This is a great product. The sides do get a little warm, but not melt your skin warm. It has a filter, which is just a strainer at the bottom. You take out the heating element, then lift the "filter" and all the nasties come out. Keeps the oil fairly clean. Cooks really well, though so far I have only done chips. Good size but I am not sure it will fit more than one schnitzel at a time - will have to wait until I try it. The timer was loud enough to hear over a TV at a reasonable volume. Would certainly recommend it, unless you want to pay more for something professional.

This is the first deep fryer I've owned but I'm extremely happy with it!
Easy to clean, easy to empty and not too big to transport.
My only issue is that the timer could be a little louder as you can't hear it over the bubbling oil, otherwise great!
I also love how compact the unit is!

Metal finishing is poor - rough edges - doesn't appear to have been de-burred at all.
Timer is cheap to the touch, and is very quiet when it alarms - can hardly hear it above the frying/cooking sound!
But it fries decently. Oil level (markings in the side faces) doesn't quite appear adequate. Disassembles easily for cleaning. Just ok.

Very pleased with this purchase. Makes life easy and is a pleasure to clean. The food is crisp and crunchy and well cooked through. It uses a bit of oil but that's to be expected for a deep fryer.. We put it next to the range hood to keep the moisture and smell away from the rest of the house. Would recommend this for you

The appliance does the job ok, but I have to have another thermometer to keep check of the temperature because the real temp of the oil varies between 15 and 20 degrees below what the read out is showing, this can be quite a nuisance. I also find the basket sits too high in the oil which limits cooking quantity, otherwise it's ok. Presents nice and price was ok.

Deep fries both savoury and sweet things beautifully. Have done chips, potatoes, dim sims, and donuts....and they have all cooked beautifully. Doesn't filter quite like I expected it to. The filter piece does catch big pieces of food, but smaller bits float & fall to the bottom. I have had the Tefal deep fryer with the filter and oil container at the bottom, and think it is probably a better unit!

Had this for a few weeks now tried chicken wings firstup wow so nice, had to throw some chips in came out nice and crunchy. not sure about the neg comments about heat mine is hitting the mark no problem, love fried food in winter (in moderation) so handy this will be for a snack.

We bought this to fry home-cut chips and donuts, and it works beautifully on both. My only negative feedback is the Instruction manual is not very good (has pictures instead of text, so it leaves room for misinterpretation), and the timer alarm is too soft. We learnt more about how to use it from the Tefal website

Our chips just layed in the oil and soaked it up. We checked the oil with our thermometer and it got to 160 at best. NOT HAPPY. Want our deep fryer to reach 190. This one says it does but doesn't. Took it back and got a refund after a lot of hassle.

Like others we purchased it to make crispy chips but it only heats to 160 as tested, OK for other cooking but would not recommend for chip lovers, will now have to buy another as chips are the kids faves, pity I can't return if for not hitting the tempretures it says it can

I purchased this unit because of the apparent filter system. The mesh only grabs large chunks anything smaller falls straight through and defeats the higher price purpose of having a fryer with a filter. Extremely disappointed. The unit is large and sturdy but it does not do what its name description and clear oil images on the box says it will do. A marketing rort.

Thermostat turned the fryer off when set at 160° but the actual temperature tested with a digital thermometer was 140°.

I then set the dial to the maximum which is supposed to be 190° but the actual temperature tested with a digital thermometer was 160°.

Therefore.. soggy chips.

And my only purpose in buying a deep fryer was to make crisp and crunchy home fried chips.

Chosen Xmas gift... I love the way it can be taken apart so it can be cleaned easily, some parts can go in the dishwasher! It even has a crumb catching tray so they dont sink to the bottom and discolour the oil making it last longer. The depth of the bucket is deeper than others which is great so not to overflow the oil. The timer can be set for as long as you like. The basket sits easily on the edge for easy draining of oil to get the chips out cleanly. Very safe to use and the cord can be stored on bracket at back of fryer. No trouble at all after using it 4 times already!

Cleaning system is useful to get rid of big particles. The size is good and the metrial easy to clean.
The main disappointment is that the thermostat is not accurate (140degrees is only 120) and the fryer can't get to the max temperature. I achieved 175-180degrees max. Critical to make good french fries.

I totally agree with Beebeegee review and they have said much I was going to. I have owned this fryer now for six months and use every now and then. It is of a good size and frys well. The Sieve sits under the heating element so this needs to be taken out ( must be cold) and this creates some mess (drips of the oil), but the main disappointment is that it only sieves larger particles of food and finer particles are left behind. The oil is cleaner but not totally clean.