Comparison Zanussi ZCV9553G1W white vs Zanussi ZCV550G1XA stainless steel

Controls that are directly responsible for adjusting the power of the burners. At the same time, other control elements can be provided in the design. For example, rotary knobs are often combined with buttons, to which additional functions are designated.

— Rotary knobs. The traditional, most common option, found in hobs of all types — both gas and electric — and price categories. Rotary knobs are quite convenient and functional while being simple in design and inexpensive.

— Pop out knobs. A variation on the rotary knobs described above, in which the control knobs can be recessed into the control panel. The specific design may be different: in some models, the handle is recessed during operation; in others, it remains recessed until the corresponding burner is in use and pops out from the panel during operation. This design gives the hob a neat appearance, reduces the number of places where dirt can accumulate, and makes the front panel easier to clean. Unlike rotary knobs, pop out knobs are mainly used in electrical models.

— Touch controls. Touch controls are found only in electric hobs. This option has several advantages. First, the touch controls look neat and have no protruding parts, making them easy to clean. Secondly, the control is carried out with light touches and req...uires minimal effort. Thirdly, touch controls give the stove a stylish and technological appearance. On the other hand, such stoves are quite expensive and may be inconvenient for some users who are accustomed to traditional rotary knobs. Therefore, relatively few touch control models are produced. Usually, it is compact hobs for 1 – 2 burners without an oven, where rotary knobs would not be very appropriate.

— Slider. A kind of touch control represented by sensitive tracks. To adjust the heating intensity of the burners or quickly access other settings of the hob, slide your finger along the corresponding touch scale to the selected value. The convenience of slider control also lies in the fact that you can immediately set the required heating power by clicking on a certain area of the scale.


— Push-buttons. Control, carried out exclusively with the help of buttons, is used very rarely in modern stoves. Most models with such controls are compact portable stoves for one or two burners: it is not always convenient to equip such devices with rotary knobs, but the buttons fit well into the design. They are also cheaper than touch controls. On the other hand, the price difference is not so great, and the buttons are somewhat less convenient to use and clean — mainly for this reason they are noticeably less common.

It is the volume of the oven provided in the stove. It s the maximum volume of products that can be placed in it without compromising work efficiency. Accordingly, a larger oven is useful for large volumes of cooking; on the other hand, such a capacity will significantly affect the price and dimensions of the stove.

If you buy a regular household stove with 4 burners and do not plan to cook a lot in the oven, you can not pay much attention to this parameter. The capacity of the oven is usually enough for most simple tasks like cooking a pie or baking chicken. But for more serious tasks, a larger oven may be required. Detailed recommendations on volumes can be found in special sources.

If there is an additional chamber (see below), this paragraph usually indicates only the volume of the main oven.

The highest temperature that the oven can reach during normal operation. The minimum value in modern models is 230 °C. However, even this low temperature is considered sufficient for most simple dishes. The average indicator can be called 240 – 250 °C. Such heating is provided by most modern ovens. And the most advanced models can heat up to 300 °C or more. Such capabilities will be useful for some specific recipes that require high temperatures.

— Thermostat — a device for adjusting and maintaining the required temperature in the oven. The presence of a thermostat relieves the user of the need to look after the cooking process. Instead, it is enough to set the thermostat to the desired temperature, and the stove will automatically maintain it.

— Timer. Countdown device: the user sets a certain time, after which an audible signal sounds. The specific functionality of the timer can be different — from the simplest rotary knob with an adjustment accuracy of +/-3 minutes to an electronic unit with a display that can count the time to the second and even turn off the stove at the end of the countdown (see "Auto switch-off"). However, this feature greatly simplifies the life of the user. It is more convenient to set the timer and wait for the signal than to keep track of time by the clock.

— Convection. The convection function provides additional hot air circulation and evenly distributes heat throughout the entire volume of the oven. It is useful for baking.

— Rotisserie fork. It is used for cooking several dishes, particularly shish kebab: products are strung on a rotisserie fork and rotated on it. It ensures consistent heating and baking. Often, the rotisserie fork is combined with a grill (see below), although this is not necessary. Also, this device can be...equipped with a drive from an electric motor for automatic rotation.

— Grill(electric or gas). In this case, the grill is an open heater installed in the oven chamber and designed to cook food due to thermal radiation; it can be used alone or in combination with other oven modes. The grill allows you to fry various foods effectively: for example, you can use it cooking meat with a characteristic crust, brown croutons, fry vegetables, etc. It is healthier than traditional frying.
As for the types of grills, electric grills are the most popular nowadays — they are simple in design, provide even heating, allow you to accurately adjust the mode and use many additional functions (up to automatic cooking programs). Such grills can be found even in gas ovens. But gas devices are used much less frequently: they are considered more economical but more complex in design and less convenient to adjust than electric ones.

— Steam cooking. The ability to use the oven for steam cooking. Cooking is carried out in the main chamber of the oven, and the steam comes from a special reservoir into which water is poured in advance. This method is considered more healthy than traditional cooking or, moreover, frying; often, it turns out to be optimal for people with dietary restrictions.

— Oven lighting. It is a lamp for lighting the interior of the oven. By turning on such a lamp, you can see the oven insides without opening it and without releasing heat. Yes, even with the lid open, the oven lighting can come in handy — for example, when removing products from a baking sheet (patties, pieces of cookies, etc.) or when cleaning the oven. Note that for the lighting to work, a mains connection is required, even if we are talking about a gas stove.

Dual-circuit burners are burners with the possibility of increasing the diameter.

Dual-circuit burners are only electric burners of the Hi-Light type or induction. Such a burner looks like several circles of different diameters with a common centre; each circle corresponds to one of the options for the working diameter that can be selected for the burner. The number of these options is usually 2 or 3. And if there is more than one dual-circuit burner, they may differ in the number of diameters available.

This feature allows you to optimally select the working size of the burner for the diameter of the dishes. This feature should not be confused with the oval dual zone (see below): the oval dual zone gives the burner an elongated shape, and the dual circuit burner remains round regardless of the selected size.

The presence of an oval dual zone on the hob. Such a heater is useful for working with appropriate elongated dishes (for example, oval roasting pots). In models with electric heaters (see "Burner type") the desired shape is provided by an additional segment installed close to the burner; the burner in normal mode works like a regular round one, and when the additional segment is connected, it turns into an oval. In gas models, a burner with an oval flame is installed, or two small burners located close to each other.

The type of automatic switch-off provided in the design of the stove.

Auto-off can be provided for the hob(hob), for the oven, or for both at once, regardless of whether the hob and oven are gas or electric. This function is implemented through a timer, after which the device turns off.

The connected load of the stove is the maximum electrical power consumed during operation. This parameter is indicated only for models that are equipped with at least one electric heater — burner (burners), oven or grill. It is the burners that are the highest consumption in terms of energy consumption; Features such as auto-ignition or oven lighting require little energy, a ordinary socket is enough for them.

First of all, the requirements for the power grid depend on this indicator: it must be able to provide such power without overload. It is worth noting that for household sockets the power limit is about 3 – 3.5 kW; with more power, you need to connect the stove to a 230 V network according to special rules. An alternative is a three-phase 400 V mains: most modern stoves with electric heaters allow connection to both 230 V and 400 V.