Smeg PIP264B-1

Worst cooktop ever – We had the cooktop installed last week- & we are having it removed & replaced with a different brand next week. This cooktop is appalling if you are a serious cook, it doesn’t hold a boil but pulses on & off. I thought it was faulty but the SMEG tech who came out to look said that is normal for this one. I showed a video of my pot of jam cooking which was a disaster. Also no bridge, the touch controls are not very sensitive making it hard and tedious to use, and under setting 7 it simply doesn’t cook. Don’t buy it.

Poor product and seriously overpriced – There is another review of this cooktop which talks about the way it "pulses". I agree completely with that and would say that this behaviour makes this cooktop almost unuseable, in any practical sense. My wife and I had a Miele induction cooktop for the past 14 years (from 2007) and it was fantastic. We love the technology for its speed and controllability. When we bought a new house recently it came with this SMEG cooktop (builder's choice not ours). When we first saw it we thought "great, we like induction" but then we started using it and realised how terrible it is. We have now been in the house for 5 months and have just got our tax return. One of the first things I have done with that money is ordered a new induction cooktop, to replace the SMEG, this time a Bosch because it was better value than the small Miele one. If you are wondering about an induction cooktop I would say definitely go with induction BUT there are plenty of good ones out there instead of this one.

Good product, however – It works well, but it doesn't work by holding a constant temperature - it pulses. The settings from 1 low, to 9 high, are just how long the pulse is and how long between pulses, ie it boils, rests, boils rests, boils rests.... at varying intervals, and varying lengths of time. I would have preferred it to hold a constant temperature, however the plus side is that nothing burns unless you're on high and you shouldn't be, because 9 is continuous.

It's easy clean, however I would have preferred the markings be sandwiched in or under the glass, they are painted or etched on top, and I can see it wearing away after a number of years. It's great to use for some/most things, but not if you want a constant temperature.

Like everything these days, you have to do a little study on how to work the controls. It's ok, but I think I'll be using my little portable induction plate for some dishes.

I honestly wouldn't buy Smeg again, due to another experience with an oven, and the way this unit works. It was a builder inclusion, and I can honestly say, I'd have 'brought my own', if I'd known these things.