Sharp R-21LCFS Medium Duty Commercial Microwave (Dial Timer, 1000-Watts, 120-Volts) (Update of R-21LCF),Silver

I love how well-built this machine is. I like the simple clarity of the timer dial. I love the easy-on-the-ears ring at the end of the cycle. How deep the cavity is. How strong the microwave is. How accurate. I picked this one because it was highly rated, reputed to be durable, simple, functional. That suits me to a T. I'm happy that it's gray on the sides and top and stainless only on the front. I love seeing the remaining time light up -- none of that hard-to-view digital junk. There are slight tactile indentations at the time intervals on what I originally thought was an entirely flat timer on the faceplate. In addition, there are slight "bumps" at the time intervals when turning the knob (which is smooth). These tactile indicators are very slight but still discernible to my uneducated fingertips. If I lose my eyesight, I can use those to track the time in the microwave. That the food does not need to rotate is terrific. This machine always gets my coffee, my leftovers, delicate pastries, everything finished evenly and precisely. This Sharp microwave looks really -- well, sharp! For what it is worth, I am an aging woman who always preferred function and durability over trends and designer stuff. This looks better in my book. I've had enough pretty microwaves that took up enormous amounts of counter space and died in less than a year. Thank goodness, this type microwave from Sharp is still available and to individuals, not just to businesses. Please note that the ring at the end is not obnoxious. It cannot be turned off though, so if you're looking for no ring or buzzer at all, look to the next-level-up models. My Sharp says inside the door that it was made in Thailand. The squeeze handle is easy enough for even me with my loss of hand strength to "grip open" and boy this door is so much more quiet than the ones on microwaves without handles! I don't wake the family when I warm something in the middle of the night anymore. And one more thing, a family member with cognitive problems is finally able to heat his cup of chocolate by himself -- the functions are that clear.

Purchased for elderly parent with failing vision moving to assisted living.Needed a device that is simple to use and possible to use by someone with very limited vision. This device is as simple and easy as it gets. No fussy flat-screen buttons with tiny labels, no clock to set, just twist the knob (which is very easy to turn) and it works. Simple and safe. I believe this would be usable for someone who is blind (however there are ovens that actually talk for those who are blind, but those are quite costly). One concern with conventional keypad-controlled ovens is that the timer could be accidentally set wrong (60 vs. 6 minutes)....have personally seen this happen and it started a small fire. This has a maximim time you can dial in of six minutes that makes it much safer to use.I expected a twist-knob to be some sort of wind-up timer, but it's a slick zero-effort control that lights up the bright LEDs as you rotate it, and the LEDs flash and show visually the time counting down. When the door is opened, the timer resets (so it does not run if you close door after taking the food out). (Note it does not show number counting down, just flashing lights on dial).From the photos you would expect a cheap knob, but the overall fit and finsih looks very upscale. The knob appears to be metal, the handle is chrome-plated metal, and it just has a real simple yet high-quality feel to it.Since this is a commercial-grade model, it is made to meet more stringent requirements.- Commercial grade units must be able to withstand a much higher duty cycle (regular units are expected to be used no more than ten minutes per day, while a commercial one can be used non-stop). The door hinges, for example, are more rugged.- Commercial units have no turntable and have stainless steel interior and exterior for sanitation (to meet NSF standards). On this unit the interior and door is stainless steel and the outer case is gray painted steel. The bottom of the cavity is white...looks like ceramic, but not sure.Note that there is no turntable, but that's not needed for most smaller items. Turntable is one more thing to break and clean.Our need was for a microwave to heat up a cup of water for tea, or a bowl of soup, and one of the small frozen entrees...it works perfect for that.One very slight gripe is that the door unlock is a bit stiff--it's like a car-door handle where you have to squeeze it to open, and it took enough force that the device slid a bit on the counter. I was worried that someone with limited grip strength could not open it, but it was no problem for an elderly person (she used both hands). The handle is metal with good quality chrome plating, there's no way it could break.

Here's a microwave with a dial ... no pushbuttons, no fluff. We first tried the Panasonic NE-1022F Commercial Microwave. It's about the same size and feature set; it has a non-electric dial (spring driven?) that worked perfectly; at the end of a cycle the Panasonic rings a mechanical bell. Alas, but that one arrived dented; we returned it for the Sharp.This Sharp microwave is a winner. Simple to use - perfect for a busy household. Turn the knob, and the numbers around the dial light up, showing the timer. Open and close with a handle. That's it - no buttons, no programming, no blinking clock, no thinking.Powerful microwave - gets a cup of coffee hot in 2 minutes. (I measured it: 8 ounces of water in a pyrex cup - got to 205Fin 2 minutes)Easy to clean: There's no rotating carousel, because there's an internal microwave deflector (the microwave standing wave pattern is constanly changing) So you can quickly clean the inside cavity - it's stainless steel on top, back, and sides; white plastic on bottom.Although it spends 99 percent of its time "off", it constantly guzzles 9 watts of standby power. So if you use this oven for 15 minutes each day, half your power goes into heating your food, and half and an equal amount is wasted. This phantom power load is more than many other microwaves, and there's no need - it has no electronic display. Sharp - get your act together! (That Panasonic microwave had zero loss to phantom power)Amazon's picture is inaccurate: there is not a digital display at the top.That's news - we're pretty happy with this guy.

Good

Simple to clean and almost anyone can figure out how to operate it.