Bosch PIE646E01E

Boils a saucepan of cold water in seconds. Can turn right down to simmer, or just keep food hot. Can dry off cooked veg without burning. Can set timer to switch off individual "burner". Has 17 heat levels so very precise. Timer beeps for 1 minute, unlike my oven which gives a brief ring, often missed. Warning light for residual heat in rings - can use the heat to warm plates.

Clean with washing up liquid, rinse and polish - looks amazing.

If saucepans are not 100% steel, they will heat up more slowly.

Cannot put dishes from the oven onto the hob as they scratch it.

Saved up for this after using one in a holiday cottage - best thing I've ever bought.

Be aware that you can only use pans containing steel and they must be smooth on the bottom.

The Bosch PIE646E01E Electric Hob is really easy to use after only reading the (short) manual once. I've used gas hobs all my life, and have never mastered the art of cooking on electric - until now! It's very responsive, and boils much more quickly than my gas one used to, ans it can be turned down to simmer or just keep warm instantly. It is so easy to clean as it has no knobs, hotplates or pan supports, and it looks very stylish. My children (17 and 10) can use it with no difficulty at all, and it has no naked flames or hot rings to burn themselves on.

If a pan of water has been boiling on the ceramic surface for a while, then the surface will obviously still be hot when the pan is removed, just from the residual heat of the pan. It is nowhere near as hot as a gas or electric hob would be, so I feel it is much safer. Also, the surface is flat, so pans don't tip or wobble.

Lastly, I accidentally spilled some water out of a pan, and it just stayed on the surface of the hob without turning to steam and limescale, so I assume that milk or gravy would not get burnt on if they boiled over. It still looks too lovely and new for me to risk testing it!

My ratings show less than 10 for durability and 'service and support', but that's only because I haven't had the hob long enough to really test those yet. So far it looks good. It was a bit pricey, but I'm sure that will change as induction hobs become better known.