The oven works great but is not user friendly with the buttons. They are too small and you have to stoop down to read them. I have had a convection cousinart with the controls at an angle onthe bottom for years and never appreciated how wonderful that is till I got this one.
I like the controls for setting what you want to do. It is a little smaller than I had hoped but does most of what i need. Does get hot on top and sides.
This item was purchased to replace an 11 year old Cuisinart toaster oven that had worked flawlessly during the time we owned it. All of the features of the old unit are present in this new one, and now include the led screen and touch controls. So far, for the month or so that we have had it, it has performed well.
The toasting function works very well, and choosing the 'shade' desired produces good results. The baking function is very good, and the oven seems to hold its set temperature well. We will be using the other features as we encounter the need for them, but based on our use so far we are very happy with this choice.
I like the precision of digital controls. I had no problem figuring out how to operate them. That said, I can no longer follow the package directions for heating certain prepared foods (like chicken tenders, frozen pizzas, frozen potpies, etc.) so I've had to improvise on how long I set the cooking time and/or temperature. I find this issue extremely annoying.
I like the design features of this toaster oven. I am disappointed with the toasting selections as they are not refined enough. There are 4 levels of toasting and if I use 3 it is too light and if I use 4 it is too dark.