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Years ago, and also last year, I bought this duxtop model from Amazon:
Duxtop 1800W Portable Induction Cooktop Countertop Burner, Gold 8100MC/BT-180G3 https://a.co/d/4l21lmb
No issues. It’s been about 5-7 years. They’ve since introduced new (to me) models:
https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-portable-induction-cooktop/
They’re worth looking into because they have more power levels.
I have the cheapest, portable IKEA hob. I found one website that stated the build internals are extremely cheap (it didn't suggest which one to buy instead unfortunately when the person was obviously extremely knowledgeable in electrical engineering).
All the negatives aside and there are a few, it works perfectly fine for everything. I have an 8L pressure stockpot that fits on there to make cooking even more efficient. None of our pots or pans are too big for it.
Six months in with daily use and no issues, it was recommended by a couple sites in my research. So was the Ikea one. I bought it to validate my decision to switch to an induction hob in the next 3-4 years, and I'm completely sold in spite of a few hiccups.
Pros: Super easy to use Does not instantly shut off when lifting away a pan (there is a grace period and it resumes when a pan is detected) Super easy to clean Can be moved anywhere with a plug and taken to events or potlucks Boils water about 3x faster than my gas stove Don't need to constantly run vent fan Doesn't heat up kitchen while running Works extremely well with my old cast iron pans and dutch oven Has a keep-warm mode and timer that runs up to several hours
Cons: The heating area is smaller than it appears, not as large as the largest circle that they printed on the top but bigger than the smaller one. With cast iron or thick-bottomed pots this isn't an issue as the heat spreads, but with thinner pans there's a noticeable cold ring around the outside. Not important for boiling, which is about 60% of my use-case lol
Obviously can't be used with non-magnetic pans, so all my cheap aluminum stuff stays dusty over on on the gas stove
(US-specific) max power and boil functions can only be used for short periods of time unless your kitchen has 20-amp circuits (mine does but some don't)
The temp control function is iffy. I find it mostly not useful compared to "regular" 1-10 stove control.
Personally my biggest pet peeve is that the cord is very thick and difficult to deal with. I know it needs to be this way to handle the current, but it's still annoying. Currently using about 5 rubber bands keeping it tidy. On the balance, when I take it somewhere I appreciate it being longer so that it can reach floor outlets or be out on a counter.
Thanks for the well thought out response! I was looking at that one. How granular is the temperature at low temps? Will it keep something nicely at below the boiling point?
No prob! So, down at the lower levels (power settings 0.5-4.5, or below about 200F) it seems to switch to "pulsing" the burner. I think a lot of induction hobs do that... With anything that has some mass to it, this one can steadily keep it below boiling. My ikea kettle is pretty thin, sometimes it boils/hisses for just a split second even in keep-warm mode. Every other pot or cast iron I've used have enough mass that they don't do that.
I think the temp control mode actually works better at low temps (but only if the pan is already hot*). I'll either use the "keep warm" button and bump it up to 180f or just set my own timer.
*Something I noticed about most induction plates/hobs is that when you try to do temp control but have a cold pan, they just blast 100% power until the pan heats up. It's probably fine but sometimes overshoots. The "regular number" mode (which I use like 95% of the time) doesn't do that, it just does puts out whatever power you select
Do you mean a full hob (e.g. 4-6 spots) or a single plug-in 'hot plate' type dealio? For the former Bosch or Hotpoint should be decent enough, I don't know if they make the latter though. I personally stay clear of Beko but that's not because of their hobs, used to have a washing machine they made and it was awful.
Either way we made the switch to induction earlier this year and love it. Just check your pans are magnetic first, or be willing to replace them!
I'm looking for a hotplate or portable type. One thing I've seen people take issue with is a small heating area? Is this an overblown issue? On many of the units I have been looking at they say there's a ring that's like 4-6 inches in diameter that heats and I'd like to be able to cook evenly on a larger skillet.
Here's a very very informative video on the subject https://youtu.be/eUywI8YGy0Y
That's a video specifically about non-induction electric tops, but thank you!