Toaster Information

Although experts agree that toasters are best at toasting bread, toaster ovens are more versatile. Bear in mind, however, that they usually take up more counter space. Most toaster ovens can reheat a slice of pizza or broil a hamburger patty. Some can even roast a 4-pound chicken. See our report on toaster ovens for more information.

If you (or your children) like your toast with a side of whimsy, you may want to take a look at Pop Art's line of toasters (*Est. $35), which come with six design plates that allow you to print smiley faces, birthday cakes, snowflakes and endearments such as "Luv U" into your toast. Although we didn't find many user-written reviews, owners posting to Amazon.com say that you have to set the toaster to dark brown in order to create a clear design. Pop Art also markets a toaster with six holiday-themed design plates. The toaster has 13 toasting levels, reheat and defrost settings, and a slide-out crumb tray. It comes in black, white or red plastic, or chrome with a black control panel. One user reports that the toaster emitted strong fumes the first few times she used it, but she says that the design plates are easy to insert.

Finally, if you enjoy camping, consider buying a pyramid toaster, which is designed to toast bread over a wood stove or an open flame. These simple racks, which are usually made of tin or stainless steel, have holes in the base and perforations in the sides. Only the outer sides of the bread actually brown. A similar device, like the Coghlan's Camp Stove toaster 504D (*Est. $4) forms a pyramid with frames that hold slices of bread. The frames fold flat for storage. This type toasts both sides of the bread.

The Toaster Museum Foundation provides links to articles about toasters, a user forum and a cyber-museum of historical toasting devices.

HowStuffWorks.com has an article by Marshall Brain that explains toaster technology with photographs and a video.

ConsumerReports.org offers free toaster-buying advice, although users who want to learn about specific models must purchase a site subscription.

Toaster recalls

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has worked with manufacturers to recall quite a few toasters over the years. None of the toasters discussed in our report have been recalled. However, in March 2008 Hamilton Beach and Proctor-Silex recalled about 482,000 toasters. The CPSC reports that the toasters can remain turned on after popping up and pose a fire hazard.

In January 2009, the Viking Corporation recalled its VT400 series of four-slice toasters due to loose wiring, which posed a shock hazard. The company offered to replace the defective VT400 toasters with a newer model, the VT401 (*Est. $300)

Experts recommend registering any new toaster with the manufacturer, so you can be notified promptly of any problems. You can also search for recalls at the CPSC website.

Toaster manufacturers

Manufacturer websites offer specifications and pictures of their toaster lines:

Back to Basics

Breville

Coghlan's

Cuisinart

DeLonghi USA

Dualit

Farberware

Haier

Hamilton Beach

Kenmore

KitchenAid

Krups

Oster

Pop Art Toaster (LC Premiums, Ltd.)

Proctor-Silex

Rowenta

Sunbeam

T-Fal