I wanted to give you all an update on my appliances! Oven: Double Miele Convection H4892BP2 Cooktop: Drop-in BlueStar RBCT365BSS D/W: KA KUDE70FXSS M/W: KA KHMS2040WSS Down Draft: KA KIRD861VSS1 Fridge: KA KFCS22EVMS I wanted Miele D/W but KA had a deal so I ended up paying $600 less than the Miele D/W (too good to pass). The same goes for the M/W. All in all, I cannot thank enough the people in this forum! I absolutely love my Blue Star! It performs and looks professional. There is so much power that I am not sure the downdraft will be enough. I have to admit that I seldom used my downdraft and I am now learning the need for it. So it might just be that I have to learn to use the appliances as they are intended (duh!) The KA downdraft is very quiet and much taller than the previous one. It is a separate unit so installation required alot of changes from what I had before. Not to mention that the Blue Star alone was the size of my previous cooktop and downdraft combined. And what can I say about my Miele oven -- I am in heaven! I love to cook but I will admit that I had gotten used to the darker coloring in some of my cooking. My oven has been working to perfection! The food comes out evenly cooked, warm and without that slightly broiled look that I used to get from my old oven (eventhough I had not used the broiler!) I had it installed my a certified Miele installer so I will get an additional warranty year (which I was told it is being discountinued as of May 1, 2011). KA D/W has been very quiet, has large capacity and is cleaning great. I also love the upper cutlery tray. I was surprised to find out (after all my research) that it takes 3-4 hours to clean (water efficiency). THis was never disclosed. Since I tend to wash when I go to bed, it is not a problem. It does have a 1 hour option so I can still do dishes quickly if I need to. But is the water saving cheaper than using electricity for 3-4 hours? I am next to a water facility next to the river so water shortage is not a problem here. My only disappointment is the refrigerator. I opted for the counter-depth and knew that I was compromising in capacity but I really wanted a "built-in" look without the built-in cost. This fridge fits nicely and gives me the desired look but the freezer capacity is almost non-existent and the upper roll-away tray above the main freezer compartment is a pain. Sometimes it does not close properly (I think there is something wrong so I will call KA). Finally, the KA M/W capacity is larger and it has a warming function. My only surprise was to find that the M/W is only front stainless steel - the sides are black. Apparantely, this is the way they make OTR M/W. It does not look bad but I can see the left side -the one next to the cooktop. Had I known this, I would have searched for an all around OTR stainless steel M/W. As for the Stainless Steel finish, it has been easier to clean and maintain than I thought. The only cleaning problem is with my Miele oven electronic controls which retain every fingerprint. Every time I clean it I turn on the upper or lower oven (does anyone know how to properly use the lock function?) Anyway, my total cost for all appliances listed above was $11,370 plus $1,125 for installation. This does not include the $500 credit card from KA that I am expecting. I stayed within my budget and was able to get a great combination of appliances. I could not have done it without your help. Again, many thanks!

Well, I got that out of the way. I went against the grain and got white appliances as opposed to stainless. I think it will ultimately look better in our kitchen. Here's what I ended up doing. Samsung FD Counter Depth Kitchenaid Slide-in gas range (floor model) Kitchenaid Microwave/Hood Bosch 800 Series Panel Ready (discontinued floor model) The two floor models are basically in perfect condition. However the range is missing the burner caps which I will order online. I priced them out today. Holy cow! In black they will cost $150. In the gray that matches the grill colors, they add up to over $300. How is that possible! I went with the discontinued Bosch 800 series since the store gave it to me for less than a current model 500 series unit. Overall I thinkg I did well. I dropped the name of our contractor and the the salesperson basically gave me employee pricing. Thanks to everyone for the help and advice.

DreamDancing & Gma_j...I've been using my GE Profile Trivection DO for several months now and I have no complaints...I think they're great! Yes, there is some heating up of the kitchen, but as Lambic said, the heat has to go somewhere! (If there's an oven that vents to the outside...that would be the one to not heat up the kitchen....is there one?) I've heard some people complain about the preheat time and/or the length of time the fan stays on...but I have not noticed either to be excessive. As a matter of fact, the oven is usually preheated long before I'm ready for it! As to the fan, I've found that if you crack the oven door, the fan stops within a few minutes. Even if you don't, it's only about 15 minutes or so. The best part of my new oven....the Trivection technology...it's great! My baked potatoes are done in less than 30 minutes, mac & cheese in 20 minutes (instead of 60 min), etc.

>>> I have to admit that I just really feel ignorant of cooking on a gas stove. I know it is better than electric so I guess that is why I want to jump to it. ... makes me wonder if I should just jump to induction instead. It seems so much easier and more like the smooth top I am coming from. How does it compare to gas cooking and is it easier to learn? Cooking is cooking and there will things to learn with any new range, cooktop or rangetop. That said, coming from smoothtop electrics and without experience with gas burners, you would likely find an induction cooktop more familiar than a gas cooktop/rangetop. There would be a learning curve as with any new cooktop or rangetop. A dial setting that worked on your present cooktop might be too high with induction so you might find that what required a knob position of 3 or 4 on your old cooktop might turn out to be 2.5 on the new induction cooktop. Plus, everything will be digital touchpads where you tap settings rather than turn knobs. That can be a big adjustment for some but trivial or preferable for others. Induction cooktops will be significantly easier to clean and keep clean than a radiant smoothtop. Another adjustment will be adapting to to the much more rapid responsiveness and greater power with induction. Basically, things happen faster, so you may want to do some of your prep work beforehand rather than as you go along, and, until you get used to the speed and power, you don't want to leave things going unattended on higher heat lest caramelized turn to carbonized. (Some induction cooktops allow you set timers for individual burners, which some find very handy as well as serving to mitigate or avoid the consequences of inattentiveness.) Induction turns heat downward very rapidly, which is much like gas (maybe faster) and very much unlike radiant electric. The biggest things to learn with gas would be learning to judge heat by observing the flame more than relying on knob position (gas being a totally analog system). That and learning to eyeball the flames to tailor flame size of the base of the pan when using pans with bases smaller than the maximum flame spread. Not complicated but something of an adjustment. As the others have pointed out, here, all appliance choices involve tradeoffs and personal preferences. I like the short summary comparison at the end of hvtech's last post above. Roccogurl summarizes things that have been negatives for some folks. On the whole, however, most folks who switch from gas to induction are as pleased with their choice as hvtech and sjhockeyfan. If you want some further reading on this, you might have a look at the long thread I've linked to below. You will see in the linked thread that I set out to buy an induction range but, like pamela233, wound up with a gas appliance instead. For me, it was a mix of factors mostly having to do with needing to buy a new stove immediately (my previous one had died), availability problems with the induction ranges I liked (at the time, there would have been several weeks wait on the induction ranges I liked but the gas range could be delivered in a few days), my budget (GE boosted the price well above my budget on induction range I had tried out), choice of vendor (and their take-back policies) and some other factors. That, and living in a rather cold mountain climate where excess kitchen heat is much less of the issue it might be if I lived elsewhere. From your postings, there may be a couple of additional considerations for you. One is that, afaik, there are no residential induction rangetop-style appliances currently available. Also, induction cooktops vary slightly in size and their countertop cut-out dimensions vary, as well, so the cut-out size problems seem unavoidable if you go with induction. As for pricing, 36" induction cooktops are (mostly) several hundred dollars less expensive than the gas cooktop and rangetops listed above. Exceptions are Bosch's new Benchmark series (as opposed to its 300/500/800 series). Also, induction cooktops from Gaggenau, Miele and Wolf will be more or less comparable in price if not even more expensive. If you go with Bosch 300-800 series, or GE or others, the choice will be more budget friendly for you. Hope this helps. Here is a link that might be useful: Does Anyone Here Who Went Induction Regret Your Choice? This post was edited by JWVideo on Wed, Sep 17, 14 at 15:30