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Toasters - a bit of a vent
Comments
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you could of course build your own (totally) from scratch
https://www.ted.com/talks/thomas_thwaites_how_i_built_a_toaster_from_scratch
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The marketing, BS or otherwise, is another expense that the product has to cover irrespectively.
A higher price can go into the product but not necessarily increase the durability too… having things made of prettier or finer materials can increase the aesthetics but not its lifespan. Not sure how much toasters have advanced in recent years but again "cutting edge" tech will be a more expensive product but may reduce reliability rather than increase it.
Likewise things like long warranties, generous customer service etc are great when you need them but everyone pays for them when they are buying the item0 -
However, if one does one's research, it is fairly easy to work out certain things. Dualit toasters have an incredible reputation for lasting decades, the bit that does go on them is the element which is is easily user replaceable and available for £9.99 direct, I have only replaced those in the toaster once in thirty years and Dualit sent those for free, 10+ years after I bought the toaster.
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There is no cutting edge tech in Dualit toasters, they are mechanically simple and all parts are over engineered for making toast, the body is thicker than it needs to be, the wiring is thicker and higher grade, the parts are higher spec, the springs are thicker etc. Last time I looked in John Lewis there were many toasters that were hugely over complicated but mostly made cheaply.
Look at this one, more buttons than my car, full of almost entirely pointless features, a toaster is to toast bread, it does not need to be "smart". https://www.johnlewis.com/sage-the-smart-toast-4-slice-toaster-stainless-steel/p2065166?0 -
If anyone is interested, and can be bothered to dig around in the main programme, there's a segment in an episode of the BBC's Inside the Factory - Sliced Bread featuring the Dualit toaster's manufacture - quite an eye-opener.
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wasnt speaking about them specifically.
The linked toaster has 4 buttons - cancel, frozen, crumpet and "a bit more", these are then duplicated for the second pair of slots. Our Dualit only has 1/2 less… it has the cancel, frozen and bagel but lacks the top up button. It too duplicates them for the two pairs of slots. It looks less cluttered because of where they are but the difference is small.
Guess this one is more like your car with no buttons but a touchscreen instead0 -
Another vote for Dualit.
Although expensive, they work perectly.
Mine is over 20 years old, and still like new.
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I'm not sure that Dualit is automatically producing high quality products. I had a recent thread regarding one of their kettles only two or three years old which developed a fault and is apparently not repairable. From the contributions to that thread I am by no means the only one. Maybe toasters are still better made …
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6678179/kettle-randomly-turning-itself-off
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It does seem that only Dualit toasters are actually manufactured/assembled in the UK (Crawley). Their other products are UK designs made overseas, primarily China.
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My wife, who doesn't do low cost anything, bought a toaster and it was a Dualit......highly recommended.
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