Tried out the new Thermador Freedom Induction cooktop yesterday at a demo class. It takes a few seconds for pots to register. It normally did a pretty good job of recognizing the size of the cookware, though it insisted that one 6" sauce pan was oval in shape, no matter where it was put on the surface. Makes me wonder, will there be firmware updates to look forward to?!? ;) The flicky/swipey interface for changing power & time is a pain IMO. Rather imprecise as you swipe back and forth to get the right level selected. Though you can tap directly on any number you can see in the display (which is like 2 levels in either direction), which helps a bit. I would forever curse Apple for popularizing this kind of interface if I bought this. I prefer the other Thermador/Bosch models where all the numbers are visible on the panel and you can go directly to them. Though I imagine a 6 year old would love the UI on the Freedom. So there's that. Yes, you can move pots around the surface once they are registered and going, but you have to hit a transfer icon to keep the heat/timer settings when you do. And it again takes a few seconds for it to figure you've moved it when you do. It seems to be devoid of any of the other features you can find on other BSH products like AutoChef and SensorDome. And it's limited to 4 pots where 5 is standard on their other 36" models. Yes there appear to be really only 4 zones to the cooktop, as you can only have 2 pots going on each side. i.e. you couldn't have three small pots on the right side and one large grill pan on the left. You can use any size cookware from 3" to 13" in size so that's nice. In fact, that may be the chief benefit to this top, not having to worry so much about pan to burner size matching. Plus you can arrange the cookware layout for what works best for your needs. So for $5K they are removing some features and capability for a smartphone-like interface and zoneless induction. Not sure I'd pay the extra $2-3K for that, but I'm considering it along with the other BSH models. --- Honestly, I like the layout of the Electrolux Icon, but not having individual burner timers is a non-starter. if Whirpool hadn't screwed up with not allowing cookware smaller than 6 1/2" on their Kitchenaid/Jenn-Air 36" induction top, that's the one I'd probably go with. (I need four 7-inch zones, really??) Will likely go for the Bosch 800 series.

This appliance blog linked below gave most rediculous appliance awards. 3rd Place? Thermador zoneless induction aka Thermador Freedom Induction Cooktop. "It's hard to find something more ridiculous than a $5,000 induction cooktop. The Thermador Freedom Induction Cooktop is further evidence that Thermador has been moving in the wrong direction. Cheap marketing gimmicks over substance, this cooktop boasts an entire surface of induction magnets, allowing you to place your pan (any size, so long as it's induction compatible) in any part of the cooking surface. Leave it to the engineers at Thermador to bring us a feature no one has ever asked for, while ignoring the many features we do ask for. While it's touch screen controls are very pretty, this cooktop brings nothing new to the induction technology other than a useless gimmick and a stratospheric price tag." Maybe you can let him know there are people who asked for this? Here is a link that might be useful: LINK

We installed our FlexInduction in December and I really love how fast and flexible it is. I have never used an electric non-induction, so I can't compare, but it is certainly faster than my old gas range. I can boil 2 cups of water in about 2 minutes, faster if the water is in a wide, shallow pan. Also, the house doesn't heat up as much now when I cook; I will really appreciate that feature this summer. I had read, when I was researching, that pans don't have to be pre-heated, but I didn't find that to be the case. I preheat my pans for a minute or two, much less than before, though. I really love that I can set the time and the burner will shut itself off when the time is up; which is great for rice and my pressure cooker (which I am still getting the hang of). There is a noticeable difference in how quickly I can get dinner done, it really feels like a snap now, compared to my gas range before.

I can say this about the Wolf ovens we have; they require the door to be shut, and the coils at the top are spaced widely and hence radiant flux at the rack on a broiling pan at the highest oven rack setting is not even. Both of these traits annoy my DW. The latter issue could have been avoided by twice as much heater length using half as much resistance per inch. On a high-end device, the electronics could have been designed so that air cooling was increased when the door was open. The air in such cases would have to be taken from somewhere other than under the electronics where the door gap would be. The negative aspect of such cooking is the near impossibility of keeping grease and moisture off of everything above the door gap. The oven(s) would require a separate vent that led to its own filter and duct to the roof. It is bad enough with closed-door broiling just opening the door to turn the meat or remove it. A auxiliary vent such as I have in the ceiling above the ovens is not adequate for such a blast of greasy air. The cooktop searing followed by oven baking process some cooks argue is best for steaks is certainly best for minimizing un-contained effluent. kas