Review of Panasonic NN-SN657S 1300-Watt 1-1/5-Cubic-Feet Sensor Microwave Oven (price, reviews)

[reviewer]

Panasonic NN-SN657S 1300-Watt 1-1/5-Cubic-Feet Sensor Microwave Oven

Rating: 2 out of 5

• Currently 2.0/5.0

Looking for a new microwave, I knew I wanted to purchase a Panasonic. We ended up going with the Panasonic NN-SN657S 1300-Watt 1-1/5-Cubic-Feet Sensor Microwave Oven. While the unit does cook as promised but has some drawbacks that caused us to not enjoy it as much.

It had the worst display we have ever seen on any product. It can only be read looking head-on. From any other angle, the numbers are virtually invisible or overlapped by the interior display "wires". Because we have an under-counter installation, we need to go down on one knee to read the display. There are also far too many buttons - too many "bells and whistles"; too much clutter. We see no use for breakfast, lunch and dinner buttons each with its own time limit. As with the display, the user needs to be at eye level to read the button labels and figure out what to push.

It is very difficult to adjust the power. You have to press the power button multiple times and enter the time, but it is hard to tell if the power is lower than full. After reading the manual, I finally understood. However, even if you can figure it out by the manual, it shouldn't be this hard, and isn't on other microwaves.

Another turn off of mine was the fake stainless steel sides that began to peel and tear - it looks very cheap.

While the Panasonic NN-SN657S 1300-Watt 1-1/5-Cubic-Feet Sensor Microwave Oven gets the job done, as in it heats up and defrosts food, it is not at all user friendly, and is shockingly poorly designed. I would not recommend this microwave, especially given the price point and lack of user friendly features.

Review by professional reviewer, Dec. 8, 2010