Hamilton Beach (31126) Toaster Oven, Convection Oven, Easy Reach,Silver

I'm breaking two of my own rules by reviewing this Hamilton Beach (31126) Toaster Oven today. First rule: if there is a problem, send it back. Otherwise, CEOs, who favor cheap labor and cheap materials, will never expect any better if we keep tossing out damaged merchandise rather than returning it. So right out of the box, there was a small dent toward the back in one of the ridges running along the top. It isn't that noticeable especially now that it has been placed in its permanent location but it never should have been packed with the dent. And the oven was packed that way because it was so tightly caught in two side styrofoam pieces that I had to open both ends to push it out. No way the dent occurred in shipping plus the carton itself was not damaged. As it is nothing lasts as long as it should; this will be my third toaster oven in 5 years.The second rule is that it is easy to like a new item especially if one receives a workable, undamaged item so I like to use and/or wash or whatever is called for all new items before reviewing them. I am so enthralled with this model that I'm breaking this rule BUT will come back if I encounter a problem later. First thing, it is smaller than the oven it is replacing yet it holds the same size pans and pizzas. Second, that roll top door! Where has that been all my life??? What an asset. I often accidentally touched the hot doors on all my other ovens getting hot stuff out but that won't happen here. And the handle is not hot at all. I've used it twice so far and it heats up much quicker than all my other ovens. Before using it the first time I tested it using an oven thermometer and it registered the exact temp as the temp I selected, 350! That is great to know since I use my toaster oven for most everything these days including baking. Had it been off a few degrees, I would have adjusted my cooking time accordingly. I sure hope this temp test bodes well for a long life with this oven!As an empty nester, heating up the big oven for my meals was a waste IMO. So I've collected lots of smaller casserole and baking pans/dishes and have been using toaster ovens almost exclusively for about 15 years now. I've never owned one that didn't get hot. In fact, I used the tops on them as plate warmers. If I baked chicken, then by the time it was done, the plate would be good and hot. I can still do that with this oven but will have to remove the plate before opening the door (I like to serve my meal on a hot plate). A small price to pay for that roll top door. Did I already ask where has that door been all my live?So for whatever a two day ownership/usage review is worth, I highly recommend this oven at this price point. Even ovens costing five times (or more) as much had negative reviews. This oven has all the features I wanted in a toaster oven and one I never thought to want, that roll-top door so my fingers are crossed that it will continue to give good service. As promised, if it does give a problem, I'll come back and post. Meanwhile, as insurance I'm keeping the shipping box for 30 days. I can live with the smallish dent since it doesn't show but the oven needs to function without falling apart. So far so good.I wanted a toaster oven with dials rather than digital as digital is just something else to break down. Plus I wanted and in fact would never buy an oven without a stay-on function. I always use that function since I can set my own timer and have it in the room where I am rather than worrying over whether or not I'll hear the oven's timer ding. It is a perfectly safe function to use and when times up, I simply turn the oven off. This is a great function for baking. In fact baking and warming up are the two primary reasons for having a toaster oven. I prefer toast from an actual toaster but may try that function later. For now, for what a two-day trial period is worth, I highly recommend this toaster oven.

I just bought this toaster the other day to replace my old toaster oven that died after having it less then two years. I looked at quite a few toasters, especially in this price range because I wanted a quick replacement (Prime shipping is the best) without breaking the bank. This one stood out above all because of the good ratings and the roll up door. The pricier models were tempting with the fancy digital setting and temp IQ and other fancy features. Anyway.... however nice it would be to have a fancy, smancy toaster oven, I really only use my toaster oven to toast breakfast items, cook frozen foods and reheat leftovers. Im not baking cakes and cook a full 3 course freaking meal in it. I'm sure a $250 toaster oven isn't going to be 5 times better and last 5 times longer then a $50 one.So here is my list of pros so far:1. The roll up door is AWESOME. It, clears up so much space on my counter. I can actually put my plate down in front of the toaster and retrieve my items without burning my knuckles on a hot door.2. It's a smaller profile then my old toaster with similar interior space, which is plenty big enough for my needs.3. The baking pan can be used to cook on or it can be placed on the bottom side of the baking rack to catch drippings instead of stuff dripping onto the heating elements.4. It heats up quickly an does a good job on the items I have cooked/toasted so far. (I've only had it a few days so I haven't had the opportunity to cook much yet.)5. Good price! I only paid $50 because it was on sale and there was a coupon.6. Did I mention the roll up door? Why doesn't every toaster oven have this feature?List of cons:1. This thing throws off a lot of heat, more so than my old toaster oven. Im not sure if it's because it's a higher wattage then my old one or less insulation or a combination of both. This might be a nice "feature" in the winter when I want to warm my hands up on a cold morning lol. But for real, keep the kids, pets and flammable items clear of the toaster.2. The fan on convection mode is a bit loud / rattly sounding like its rubbing on metal. Again, I paid $50 dollars I'm sure I will get over the sound.Over all I'm please with my purchase.

Was a little skeptical about purchasing this product as the reviews range from "Junk" to "Wonderous." The biggest complaint seemed to be regarding the fan sounding like a freight train that is employed during the convection baking cycle. I have not experienced any such issues with this since using this product for about a month. Actually, the first time I used it I was worried the fan was not functioning (as I could not hear a difference) however it was/is definitely working. Another complaint people had was the speed and evenness of the toaster setting. I have used toaster ovens over normal toasters for years for the additional benefits and was aware of normally a longer cooking time for regular toast. Once again I was surprised by this little over, it not only cooked faster than a regular toaster but did so very evenly, if it weren't for the marks made from the rack you wouldn't tell a difference.So why not a perfect score? The design of this model has a very unique door. Basically the entire front (as well as half of the sides) is attached on hinges to the side of the unit. When open the front of door flips onto the top of the unit, with about a 1 inch clearance. I do not have an issue with this in and of itself, it allows you to have much wider access to everything inside. However Hamilton Beaches claim that this roll-top means the inside of the door does not get dirty does not take into account that you could be cooking something that will splatter onto the inside of the door. And as far as I know there is no way to remove the door (appart from taking the entire unit appart).