I do not know about bosch but I did cook on Miele. It was my top choice until I cooked on it. The buttons were hard to use. I felt I had to press really hard. I really wanted the security of being able to instantly shut off heat to prevent boilovers etc. I went with Gagg instead. I did try Wolf and I liked it OK as well.

Here is an older thread comparing the two

Here is a link that might be useful: Miele vs. Bosch

Thanks Lalitha! Important consideration because I suffer from fibromyalgia and that could affect me negatively, besides the annoyance factor.

Great post you referred to as well. Thanks for your post!

Mary

I looked at them all!
I really wanted the gag - but wasn't available yet
Seriously looked at Miele (have DW and WM/Dryer), Thermador, JennAire(has a mega burner) and a late contender - Wolf.
I went with the Wolf - should be installed soon.

Mary, if you have a chance to actually cook on some of these cooktops at appliance stores or showrooms -- certainly Miele and Bosche, but perhaps others as well -- that would give you a better idea of how they should feel.

Is that not possible for you?

Turns out the Thermador Silver Mirror finish doesn't require
a 14" clearance as I thought. Not sure where I picked up that erroneous info but now I'm back to considering that cooktop as well. Does anyone have an opinion on that one?

We chose Bosch mainly for the way the controls work. We looked at Miele as well. I asked the salesperson at Ferguson's about differences and she said it basically came down to the look/style and the controls. It should arrive sometime next week (fingers crossed). Can't wait to get rid of our old smooth top electric cooktop

Mary, my DW and I were finalizing our appliance choices when your original post got me scrambling to look at the installation instructions for the Thermador. My wife really likes that mirror finish so the Thermador is her top choice. Like you, we are planning to put a 30" oven underneath to maximize cabinet space.

We had the chance to see both the Thermador and Miele induction cooktops live in their showrooms. I was leaning strongly towards the Miele before seeing the demos, but now I'm not so sure.

Thermador -
Pros - intuitive to use, probably like the Bosch models. Select hob, directly pick strength, boost if necessary. You can use the + and - as well, but I think that's only necessary to get to the 1/2 strengths, eg 5.5. Has individual timers for each element and supposedly a general timer.

Miele -
Pros - More powerful elements in general (the Thermador has the most powerful central one). Has a "suspend" function if I remember correctly where you can turn down all the elements at once until you return, then they go back to their original settings. Has individual timers as well. Not sure about the general timer, but I believe it does as well. Elements are "programmable" to different timed settings (check in manual). Warranty if you buy before the end of the month is 5 years (if installed by Miele) vs 2 years for Thermador.

For us, the Thermador would be a better fit, even if they didn't offer the mirror finish. The Miele looks great with the uniform top and it has great functions, but it may be a bit too complicated for people who haven't studied the manual. We have frequent stay over guests and we feel that people would feel comfortable using the Thermador after a short introduction. The Miele uses different symbols, etc which may take a little getting used to. However, if we were in a different situation, we might pick the Miele since it's more customizable and has a longer warranty and reputation.

Have you asked about warranties when you install ovens underneath cooktops? I'm pretty sure if they are the same manufacturer, the warranties remain intact. But what if they are different manufacturers? Eg Wolf oven under Thermador induction?

We looked at the Bosch and Miele in person and seriously considered the Gagg, especially after Plllog's comments about it on this forum. In the end, just could not justify the cost of the Gagg and went with its "poor relation" the Bosch. Have had it for about 4 months and have been very happy. Hob diameter and placement as well as the direct selection of hob strength gave Bosch the edge over the Miele for us. Of course, YMMV. Sounds like the Thermador would work for you if you prefer the finish.

We have discovered one big downside to induction cooktops, however. We have a very undisciplined young Beagle mix who is taller than our other Beagles, so he can just about rest his head on countertops. Since induction tops don't get as hot -- and cool off much faster -- he's discovered that the cooktop often has very tempting spills and splashes from cooking. Our old radiant cooktop stayed hot long enough to discourage him. He is discouraged no longer!

We are also considering an induction cooktop that could have an oven underneath. Since it sounds like a number of you have this same setup, we are wondering if you like it. If we go this route we will also have a second oven stacked below a speed oven.

Our concern is whether the oven controls are difficult to see and use. The kitchen designer says we would be much happier with stacked double oven and a sharp microwave-drawer underneath the cooktop. But, we would then lose the speed oven.

.

From a reliability standpoint, you are much better off with a single oven and a speed oven. I've have spent countless hours reading reviews about reliability and regardless of the manufacturer, the single ovens win the reliability contest, every time!

There's no way I would give up my speed oven (Electrolux) for even 2 more ovens. You can use the speed oven, used as just a regular bake or convection bake oven,or a speed oven, except for in the few instances that something might not fit in the speed oven, and except for the Thanksgiving Day Turkey,I have not run into any fit problems with the speed oven, alto of course I don't try to bake 3 rows of cookies in it @ the same time.

As far as under cooktop oven, the oven being below the cooktop will not be the handiest thing to get at, but look at as many ovens as you can. Due to the very large display and also the very large viewing window on the Elux Icon Ovens, ours which is below counter, but raised about 4-6"'s above floor is easy to see the large controls and look thru the big oven window without a lotta stooping. Add to that the fully gliding out racks, and at least, "To Me" it is probably one of the handiest ovens to use with under counter mounting.

Do check the installation guides for any cooktops and ovens that you are considering, in order to be sure that they allow "under/over installation for "Said Appliance"!

Good luck on your pending purchases!

Gary

Grrrrrrr I meant to post this in oven thread.

Disregard the above, I did post it in the right place.

Gary