An exciting product with one giant flaw

I was skeptical that this device could really live up to its promise to toast, microwave, and bake, but for $100 from Wal-Mart with a return guarantee, what did I have to lose?

After using it for a couple of weeks, I've decided to keep it and get rid of my old microwave and toaster oven. But I'm not completely happy with the R-55TS, for one main reason: toasting is extreeeemely slow. The toasting times listed in the manual, long though they may be, are wildly optimistic. The device consistently requires 7 minutes plus to toast an English muffin. The items do eventually come out with a nice, even crust, but it would be more accurate to call this mode "raise the temperature of bread" rather than "toast".

To my great surprise, the real power of this oven is in the "bake" mode. Only four temperatures are allowed: 325, 350, 375, and 400 degrees. But for items that cook within this range, the results seem to be consistently excellent. Muffins from a mix, Prepperidge Farm turnovers, etc. all bake according to the regular directions and come out perfect. What's more, you can set the time for the bake mode, and it's followed by a cooling (exhaust) cycle. Once you know the time requirements for a dish, baking is completely automated and foolproof.

Microwave performance is fine.

Fit and finish are excellent, and the controls are well designed. I love the little spinner knob and the "add a minute" button. The stainless finish and exterior design make the oven look a lot more expensive than it is, and the interior chamber is stainless as well.

In short, a nice product marred by one poorly-implemented (but major) feature. If the toasting mode actually worked right, this would be a must-have product.

Update as of June 24, 2004:

Since I've been using this device for about six months now, I wanted to write and update my previous review. Unfortunately, this product has not stood the test of time.

1) The toasting feature is pretty much completely broken now. It always took a long time to toast, but now the toasting bulbs have grown so weak that you can leave things in the microwave indefinitely without achieving any degree of browning. It does do a good job of drying out pieces of bread into a desiccated husk, however. :-)

2) The microwave performance is crap. This oven is prone to sparks and discharges, no matter which turntable you use. And I'm not talking about discharges related to foil, staples, or other no-no's -- it will spark on bread, hot dogs, etc. Foods frequently come out well enough cooked but with small areas of carbon where the discharges have occurred.

3) fit and finish have proved to be not so good. The silver paint on the control knob has started to wear off, exposing an ugly beige plastic underneath. It doesn't go with the stainless steel exterior at all.

It's hard to blame Sharp for all this, though, considering that the product doesn't really cost much more than a generic microwave. I just think you can't manufacture a product like this of reasonable quality for $100.