KRUPS 2 Slice Toaster with 6 browning levels and 4 easy-to-use functions, Stainless Steel, Silver

I did a lot of research on toasters here at Amazon before deciding on this one. Reviews are all over the board for this and every other toaster. The biggest selling point for me was the generous size of the slots. I wanted to be able to put my organic seed bread in without having to bend it or shove it in. I also wanted to be able to fit a bagel in without shaving off some of it first. Everything I've put in this toaster has fit easily. The bagel setting does a wonderful job of toasting the cut side while warming the outside. The defrost setting is perfect for toaster strudels. It defrosts them, then toasts them so when they come out they are done throughout, and not still hard and cold in the middle. English muffins can finally be toasted in one pass instead of two or more. A complaint people seem to have about this toaster is that it gets too hot...it's an appliance so yes, it does get rather warm, but I've never had an urge to fondle my toaster while it is toasting, so there is no reason for the warmth to bother me. It also has a high-lift lever so you never need to touch the toaster to remove your item. The only drawback to this toaster for me is the settings dial, which goes from 1-6. I like lightly browned toast and to achieve that I have to go to 4.5, so the lower settings are useless to me. If you like dark toast, this will not do the job, but if you're fine with light to medium toast, this is a great choice. If this toaster lasts more than a year, I will up the rating to 5 stars. The longevity would make up for the lack of variety of the settings dial.**UPDATE** I've had this for over a year, and I love it even more. The settings dial I mentioned previously is actually totally dependent on which breads you use. If you was use a white or potato bread, you can get a nice toast on a lower setting. It has consistently made wonderful toast, bagels, english muffins, pop tarts and toaster strudels for my family of five. It gets used at least once a day, if not more, and the toast is fairly even on both sides (I've never had a toaster that was perfectly even in terms of toasting). I use the same setting day after day for my favorite bread, and the results are always consistent. It still looks shiny and new, it's easy to clean with the removable crumb tray and/or shaking it upside down outside. The cord is very long for a toaster, which I love, and it has a built-in cord wrap on the underside to keep excess out of sight. This is, hands down, the best purchasing decision I've ever made on AmazonUPDATE: It’s been more than nine years, and this toaster is still AWESOME! It toasts everything perfectly for everyone’s different preferences. This just might be my best Amazon purchase ever!Update 11 years later! This toaster still rocks! It makes perfectly consistent toast EVERY SINGLE TIME! I’ve had no problems with it at all. This was an incredible buy that has stood the test of time for sure! I still highly recommend!

Looks pretty, but we are having a hard time getting the toasts to be well toasted. Have to run them through a couple of cycles

If all you toast is regular sliced bread this is a great toaster. But, it doesn't handle hand sliced bread very well. It also misses a feature on our old Krups that I really liked: Old Krups had a matte colored aluminum plate on top that allowed you to heat something on the top of the toaster. And, since it was removable and matte color it was easy to keep clean. You won't want to try heating up anything on top of this toaster; you'll ruin the finish. Overall, good toaster but I liked the older Krups better.

Simply the best toaster I have ever had

THIRD toaster ordered from Amazon. First was a Dash. Toasts unevenly. Second was a Cusimax. Toasts unevenly. This one also toasts unevenly. WTH?BTW: Our old Dash worked perfectly for over 5 years until it too started to toast unevenly. But at least its not burning bread like these. And yes, I turned it way down to almost the lowest heat and still either burnt on one side or didn't toast on the other side. But this toaster was definitely the worst one yet for unevenness.

The T-Fal TT7495002 SS Avante Deluxe 4-Slice Toaster purchased in January 2007 from Amazon finally died (slowly - we limped along with a broken handle for a good 6 months looking for a replacement). I probably would have purchased another T-Fal but I didn't like that we could never get the old interior actually clear of crumbs and debris and it stayed hot for a fair bit after the toasting was over. (For reference we have it sitting on a 2-inch thick Boos block that we pull over for toasting and push back underneath upper cabinet overhang in order to conserve counter space.) Other than that the T-Fal toasted all thicknesses of bread as well as bagels and re-heated waffles beautifully.I thought long and hard about investing in a Dualit because I am in love with my Dualit mixer, but, in the end, I simply could not swallow the hefty price tag for the one that I wanted (with the sandwich cage).The T-Fal died unexpectedly and I ordered the Krups on a whim. I figured, at the very least, it would be a suitable interim toaster. I've used it now for nearly a month and I like it enough I stopped looking for another toaster!The chrome is easy to wipe clean and stays cool to the touch (everywhere except right outside the toaster slots). It is light and extremely easy to remove crumbs. The browning dial clicks at each setting so you know you are increasing/decreasing and the buttons for Bagel, Defrost, ReHeat and Cancel all light up nicely and click when activated as well. Personally, I like that the top button for Cancel lights up during each toasting session making it a no-brainer about which button to push to stop toasting.There are several different preferences in this house for toast - from hot bread to very crispy - and more for Bagels and Waffles (we make our own Belgian waffles and then freeze them for a quick re-heat). Our bread is both pre-sliced (Alvarado Street Bakery) in both thin and regular widths as well as self-sliced in all manner of thicknesses from fresh loaves. We've sliced rounds, loaves, biscuits and even cookies a couple times and have not found the size issue to be bothersome. The center slices of rounds are usually cut in half to slip right into the slots but other than that just pop it + toast.I have not had the problem with uneven toasting about which others have complained. Since it was a new toaster/brand I EXPECTED a learning curve. By the end of the first week of use I found preferred settings/re-toast for darkness options for everything we toast. It wasn't hugely frustrating for me, but, then, as I said, I expected to put the time into figuring out a new machine.I'd say if you are looking for an inexpensive, good-looking chrome 2-slice toaster, give this one a whirl. Expect to spend a little bit of time to find your preferred settings and you may find yourself as pleased as I in this little gem!