but you learn more with each loaf, an abundance of info on line. My loaves come out light, fluffy, crusty. Because I am really fussy, The shape of the loaf is very high and square. The slices with a bread knife are very high and thick because the loaf has a crunchy crust with soft inside, so for a family with kids it doesn’t seem to suit a family, eight large slices per loaf. Other half is looking at electric knife and slicing guides to better deal with slicing. I have also considered placing the loaf on its side and cutting through the entire loaf to give us two smaller loaves. This is a wonderful product, meeting almost all of my fussy issues

Not Workimng – Have bought this Bread maker thinking it would be the solution to the perfect loaf. Had it for a while now, tried every thing and every setting not "one" good loaf. Using Laucke Bread mix Sourdough.Then tried plain white using fresh yeast. Still no good. To get in touch Panasonic is not easy so one can find a fix. Had 2 bread maker before this… Read more

they were great. Perfect bread. I used them so much the elements burnt out. Thought I would treat myself to a "Upmarket" one and have not had a good loaf out of it to date. Bought this bread maker on the reviews. I've been making bread for years, very disappointed, Theo

Never fails to bake great bread – I cannot fault this machine, but would urge caution when following their recipes. Use only very good bread flour and leave out the sugar unless for a sweet loaf. The recipes are designed for the USA Market. This is, in my opinion, the best domestic bread maker in the World  Show details ·  1

Brilliant – I have baked bread almost daily for the past 20 years. I purchased this machine because I could no longer knead the dough successfully due to arthritis. I was skeptical initially about bread machine bread but now I am a convert. It bakes perfectly and all without fuss. Love it.  Show details ·  1

Best Bread Maker I have ever Bought – I have owned many different brands of bread makers in the past, and this one is by far the best. I have made everything from wholemeal, white, Rye and sour dough in this machine and it is fantastic. I made Rye Bread with Molasses, Pear n Walnuts, and it came out fantastic. The bread maker was posted promptly, and I received it in a good timely manner.

The best machine for bread – This is the best machine for bread after having a horror run with the Sunbeam Bakehouse (My worst buy ever and an expensive mistake) I just set and forget and out comes a perfect loaf every time. A bit more expensive but worth it. My only complaint is the finish alarm is not too loud but it is the best machine in my opinion.  Show details

Works fine but lid hinge broken – I bought this Panasonic breadmaker ZB 2512 from Myer. Research included talking with sales staff. Among others, saff at Liverpool Myer recomended this product. Panasonic breadmakers also get good customer reviews from this website plus others. I made 2 loaves over the first 2 weeks of ownership. I found the 4 hours for a normal white loaf a… Read more

little long. However, the reults were worth the wait.

After 2 weeks i noticed that there was a large crack on the body of the machine. It was at the back of the machine right where the hinge to the lid met the machine. I am not sure if it was ther at time of purchase or if the high cooking temp has cracked the plastic. Either way, the lid was only effectivly attached by one hinge not 2. The lid felt very loose now.

I returned to Myer. They gave me a full refund. No questions asked. That is the main reason i like buying from a big store - they look after their customers. So i was very pleased with the service.

RZ2512 - made in China. Made in Japan was always better. In my past experience Panasonic products where top shelf in quality. But i'd now say these high standards have dropped in favour of lower prices.

The best of the best, Unbelievably awesome bread machine highly recommended – Easy to use, consistent results, lots of adjustable settings. I if'd and r'rd and researched for the best bread maker until I came across this one. To be totally honest it is priced on the higher end, but in all honesty you pay for what you get. Results are always consistent, unlike my old sunbeam which had a mind of its own. I have had it for 2 weeks now and bake different loaves / types of bread and always turn out perfect,  Show details

Excellent machine! – I've only baked two loaves thus far but I'm very happy with this. I've used Laucke Rye Sourdough (at Coles) pre-packets and have had two delicious loaves as a result. Probably better to buy this on special as it still ends up costing $2.80 per loaf (plus machine cost). This morning I woke up to hot, fresh bread due to the timer function. Highly recommended!  Show details

Very impressed! – Used my new bread machine for the first time today...made a loaf of Rye. At first I was confused as to why the measured ingredients needed to ‘rest’ before going through the procedure ( I’m assuming it’s to make sure ingredients are at correct temperature) 3.30hours on the timer. It was worth the wait! It is the closest texture I’ve made to a… Read more

bought loaf of bread.

I owned a Panasonic bread machine from 20 years ago and it was time to upgrade. The result of the loaves has definitely come a very long way, my old machine produced much denser loaves even after tweaking recipes and a thicker crust. If everything I make is as successful as this loaf I’ll be absolutely thrilled.

It was easy to follow the instructions in the recipe book and easy to clean as my previous model. I’m impressed!...and thrilled to have bought it. I know it’s one loaf but I highly recommend it on the outcome. I love that you are able to make sourdough, brioche and gluten free. I’m excited to play with my new toy.

The best BREAD MAKER I have ever owned!!!! – I got this for a xmas present and let me tell you, it is so easy to use and makes the absolute best bread and pizza dough ever! Really do yourself a favour and buy it, its quiet, robust, quick, has lots of different programs and i just love the separate yeast and fruit/nut compartments.  Show details

Great machine – I bought this bread maker on the internet after studying a lot of reviews. I had a bread maker up until about 7 years ago and enjoyed making bread and dough-only with my children, unfortunately it stopped working and I never replaced it mainly because my children had grown up. I recently retired and decided to start baking again for my working… Read more

wife to take to work.

Wow what a difference modern breadmakers are now. This model adds the yeast and fruit-n-nuts etc for me. In the past I had to wait for the beep then add extras manually. Being hearing impaired, I only have to be aware of the finishing time and be there to take the finished loaf out to cool.

The machine is very quiet and produces great bread and is very, very easy to clean. I just rinse in cold water and leave in dish rack to dry.

The insulation is great and so does not overheat anything next to it or under it. I have it on a wooden trolley and there has been no heat damage at all.

the three coulour settengs for the crust are great as I can bake to personal tastes. The 13 hour timer is great for hot bread in the morning.

A lot of people who have written reviews on this machine have complained of the long "rest" period but I don't find this a problem. It takes 5 hours to make a multigrain loaf including the "rest" period so you just time it for when you want your bread ready, simple!!!

The negatives: Well, my wife and I have put on weight with all the yummy bread lol.

For a family with children this machine would be a winner not just for all the things you can make cheaper than store bought but the ease of working this bread maker would make it a fun and fuss free way of teaching children because they only have to put the ingredients into the machine and leave it to do all the work.

Fantastic gluten free breadmaker – From what I can gather, this is the newer, stainless steel version of the 2501. It is amazing. I make my own gluten free bread based on the do it yourself recipe in the instruction booklet. As long as you keep to the same amounts of wet and dry ingredients, you can vary it up by using your own organic ground rice, millet, lentils, tapioca flour etc. The bread comes out in under two hours with a crispy crust. Love it.  Show details

works perfect, exactly what I wanted – I wanted a bread maker that had a more robust interior, I have been making bread for 10 years or more and I have had to replace so many bread pans due to the breaking down of the interior lining. This was caused by just wear and tear. I have never used any abrasive to clean the interior of the bread making pan. There is only one european machine… Read more

that has a porcelain lined pan. But I think that it is not made anymore. Anyway the Panasonic's bread pan has the only pan that is coated with a more durable lining which is called diamond fluoro coating.

The machine works excellent, I use Laucke sourdough Rye bread mix on number 6 setting and 3 hours later I have a wonderful loaf of bread. I purchased this machine approximately 6 months ago and I would use it at least 5 days a week every week. I am extremely pleased with its performance. I would highly recommend this model.

Excellent breadmaker, takes some trial and error – I've had this breadmaker for about 4 months now and was holding off posting until I'd made a lot of bread. I love making bread but I'm too busy these days to hang around waiting for it to rise etc. This is a real 'set and forget' machine - you pop the ingredients in and a loaf of bread comes out. I've made the white, wholemeal, and a herbed… Read more

bread with nuts in it so far. It makes a consistently good loaf of bread but you have to try a few different recipes because breadmaking is temperamental! I've stuck to the recipes in the book - I tried the one that came with the Laucke bread mix which is very basic (essentially flour and water) and it just doesn't compare to the recipe book that comes with the bread machine which has things like powdered milk, butter, sugar, and salt all added in which makes for a delicious loaf of bread. These ingredients are in tiny quantities so there's nothing to worry about healthwise. The fruit and nut dispenser is fantastic and works fine, I've not tried the sweet or sourdough options yet.

I knocked off a star for a few reasons, mainly nitpicky ones. There is no need to have the prolonged rest time that it does, and it means you can really only get out two loaves of bread a day because 1 loaf takes 4-5 hours. The yeast quantities included were way too much - my bread was TOO soft, it would squash instantly. For my last loaf, I reduced the yeast amount by 2/3 (1.5 tsp went down to 0.5 tsp), and the bread came out as a perfect sandwich loaf, that was easy to cut and consistent. Finally, the yeast dispenser is the biggest static attractor, as is the measuring spoon that comes with it, it's very irritating to have yeast stuck all around the spoon and the dispenser just due to static! I'm sure there is some way to fix this, I just haven't googled it yet. Finally, the first time I used, I couldn't for the life of me get the bread pan out! Hot tip if you buy it, just twist it slightly to the side and it comes out easily.

Annoying little things aside, I do highly recommend this machine, I've made a lot of bread and when you buy a 10kg bag of bread flour on sale, and you use it, you wind up paying 50 cents for a loaf of bread that tastes great and is preservative-free (depending on the flour you buy). You will need to play around with quantities before you get the bread to the way you like it though, that's normal but well worth it.

This one is great – Since swapping this over for another model which I found had problems, I have thoroughly tested this Panasonic breadmaker model SD-ZB 2512, machine (tested bread only) and while I am very happy, it could still be improved. The resting period which allows bread ingredients to eqaulise in temperature for consistent results can at times be dispensed… Read more

with due to the time it takes to do end this phase, which makes a loaf take too long. There is a fast bake but I feel we should have more choice in how that performs. Also the yeast dispenser is subject to messy spillage and should be made larger. Also the model should come in white as well as the black. The menus should be more variable and have a choice of easy and pro settings. The touch film programming buttons, although used on many appliances these days, seem flimsy and will probably wear out too soon. Panasonic make a great bread maker and should consider these points. Meanwhile I'm of to the delicious smell of another fine homemade loaf which is cooking as I write.

July 16th 2018 Update: Cleaning a problem

The settings are not straight forward and the manual should be revised as it lacks the variability some recipes require. Also be very careful. The inside consists of aluminium and using oven cleaner is a mistake I made with the result that its now blotchy and looks ugly. I would have thought it was made from stainless steel like some others I have owned and were easy to clean. A good effort but not fully recommended. A cross between a Kenwood and Panasonic would be welcome. Hard to see b/w digital display needs upgrading and menu needs some work.