For under $2K, your options are a Maytag & Whirlpool (essentially the same stove under two Whirlpool Brands), two relatively new models of Samsungs, a Kitchenaid and a Frigidaire (which seems like it was formerly badged as an Electrolux). I recently went through a similar search and listed my impressions here:

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/appl/msg1016415313266.html

Probably, you've already seen that and the responses.

I have yet to see any first hand reviews of any of these from a GW member but maybe my bumping this thread will inspire someone to post something.

I did see your very helpful analysis in that thread. Thank you for posting it to begin with and for providing the link here! I have been googling a bit for reviews as well, but thought I would check in here too again.

Thanks!

There is actually a new GE Profile unit that is below $2K

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.ajmadison.com/cgi-bin/ajmadison/PHB915SDSS.html

Thank you for pointing that one out. It seems like GE has been in the induction game longer, at least longer than Samsung, so that is plus. I have to admit though that I have never really liked the GE profile styling much. Hmm.

Interesting. In a quick pass through the specs, I don't see any difference between the new $1989 PHB915 model and the older PHB925. The PHB925 has been bumped up $300 in price and is now on offer for $2600.

The PHB915 now has an induction specific user manual, too. (The PHB925 comes with a manual for radiant smoothtops which has a tiny insert at the back that tells you to use magentic pots for induction burners.)

I note that running the 11" burner on boost will shut off power to the 6" burner behind it on the 915. (You can run both burners together on high, though.) Maybe there is some difference between inverters and boost with older 925 maybe having more or different boost arrangements?

As for GE versus Samsung, I like the burner layout on the GE 915 and 925 a bit better than the Samsung arrangements. Looks like it could be a mite easier for me to have three large pans going at once on the GE. Also, I found that using two large frying pans on the Samsung pretty much eliminated access to the back burners for anything except pretty small pans. On the GE, it looks like I could put a medium sized pan or stock pot on the left rear burner while running two 12" frypans on the front burners. (Personally, I would find it even handier to be able to run large pans on all four burners, but this is something I do that might not matter to others.)

As for styling, I personally do not care for either the GE or Samsung styling. I will say that when I saw the GE 925 in person, the curved oven glass was much less offputting than it appeared when viewed in the on-line photos.

Both GE and Samsung have been making induction cooking units for some time.

However, Samsung is pretty new to the US market and does not have much a track record yet. Other Samsung products tend to be pretty reliable but the company has had issues with warranty service as it tries to build build a parts supply and support network. That has led to lots of irate complaints about service and support.

Samsung is new enough to this market that they do not yet show up in the CR membership surveys of electric stove reliability. For years, CR members have been reporting GE and its Hotpoint sub-brand as the most reliable brands of electric stoves.

The Samsung induction stoves have a spiffier, multi-fan third-element convection set-up in the oven. I don't know the spiffiness translates to any significant advantage over the GE ovens in in actual cooking, though. The Samsung oven has proof settings and can be run at 150F (which might be useful for dehydrating is you do that kind of thing.)

Oh, and the GE915 has a "pizza" button but at least it does not have that silly chicken nuggets button. (Don't know why that thing so annoying, but I do.)

I went to the GE website and used the compare tool to compare the two induction ranges. The only differences that popped up were that the cheaper 915 model has Self-Clean with Steam Clean Option (compared to the 925 which only has self clean) and that teh 915 has (2) Heavy-Duty nickel and (1) extension rack (compared to the 925 which has 3 heavy duty oven racks. The 915 is also 1 3/8 inch less deep.

Based on this info it seems like the 915 has better features. Why is it cheaper then?!

Comparison can be found here: http://products.geappliances.com/ApplProducts/Dispatcher?REQUEST=Compare&sku=PHB925STSS&sku=PHB915SDSS

Thanks, such a wealth of information! The burner configuration is of some importance to me. I very rarely use more than two burners at a time, but every now and then I want three.

I definitely want a self cleaning oven, but I'm not that picky about method.

I need to look again to check, these are all only available in stainless? Not my first choice of finishes.

As far as the price difference, I don't know? Do they match up style wise to different lines? I seem to remember GE has three lines of products that "match" in style. Mabpybe the more expensive range "matches" a more expensive line?

The GE induction ranges only come in stainless and they are all part of the Profile line so that doesnt explain the price difference.

The 915 and 925 stylings look identical to me. I missed that the 915 is about an inch shallower. I recall reading something about the 925 and slide-in models projecting out a bit from cabinets. Maybe that's what is changed?

The steam clean is an extra option and there is still regular self clean.

If you look at the pictures of the GE 925 and 915, you'll notice on the 925 that there is stainless steel trim around the top induction section, and the stainless is also on the back splash below the control panel. But on the 915, all of that is black.

So since the 915 has less stainless than the 925, and its a year newer, GE probably wanted to get an induction stove out that was less money than the 925, so thst is why the 915 is cheaper.

I saw the 925 last year, and I liked it more than the other brands, but then when GE introduced the slide-in model, I liked it even more, since the control panel is in the front. I've heard there was a newer model of the GE slide-in coming out, so that's what I'm waiting to see.

It very well possible a new GE slide in is coming out. According to the aj Madison website, the current GE slide in has been discontinued.

Oh, oh, maybe it's a cafe and not a cat eye profile!!!! I very much dislike the cat eye and have been waiting for something more appealing to come out, but I really wanted something before thanksgiving.

Shoot! Do all of these have black sides? I am not remodeling, just replacing an ancient and broken range in the house we are closing on next week. The range is at the end of a cabinet run with now all, so one side is exposed. That black side looks terrible.

Yup.

Ah, the joys of a small kitchen in an old house.

That was one of the hangups for me with any of the sub $2k induction stoves I was looking at. While I do not care for the stainless steel "industrial chic" look, I absolutely abhor black in the the kitchen. Might be because I am a chronic old fart who is old enough to remember having to apply "stove black." (Maybe I could sue for child abuse but all the older farts who inflicted that on me are dead. Grump!!!!)

What occurred to me as I went through the process of buying a new stove was this: how about applying a cabinet- matching wood panel to the exposed side of the stove, something like but a bit little thicker than a veneer.

For this reason, I also toyed with the idea of the Electrolux and GE slide-in stoves. With those, the cooktop has a 3/4" overhang. You could stain or paint a piece of 3/4" plywood so that it matches your cabinets and then fix it to the exposed side(s) of your stove. Maybe put a thin piece of oak or maple or whatever down the front edge to hide the plys.

Now, I can just hear someone out there nattering on about how you always should have countertop on both sides of your stove. Ideally, yeah. But, if you've got an old house with an odd kitchen layout --- and mine has four doorways --- you have to make a choice between being "proper" and having counter-space. In my kitchen, putting the stove at the end of an "L" shaped counter not only gives me an additional 16 sq. ft. of counter-space, it also allows two adults to cook at the same time on on a 30" inch range.

Meanwhile, back at crl's last point: yeah, I also think the black sides look terrible. It's the kind of aesethetic annoyance that made me crawl up the phone tree at GE to find a manager who knew enough to tell me that side panels and oven doors from another product line would not fit properly to cure what I felt aesthetic "issues." It also made me look seriously at the Electrolux slide-in induction stove because E-lux will sell you stainless side panels and a backsplash. That would have taken the price of the stove to $3400, which was about $1400 over my budget. I'm sure this will turn around some day. I would still be waiting to buy a stove if my old one had not up and died on me.

So, I know exactly whereof you speak.

Shoot, shoot, shoot. My random googling turned up a Maytag stainless panel, but the picture of the range it is on is not the induction range and I can't find any information on what it fits.

I am assuming powder coating the darn thing would be unreasonably expensive.

So frustrating. If it is a "freestanding" range, the sides ought to be properly finished, darn it.

Thanks for the information!

Here is a link that might be useful: Maytag stainless range panel

The stainless side panels are supposed to be for slide-in stoves. The induction stoves are freestanding units. The slide-in's side panels supposedly are not an exact fit. That was what I was told by a very experienced salesguy at a local retailer from whom I have bought numbers of appliances over the years. You might call Whirlpool to see if this can be pinned down, however.

Also, bear in mind that the Maytag and Whirlpool induction ranges have both big burners in the back, next to the backsplash. This allows the stoves to have the cooktop controls on a touchpad on the cooktop between the two smaller burners in front. This design struck me as awkward particularly if you want to use (as I do) larger stockopts and canning kettles. Also seemed inconvenient for those who want to use large (12 inch or greater) fry pans.

But, if this odd layout is not a problem for you, the stoves can be had from Costco online. That means having Costco's great return policy. You can check out a stove for a couple of months and return it for a full refund if it is unsstisfactory. "Unsatisfactory" covera anything from defective to simply not liking the stove.

The cost of poweder-coating a side panel actually might be comparatively inexpensive. Several autobody shops in my area advertise themselves as appliance painters. I was told that it would cost me about $100(US$) if I unbolted and brought in the side panel, For oven doors, the price was "it depends."

The big pot in back layout actually makes some sense for me as I have a two year old . My husband pulled a pot of boiling water over on himself when he was two and so boiling pasta water up front has bothered me a bit since we have had kids. For now, my daughter is just gated out of the kitchen when I am cooking, but as she gets a bit older I will probably want her to "help" cook and such.

But I am not wedded to the Maytag range at all, just what my googling pulled up quickly in terms of a side panel.

I went looking for the induction ranges on the Costco website as I would love to have their guarantee, but I came up empty handed. Not sure if I am looking in the wrong place somehow?

Hmm, powder coating. I guess I would have to think about not only the cost and hassle, but also how well the end result would match the top of the range. I'm not sure it would be a good end result with the different materials on top.

Thanks again!

Maytag induction from Costco:

http://www.costco.com/Maytag-6.2Cu.Ft.-Stainless-Steel-Induction-Range-AquaLift-Technology-Warming-Drawer.product.100008020.html

Sweet. How did I miss that? Thank you!

I missed it too. Perhaps because it doesn't say "induction" in the title.

I noted that Frigidaire listed the door as stainless AND the exterior finish as stainless, so I emailed to ask if they really meant the sides are stainless and the email back says yes they are. I am feeling skeptical as the stock images I can find online show black sides. Anyone happen to have seen this range in person to confirm or deny?

Thanks!

DCJersey - I did the happy dance when I read your post that the GE Profile Induction slide-in has been discontinued. I also am waiting for the style to change from the cat eye. My search of ajmadison does not show it being discontinued. Bummer.

The site showed it as Out of Stock for about a week, but now its in stock, and the price is a few hundred more. I'd wait to see what happens if you're not pressed to buy soon.

crl:

The Frigidiare has black side panels. See the second photo down (angle view) in the link.

Here is a link that might be useful: FrigidairePro Induction photo gallery

Thanks! I really thought it must be based on the stock photos I had seen. I found it on the Lowes website and lived chatted with them and they said black as well. Too bad, especially frustrating that Frigidaire would get it wrong.

I think we will go with the Costco range to get the Costco return policy and try to figure out a stainless panel of some kind for the exposed side.

Some things to think about on the idea of adding a panel.

Almost any metal shop can make you a flat stainless panel. But the factory side panels on most freestanding stoves (the Maytag included) hooks and wraps at the front (where the oven door closes against it) and wraps at the back where it is held in place with retaining screws. And therein lie the potential problem or rather, potential expense. But, how do you attach it to the side? And, will you be bothered by seeing a black stripe whenever you open the oven door?

One other thing you might check on: if the expense does not put you off, it might be possible to adapt and modify the magnetic stainless panels that that Whirlpool and GE make for their fridges. (A lot of their "stainless" refrigerators only have stainless on the doors. The sides are painted, sometimes black, sometimes gray. These panels magnetically adhere to the painted sides giving them a finish to better match the stainless fridge doors.) If the space below the cooktop rim is no more than 34.5" high, it might be possible to cut a single magnetic panel in two and cover both sides. Otherwise, you would need two panels, and without getting into the cost of having them trimmed, that could get expensive. The last time I checked, these magnetic panels were something like $300 to $500 apiece, depending on the brand.

Thank you for the thoughts on a panel. The black strip when opening the door would not bother me. And the back will be against a wall. . . . Only one side will be exposed on the range.

Although I am about to post on what to do about a refrigerator for this space. It will have to sit right next to the range. Yes, yes, I understand this is not good design. I can't help it at the moment. And it will leave the top part of one side of the refrigerator exposed as well. Anyway, I guess that is for another post, though I wonder if one could somehow split a refrigerator side panel cover in half with one half covering the exposed top of the refrigerator and the other half covering the side of the range. . . .

Might work. You'll have to measure.

Also, it occurs to me that a metal fabricator could figure out how to make you some stainless panels with thin magnetic strips on the inside face and maybe curving the endge to sit against the fridge (or stove). That might be less expensive way to go.

As for having the fridge and stove next to each other, you work with the kitchen you have. Having the induction cooking surface and any kind of range hood will pretty much solve problems with heat from the cooktop affecting the fridge. For the lower part next to the oven, it might not be too bad. I don't know how tight your spacing will be, but if you can spare an extra half-inch, you might try what a friend of mine did when he had to put his old Wedgewood gas stove against the side of his fridge: slip a sheet of cement board (like Durock) in between the side of the oven and the the bottom part of the fridge. Gives you some insulation and limits the extent of heating the fridge exterior.

How about Kenmore? I love my 3 year old induction slide-in. It has the large burners in the front which I love because I almost always cook with a 10 or 12" skillet (although, even my 8" can be used in the front).

I admit I haven't even looked at Kenmore. After some less than stellar service from Sears on both coasts (the most recent incident being that they continually called me at 5am to remind me of service appointments because my cell phone number was from a different time zone and refused to stop and were unappologetic about it even after I told them I had an infant), I don't even consider buying from Sears.

AFAIK, the two currently available Kenmore models are priced well above the $2k budget ceiling in this discussion. (Last time I checked, the freestanding Kenmore 97203 was around $2550.)

I believe both the Kenmore freestanding and the slide in are rebadged from Electrolux and a little less expensive than the ones sold under the Electrolux brand. While they both should be as durable and reliable as the ones Electrolux sells, you will be stuck with the Sears warranty service subsidiary, A&E. There is a long running thread here about A&E, and it sets forth many tales of horror and woe.

But, avoiding Kenmore does not avoid A&E service. A lot of manufacturers, most recently GE, have outsourced warranty service to A&E. Sometimes, you can talk the manufacturer into letting you get service through somebody else. Some large retailers (Lowe's and Best Buy) sometimes provide their own warranty service, at least on extended warranties. Otherwise, A&E warranty service can be difficult to avoid.

Sears occasionally has big sales on Kenmore appliances. You can also check the Sears outlet stores online for induction models (although I got mine cheaper on sale than they had at the outlet center).

My first range failed (multiple fault codes) ten days after I got it. The A&E guy was clueless about it and was told to replace all the computer boards. I asked my salesman at Sears for another range because I suspected this one had been dropped (the warming draw track was bent). I got a brand new and and haven't had an issue in three years.

I did also buy the extended warranty -- they charged more for it on the induction range but I negotiated it down.

I think I have narrowed it down to either a Samsung or the Frigidaire. Both are under my price point.

I am eliminating the Maytag, Whirlpool and Kitchenaid because of the poor performance of their aqua lift self cleaning oven technology. I am tentatively eliminating the GE because I hate the cat's eye styling.

Samsung is slightly cheaper, but since both it and the Frigidaire are under 2k, that's just a tie breaker if there is no other reason to choose one or the other.

I am fairly certain I am getting a Frigidaire refrigerator in stainless and it will be immediately adjacent to the range because we are just replacing appliances in the existing layout for now. So there may be a small aesthetic advantage to getting the Frigidaire range as presumably the stainless finishes would match up better.

I also noted that the Frigidaire has one somewhat big burner in the back left position, correct? This would be the ideal place for me to boil water as it would be the farthest possible reach for my toddler (generally not in the kitchen while I am cooking, but I like redundancies in safety measures with kids).

Any other thoughts on how to choose between these? Will most likely be placing my order later this week.

Thanks!

Note that Frigidaire specifies a 20" space between their appliances.

http://pdf.lowes.com/howtoguides/012505503399_how.pdf

I am pretty sure that that this is a matter of design function rather than safety, per se. The 20" spacing gives you countertop space on which to move things off the stove or put a cutting board, etc. It also provides a place for fridge doors to swing without bumping into the stove, etc. I did not see anything similar in the Samsung materials, but I would guess that was only because Samsung did not think of it. It doesn't mean the same considerations will not apply. As I said above, though, we work with the kitchens we have, and if you have to put the stove and fridge next to each other, that is what you have to do.

As for differences between the stoves, the Frigidaire does have larger power-boost on the back rear burner at 3400 wH. The Smasung NE 597 has the two square burners on the left side. If you have a really big pot, you can run them together and get power boost at 4600 wH, but otherwise, running the left rear burner separately with its own boost, you get 2300 wH at boost. That's plenty for boiling a water in regular size stockpot or dutch oven but it will be a couple of minutes slower than with the Frigidaire.

On the other hand, do you have any interest in cooking on a rectangular griddle for pancakes, etc? I'm talking about something like the Lodge 10"x20" cast-iron grill/griddle plate or the 14" x 23" ChefKing carbon steel griddle. The Samsung NE597 is specifically set-up to do this but the Frigidaire manual specifically forbids it. Some people really like these things while others have no interest in them, at all.

The stoves also have difference between their convection operations. The Samsung uses three convection fans in the oven along with an 800 wH burner element (so called "true" convection) while the Frigidaire uses a plain fan. In CR's baking evenness tests (for which I recall reading somewhere that they do not use the convection features) the Samsung electric range ovens get very-good to excellent ratings while Figidiare electric range ovens get very good ratings for baking evenness. It theory, Samsung's extra fans and the heating element could make some difference in evenness some baking tasks, mainly baking multiple racks of sugar cookies without having to check and swap pans. Otherwise, my experience in comparing third-element-induction from major manufacturers is that it does not make much noticeable difference. There are a couple of extra features that you get from the Samsung oven, though. One is that the third element allows you to run the Samsung oven at 150F. This can be useful for things like dehydrating. Most major brand ovens won't go less than 170F and that is true of the Frigidaire in this instance.

Second, the Samsung convection can be run at low temps (say 100F) for defrosting frozen items (although many people would find the microwave more convenient) or for proofing bread (although I've always just turned on the oven light and not had to bother with the fan running).

I took a brief pass through the Samsung and Frigidaire manuals and noticed a lot of similarities. Besides that annoying chicken nuggets button, they seem to use a lot of the same illustrations on pan positioning. Makes me wonder if there is some outsourcing here.

Reliability and warranty support are unknowns. You can find plenty of complaints about both companies. The only systematic data I can find, which is CR's annual membership surveys on reliability, do not provide much help here. Frigidaire electric stoves seem to run about mid pack with a 10% problem rate on electric stoves purchased from 2007 to 2012. But, there is no report on Samsung, probably because it apparently did not sell enough electric stoves to CR members to provide reportable data.

That about exhausts what I could see as differences between the stoves. Have fun making up your mind.

Thank you for the detailed comparison. Incredibly helpful.

I am going to just disregard the distance between appliances. Nothing I can do about it and while not ideal, I do not think it will cause either appliance to fail.

I think the differences in convection aren't significant to me. I had a convection range before and never really noticed much difference using the convection feature and just didn't bother. The low temperature might be nice as I did use the proof feature in the Advantium I previously had. But it's not essential.

I think the ability to bridge the burners with a griddle might be pretty useful for me. I had a griddle feature on a previous range and did use it often.

Sounds to me like the reliability data is insufficient to make any judgement.

So, I guess the Samsung has a slight edge in function and the Frigidaire has a slight edge in aethestics. I'm leaning Samsung at the moment. I will have to see what kind of prices/delivery I can come up with.

Thank you!

You might look into service providers for these brands in your local area. The availability of parts is a global issue that can vary across manufacturers, but the question of who will service the selected appliances in your house is a local question.

Given that the choice between these two brands is otherwise very close, finding out that one brand can't be serviced locally might make a difference for you.