Simply the Best Toaster Around

Author's Rating:

Pros: Easy to use. Makes great Toast, Bagels and Muffins Very Cool Retro Style Absolute Quality

Cons: I did not buy one years ago

The Bottom Line: 
You can spend a lot less and that is exactly what you get: less quality, less satisfaction, less style, less everything. It is simply the best!

Author's Review
For the last several years I have been changing toasters very 6 to 12 months. My quest to find a toaster that could toast a piece of bread evenly seemed futile.

One side was toasted the other pale. If the cut side of the bagel was the right golden brown the outside was burnt, same with a Thomas' English Muffin.

We landed a man on the moon and we can send a smart bomb down Saddam Hussein's chimney - but we can't make a toaster that toasts a slice of bread.

That all changed earlier today when DHL delivered my 4 slice Dualit Vario. I purchased it on line from ETRONICS.COM for $243.50 delivered - Great price from what I have seen & excellent service.

It may sound like a lot for a toaster - but considering what I have spent in the last 4 year for junk - this puppy is a great investment.

Some times you do get what you pay for and the Brits sure know how to build a toaster.

I have only toasted one slice of bread and one bagel, but just like the quick test spin I took around the block when I purchased my Jaguar - you know you are getting quality when you see it.

Oh by the way - it looks really cool too!

Here is an Update

It is almost 2 weeks and I have used it every day & I still love it. It does require some experimentation with the toasting times required for different types of bread but that is no different than other toasters.

It does help to turn it on for the max time (about 3 1/2) minutes)to preheat the elements. With regular white bread it produces the most even golden brown toast I have ever seen. It almost appears like the color has been sprayed on it is so even and uniform.

Easy to use, Bagels are the most amazing, the cut surface cames out much like white bread with a smooth uniform color and the outside crust is toasted but without any signs of burning or charring.

Even dense multi grain artisan style breads toast up beautifully, though they require longer toasting times. With my $100 Kitchenaid - in order to get a slice of a dense multi grain bread to a decent brown color - I would have to put up with burnt crust. Not the case with Dualit.

The more you use it - the better it gets.

Update 2 - 12/14/05

A reader asked about the crumb tray and the controls - so here we go:

The Crumb Tray is full width and easily slides out the front. It has 2 small handles - very easy to remove and insert.

The controls could not be more basic or easy to use. No modern or confusing bells and whistles.

The 4 slice model has a simple toggle switch which is used to turn on 2 or 4 of the toasters slots.

There is a manual handle on the front that is used to raise or lower the toast. No pop up feature (which is a good thing:))because when the toasting is over the toast stays inside the hot toaster and keeps warm.

The other cool thing about the manual handle is that you can momentarily raise your toast to check the color (until you find the right toasting time) and then lower it without canceling the cycle.

The color is controlled again by a low tech timer knob that you twist to the desired toasting time - anywhere from a few seconds to approximately 4 minutes. The instructions give approximate time settings for different toasting jobs, but you need to play with them a bit - but once you find the right time for a particular slice of bread - the toasting is very uniform. I have found that a slice a regular white bread toasts to a beautiful golden brown in about 60 sec., a denser multi grain takes about 2 1/2 minutes.

The manufacturer put the money in the body and the heating elements - not in useless and trouble prone electronics.