Honestly..it's a pretty mature technology, most units are pretty reliable and in that price range are pretty close in power/features. I wouldn't worry too much about anything being subpar..the differences aren't going to be so much in quality/reliability as in the presence of some minor features like bridge burners, multi-size burners, and simmer/keep hot zones, and in aesthetic factors like trim v. no trim, knobs v. touch controls, arrangement of burners, etc. Aesthetics is actually probably the biggest difference between electric smoothtop cooktops, so all else being equal I would actually give that factor pretty heavy weight. For what its worth, looking at features and looks if I was buying an electric smoothtop in that price range I would give serious consideration to LG and Bosch. I'd also point out that precisely because induction has become the hot ticket, there seems to be a lot of ex-display and overstock high-end electric cooktops floating around...I have seen pretty amazing deals on Gaggenau recently, and a number of the last-generation Fisher + Paykel units for steep discounts.

Hollysprings - While I can't speak to any correlation between price and performance,your post seems to imply that all radiant cooktops perform the same. If I've read that correctly, you are simply wrong on this one. Take it from someone who used one practically daily for a dozen years before switching to a new one. Forget the 13" problem I noted above, that's my fault for not thinking about that in the showroom. I'm talking about simmer capability (or lack thereof), response time (my new one seems to hold heat a lot longer, making response time slower), and cleanability. Induction of course is superior to radiant in many ways, but to suggest that radiant "limps along" is overdramatic and again subject to the particular appliance. I know my Frigidaire was only about 30 seconds behind published one gallon boil tests for the 23K gas CC which tells me it would have probably blown away most gas ranges out there. Simmer, well like I said no problem on that cooktop, yet many threads about the CC and BS, among others. Cleaning, well that's subjective but suffice it to say that after a boilover I found a quick scrape with a razor blade then a clean and polish with a quality cleaner took under five minutes. And I'm talking clean, no "patina" excuses. Now I won't make the same claims about my Bosch. Because all radiant is NOT created equal.

Not a stupid question. Weedmeister gave you the basic answer. Sometimes people mix up the two for a couple of reasons. Both come with ceramic-glass tops, and they can look identical when they're not on. Also, there are induction-electric hybrids, so if someone says "it's induction" and you turn on the electric burner, you could be left mystified about the difference. The more detailed answer is that induction uses a totally different method to achieve cooking heat, the way a microwave is different from an oven. Both gas and electric heat an oven by having a heating element that makes the oven hot. A microwave excites the molecules in the food, and to a certain extent in the dish, the excited molecules emit heat, and the heat cooks the food. Similarly, a gas or electric stove with a glass-ceramic surface has a heating element underneath the glass, and setting the pot on the hot spot makes the pot hot and cooks the food. Magnetic induction uses magnetic fields to excite the iron molecules in iron and steel (which is also iron) pans. The excited molecules in the pots emit heat and that cooks the food. So the pots and pans get hot, but the glass only gets a little hot from the hot pot sitting on it and transferring some of the heat downwards. There is a certain amount of inefficiency heat in the works under the glass--heat from the works working--and there's a fan to blow that away so that it doesn't toast the electronics. It's not the cooking heat. Because the cooking heat is generated in the pan, most of the heat goes to the food first. On a gas stove, about 40% of the heat goes to heating the air around the pan. Because of that, induction is considered energy efficient. It's also very fast, and if there are enough power levels (some have half stops, some don't), it has very fine control. Check the appliance forum for more and if you want to know more about the technology and models available, check The Induction Site.

I love my induction, not all of my pans worked on it so I bought some new, but if you have one or 2 specific ones that you like that won't work, there is a disc that you can buy to put under them so that they will work. I have one burner that is huge, so I bought one of the discs so that I can use it if I need to use it but am not using a pan that big. It will also work under a pan thats not magnetic. I couldn't find it in any store but there were several online and they are inexpensive. You can search "induction disc" or something on that order and you'll find some. I haven't used mine yet. I would just go induction and use that for the once in awhile that you use a pan that isn't induction friendly.