Bosch has a new 'industrial' design model with knobs and a conventional burner layout. Bosch HIS8055U 30 Inch Freestanding Induction Electric Range with 4 Heating Elements, 10 Cooking Modes, Sabbath Mode, QuietClose Door Hinges, Convection, Metal Knobs, Digital Display and Temperature Probe (ajmadison.com) It has 9 power levels plus Boost and 3 warming power levels. No shut-off timers for the burners.

@dan1888 I've seen that. While I find the burner design better, it's hundreds more, and has knobs, which I find less desirable. It also has a smaller oven.

Is there a reason not to go with the Bosch Benchmark?

No. Whatever version best meets your goals. I'd go with Bosch.

I have Bosch Benchmark and I love it. I really don't know why you would want to caulk the Bosch to your base cabinets. The 3/4" glass top overlap actually has a metal support piece under the glass for support. That metal sits concealed under the glass top overhang to buffer between the glass top and the countertop. It is barely noticeable and there is no gap, because the legs of the range were lowered so it rest on the countertop pretty tight. I don't think adding caulk is recommended or needed. It is important to have precise installation of countertop and base cabinets for the best fit for that particular range.

I have had my Bosch 800 induction cooktop for 4 years now and love it. If I had to choose a range, I'd absolutely pick Bosch over LG. I love the 9 levels of cooking + half levels. I love that each hob has its own timer. I love the boost feature. Of course I love the easy cleanup.

Mine has the largest burner in the center. It's not an issue. I use the one on the lower right for my larger pans and use the center one just for cooking large pots of soup, sauces or boiling water.

I also have a Bosch 500 oven and before that in my condo I sold, I had a Bosch 800 oven. Worked like a dream. The only reason I didn't go with the 800 in my new house is because the majority of my cooking was and still is on my induction cooktop and not in the oven, so didn't feel the need for the extra cost of the oven.

I have an LG induction range (not that model) and knobs was one of the reasons I chose it.....My hands are often wet or have residue on them while cooking, and touchscreens don't work very well unless your hands are clear and dry. No complaints. There are many things I would have liked in the Benchmark (like timers on the "burners", but I wasn't ready to give up knobs to get it. The new Bosch 30" looks like a good choice now (that I didn't have then).

Thank you guys.

@theresa21 , I had a range in the past with the same overhanging glass top (and actually broke the top after a counter install because I was impatient and tried to move it in by myself!) and found that a grease combo would kind of stick in the crease between the counter and the top. Maybe that's not a concern with the Bosch. We shall see.

@cpartist Thanks! Do you find that you get enough heat to the entire pan with the lower right burner? I suppose I could always use the bridge burner as a primary if the smaller right burner isn't enough.

@Toronto Veterinarian I totally understand where you're coming from. My last decent quality range (in our old house before we sold it and became renters) was an Electrolux range. Given, the "screen" was separated from the flat top so thing were less prone to spilling on it, but I didn't find it to be much of an impediment, and quite like being able to just wipe everything down without needing to pull knobs to get under them. Plus I have a tendency to lean on the front of my range while working on longer cooking projects.

Sounds like the Bosch is the ticket for me.

@cpartist Thanks! Do you find that you get enough heat to the entire pan with the lower right burner? I suppose I could always use the bridge burner as a primary if the smaller right burner isn't enough.

How big is the hob on the right. My induction cooktop is a 36" and I believe the hob is 8" if I recall. I have no issues with the whole pan getting enough heat.

BTW: I just edited my post above. I don't have the Benchmark. I have the 800 which is exactly the same as the Benchmark but without the bridge. For myself, I didn't think I needed the bridge since it's just the 2 of us.

The lower right burner looks too small but i assume you could use half of the bridge hob for a main front burner? i have a miele not bosch and it has same location of the biggest hob. we were not able to make hood larger than cooktop so it does force our highest heat cooking to the center which works well for ventilation at least. i’m used to it now so it doesn’t bother me at all. hob layout is definitely how we picked out the miele over the other choices.

I have the LG LSE4617ST ($3,000) to which the LG Studio LSIS6338F ($3,900) is similar. There's also the LG LSE4616ST ($2,300). I bought it specifically because it has knobs to control the power levels. I did not want the single power-level control for all induction elements that's found on all Bosch ranges and cooktops as I thought it would be inconvenient to have to first press buttons to switch among the elements.

I've found the LSE4617ST entirely satisfactory. The 11 power levels (from simmer to high) are sufficient for my simple cooking. I like the indicators on the cooktop that indicate the element power levels. One does have to clean among the knobs though the knobs can be pulled off and are made completely of metal so they won't break. The oven take a while to heat up because it's large. The oven temperature keypad on the LSIS6338F is an improvement. The right-front burner is slightly more powerful than that of the LSE4617ST which is entirely satisfactory.

Be sure to compare the specs of the Bosch HII8056U ($3,700) and HIIP057U ($4,100) to decide whether the $400 difference is worth it.

One of the problem with the industrial look ones is…They are made by Smeg, not Bosch. Reliability might be a concern because of that.

I share some of the preferences of others here as I actually prefer knobs and having a temperature control for each burner instead of one common control for all burners. And those are two things that the Bosch is lacking, at least for that model.

However, I can think of 3 things to add here.

1. Bosch has a reputation for being one of the most reliable in the induction category. I believe that LG also has an overall good reputation for reliability.

2. And while I share your aesthetic love of the blue enamel, there are numerous anecdotal reports that blue coloured oven enamels are less robust than the other colours and are more prone to flake off than the others. This delamination can occur with any colour of enamel, of course, but blue enamel in LG, Wolf, Electrolux, and kitchenAid ovens have had issues with shards of enamel, which popped loose from the steel and end up, blown around inside the oven with the convection fans which can present a real health hazard. With the limited exception of Wolf, most brands refer to the failure of porcelain on steel as an “anesthetic issue“. Even Wolf, known for going the extra mile for many of its customers, now is limiting how well it reimburses for this issue. If you do a search here on the forums, you will find many appliance consumers with broken enamel and broken hearts over the issue. Mind you, this does not mean that it happens to every one of these blue enamelled appliances and those here who have enjoyed, any of the four brands that I mentioned may be doing just fine, but I would look at the pattern that has appeared over time with blue enamel. The issue has risen its head due to a combination of factors that include the use of pyrolytic self cleaning cycles, as well as the shift that appliance manufacturers made when they started putting bottom oven elements below the oven cavity versus the old way when the element was exposed and above the bottom of the oven. This change creates a lot more thermal stress on the oven cavity liner than the old element position did. I have no doubt there are exceptions, but I have not seen very many posts here on the forums of Bosch ovens having enamel issues.

Lastly, I would call around and search online to perform a bit of an audit of appliance repair services in your geographic area to see how many options you have for Service for any brand you purchase. Service availability across various regions of North America can vary substantially with Samsung and LG having reputations for less convenient access to people who work on their appliances. Some say that LG has improved and this may be accurate but I would always check to be sure. This doesn’t let Bosch off the hook either because their service can be plentiful or spotty, depending on where you live. I know how much aesthetics matter to many of us and I personally had to pass on an exquisitely beautiful Italian brand of appliances that I really wanted and I passed on it largely because there was no service or parts availability where I live. At the end of the day, the food always has to be prepared and set to the table. Good luck with your selection whatever you decide.