I would say yes, the Gagg controls have a learning curve (an American, used to standard oven controls in US ovens, can't walk up and use a Gagg oven effectively without at least some instruction), but, and this is a big but: you are already committed to the Gagg steam oven and the controls are nearly identical on the two. So you will already have to learn how to use them. Might as well just learn one system and have a consistent interface. I copied and laminated the pages with the pictogram guides and posted them on the inside of the cupboard doors above our stack (we have a Gagg convection oven and steam oven combo), but I refer to them less and less. (and I must admit, I have this feeling that some of the settings are marketing based: i.e. the same heating/steam setup as another one, just with different temperature ranges so the manufacturer can claim to have a 'defrost' or 'proofing' or 'regenerate' setting). Now, if your wife plans to never use the steam oven, it might make sense to get a convection oven with simpler controls. But if she learns to use the steam oven, she'll be able to pick up how to operate the regular oven very quickly. (Assuming recent models: use left knob to set function, right knob temperature. Touch lower right corner button area to access time settings. Lower left gives info on current oven temp. Consistent pictograms (e.g. little up arrow means it is still preheating) Both oven controls are exactly the same, only the heating functions available differ.) And you might like the control it gives. E.g. suppose you bake something (with the 'bottom heat' pictogram on) and decide you would have liked it with the top toasted a bit more. Well, you could put it under the broiler a bit, or next time you make it, set the oven with the pictogram that shows both top and bottom heat.

The Gaggenau are also side swing opening but they do come with a hefty, hefty price tag. We got our Gagg combi steam oven off ebay half off. It was a 270 (previous model to the 400 series available now). It was new in box with a 5-year warranty. It works great and I love that it is plumbed. It's worth considering. Appliances stores will often sell off demo models too with warranty and I have seen items on craigslist. I use both my conventional oven and the combi oven for similar and different things. My conventional oven goes higher (to 500, the Gagg goes to 450) and my conventional oven has a broiler and it is bigger. The Gagg non-steam mode is convection so it also cooks faster/hotter and I'm still getting used to that (I've had it about 2 months). Sometimes I use the Gagg because I need two ovens, sometimes I use the Gagg as a steam oven or to jointly steam and roast. I love the flexibility. I do have a friend with the $300 cuisinart steam oven and she LOVES it, but she isn't doing a remodel right now and it lets her test run the combi steam oven idea. I'm pretty sure when she does update she'll get a combi steam oven. I'm not sure how it would look to have a drop down and side opening door. My initial thought is how well they match in terms of material is probably more important. Good luck.

Thanks for that, Iowacommute! My Miele-built in oven just died ($1400 for replacing a couple of knobs that quit working and won't turn off; amazing), and I'm looking around. Have seen many, many compact double ovens in other parts of the world and would love to buy American (as the parts for the foreign ones are so expensive). The GE could be the ticket. I took the last hour looking at every brand mentioned on a couple of appliance websites and GE appears to be the ONLY one making this. Thanks again! LL

I looked into installing a single wall oven under an induction cooktop (I ended up getting an induction slide-in range though). What was interesting was that most induction brands allowed it IF the wall oven was the same brand as the cooktop. This included Kitchenaid - don't know where you got your information, but the installation instructions do allow for it with certain ovens - it turns out it is the Kitchen Aid single ovens. Two brands did not allow for a single oven under the cooktop even with their own brands (well, it voided the warranty so the same thing): Bosch and Thermador. No problem with Jennair, Kitchenaid, GE, Electrolux, and Frigidaire. I think Whirlpool also didn't allow it, but I wasn't considering that brand. Don't worry about the venting. There is some venting in all ovens - whether built in wall ovens or ranges. The vents aren't any more hot for a wall oven than a regular range. The reason I chose a slide-in induction range had nothing to do with the height of the oven. The wall oven under the cooktop would have been about the same height as a range's oven. Rather, I really liked the Kitchenaid induction with its (albeit small) second baking drawer. I cook a lot and could see using this. Plus, the cost was much less for a slide-in than a separate cooktop and wall oven. Our house is being remodeled and we haven't even been able to move in yet - so I haven't used it. I hope I love it. It does look nice.