I'm sorry, but it is not a contest. The BlueStar burner is in a class by itself and out performs all others. But that being said most of the others perform well and should not be overlooked. Buy what fits your cooking style and needs.

Well, I switched from a sealed-burner cooktop (a Windcrest) to the 36" 6-burner BlueStar, and will never look back. A lot of people like the sealed-burner architecture, but I hated it (see my reasons in the link below). I don't have a griddle, so can't comment on that function. Anyway, I resisted what I saw as the BlueStar "hype" on this forum for over a year, but now that I have one---holding my breath while I ordered it---I've joined the chorus!

---Margaret

Here is a link that might be useful: My New Kitchen - The cooking area

A Bluestar was closest, non-commercial, replacement I could find for my beloved Wolf Commercial hot plates. As Guadalupe said, it is all about the burner design. The grill is not a match for a commercial charbroiler, but the burners are real close.

After reading about the Bluestar Range on this website, I drove 1-1/2 hours to another Gardenweb member's home where she graciously allowed me to test out her range. I made stir fry and it was fabulous. The following week I drove two hours to a Wolf showroom and made the same thing. There was no comparison. The Bluestar was able to cook the chicken much faster and it was a joy to cook with it. I'm anxiously awaiting the installation of my Blue Star within the next several weeks.

I don't really care how well a BlueStar cooks... after reading Margaret's description of it I would never have something with such poor quality control in our house. I think I've seen these at the home shows and they look like they are made in someone's garage... sorry, it's not for me, but I'm anal about such things as appearance. To each his own :-)