Best is pretty subjective. What sort of bells and whistles do you want, and how big is your budget?

I personally think most microwaves are the same, but that may be because I pretty much either use the 30-second button or the defrost function.

I have an Advantium OTR, and I really like it because I can use it as an oven as well. The speed cook function lets me do baked potatoes as part of a fast weeknight meal, and I can bake 2 things at different temps at the same time.

Advantiums come in 2 versions. The 120v uses a regular plug and is less expensive. The 240v needs a 240v outlet, and it's more expensive, but its speedcook function works much faster.

Advantiums, like every other OTR I've owned, are not good at venting. That is the nature of the beast though with OTRs.

Meangoose - thanks for the suggestion cause I'm doing my appliance shopping today. I just went to the GE site and it said the the GE Profile Advantium� 120v Above-the-Cooktop Oven, SCA1001KSS, is no longer being manufacture. Is this what you have? I did find the Profile 240v but wow - over $1000!

susanka- you're right about CR - I don't subscribe to it but just looked it up on-line using my library card. Kenmore and LG were rated #2&3 and the Samsung and Whirlpool were listed as a best buy. The Whirlpool is listed at $200.

Since so many people mention that OTR microwaves have a short life-span, maybe the Whirpool is a good option. I will check it out later today.

meangoose, you make a good point. I use the MW for pretty basic stuff at this point, defrost, keep warm, sensing functions, and haven't had a convection oven. I would rather not pay a thousand bucks for one, but as I say, we paid $600 for this; could do that again. Thanks for all the detailed info on the Advantium.

flynnj, I'm glad you happened across this post. I had a Whirlpool I loved, but it was white, and DH wanted SS (which I hate now that I see how badly it fingerprints) so we bought this )^&%%*&^% Maytag. Good luck on your shopping.

When we bought ours 7 years ago, we got a panasonic genius prestige. My MIL and SIL bought the same one 2 years before us and haven't had issues either. I like it because it has all the bells and whistles and the exhaust works way better than other OTR's I've used.

We are getting the whirlpool, I think. It was $229 for Stainless. It has a blue display, whereas our other appliances have green, so I am second thinking. Plus it only gets a good fro microwaving noise. I ran several microwaves at Sears yesterday and it is louder than the others. A plus for it is the handle has stainless on the front of it. Many in that price range have plastic handles colored to look like stainless. I am also considering the GE 1740. I don't care about a sensor. The GE's have the one touch numbers. Personally I like to punch my time in, but some really like that feature. the GE you can also select the volume of the beep, which I really like. Oh and the new 1740 has hidden vents - old model didn't. We have the LG 1613 (or something like that) and I hate it is is really loud when microwaving, the handle/door cracked and the reminder beep drives me crazy.

We had a white Whirlpool for 14 yrs. with so problems. Last year, bought a SS Frigidaire off Craigslist, and it's starting to do weird things. When you close the door, it sounds like it's starting up by itself. I think the panel thing is messing up, probably not much left in it.

FWIW, I have a GE Profile OTR and it's run without a hitch for nine years. I like it.

Today I saw the Frigidaire professional series and their microwave FFPMV189KF - it's stainless but what they call smudge-proof which sounds great to me.

Another thing that I liked was it's truly Made in America. I haven't researched it yet but did like the way it looked.

I'm attaching the link for it so check it out. I'm seriously thinking about the Professional series for my 30" slide-in gas range and their DW too.

Here is a link that might be useful: Frigidaire Professional 2.0 Cu. Ft. Over-The-Range Microwave

I have the panasonic too. I have had it for 2 years now and have no problems. It works very well. The glass on the front has a mirror finish and the stainless steel finish doesn't mark too easily...also cleans up very easily. Much easier than a lot of stainless appliances. It has 2 wheels instead of push buttons, kind of retro but they are very easy to operate. It was pricey as well 600. + but imho it was worth it.

Thank you for all the information, everyone. It sure seems like a $600 MW should last more than two years. DH wants to see if Maytag can recommend another inxpensive part that will fix it. I'd rather junk the thing. Anyway, thanks for the recommendations; I expect we'll probably end up buying a new one.

GE likes to change the model #s of the Advantiums. It drove me nutty when I went to buy, because they did a model # change at about the same time, and of course, some stores had the old models and some had new.

I put the page with the current model #s at the bottom of this post.

You can do better than $1000 for the 120v Advantium OTR. AJ Madison has the 120 v SS Advantium OTR for about $750. You might find a better deal elsewhere.

http://www.ajmadison.com/b.php/Ns~_price_with_promos_02_:0%3BNtt~advantium

Here is a link that might be useful: Available Advantium Models

We recently bought a Samsung SMH1816W, and so far we really like it (it is our first OTR). The regular price was $349 but it was on sale for $249, it has 400 CFM. Our old hood, without a MW, was only 120 CFM & it was at least twice the price to replace it. You can turn the turntable off when you want to use really big pans that don't have room to spin. It has an "oven rack" so you can heat more than one thing at a time. The light has a high (good when you are using the stovetop) & a low (we use as a nightlight).