Microwave Review

Evaluating microwave performance and reliability

Consumer Reports and Good Housekeeping magazines are the most credible reviewers of microwave ovens. Both use a rigorous methodology, testing ovens for reheating and defrosting performance.

Good Housekeeping tested 17 microwave ovens for a March 2006 article, but editors don't discuss how models were tested or which microwaves didn't make the cut; the article is nearly three years old. We prefer the review at Consumer Reports, where experts test more than 60 models, checking for evenness of heating, defrosting and ease of use. Editors also report results of a large reader survey that ranks brand reliability. Other reviews that we found interesting are from England's Which? magazine, Australia's Choice magazine and New Zealand's Consumer magazine. Both Choice and Consumer include considerations for people with physical limitations. Other publications don't address such issues, and we find this sensitivity refreshing.

Which? also performs thorough tests, but like the other foreign testing publications, specific tested microwaves aren't available in the U.S. We did, however, find some useful information about inverter technology, which is also incorporated in some microwave ovens for the North American market.

To supplement the professional reviews we found, we also checked expert picks against user reviews at Amazon.com, Sears.com, Epinions.com and other sites. User evaluations are helpful for gauging long-term reliability and customer satisfaction.