We just ordered a Bosch oven (800 series)after comparing with Profile, Frigidaire and KitchenAid.

All the Bosch ovens have hidden bake element. The 500 and 800 convection ovens have three heating elements--bake, broil, convection--while the 300 has two heating elements, bake and broil.

They all seemed like good ovens. One thing that pushed us into the Bosch camp was the broiler element--it's recessed, which adds usable space and safety, it's wide, and it's pretty powerful at 3600 watts. (In comparison, the Profile broiler is 2400 watts. The Profile convection element is 2500 vs. 2000 for the Bosch, but that didn't seem as important to us as the broiler ratings.)

The KitchenAid seemed very solid but lacked a keep-warm feature and had the broiler hanging low into the cooking area.

The Bosch racks were surprisingly thin and flimsy-seeming. We decided we could live with them.

The Frigidaire "Pro" oven (PLEB30T9FC) seemed to be the best value for the dollar--it looked good, seemed solid, and had lots of features, including double convection with three elements and keep-warm, for far less money. It seemed underpriced, in fact, and logically, we probably should have chosen it. I guess we were also swayed by the styling of the Bosch and the fact that it seems a little exotic overall.

I can't comment on reliability, but we got a very good price on the Bosch from Sears, and bought their 5-year service contract, so any headaches will be theirs to share.

I have to say I keep mulling over in my mind why I have passed over the Frigidaire. Do I really equate price with better quality? Part of it is that I has such I nightmare with the Whirlpool Gold ovens that I feel like Frigidaire is a lateral move in quality, but I can find no information that Bosch is more reliable. Will I really miss the extra features of a Bosch or GE profile given that it is 30-40% more? Or, as you say, is Bosch more exotic and is that the appeal?

We came close to selecting the Frigidaire. I can't explain our choice of the Bosch on totally logical grounds--I guess we were just being human at Sears that night (which is okay).

Dogmommy, are you saying these prices are for a single or double wall oven?

Sorry, double wall ovens, with all the other stuff I forgot to include that!

Which is the confusion for me about the Frigidaire, their double wall ovens are BOTH convention and much cheaper ($1700) so from what I can tell it just has a fan without an extra element like the Bosch 500 & GE profile. I'm going by the information on this board that the Bosch 300 doesn't have the same convection since it's not clear on Bosch's site (or I'm not looking in the right place). I've called several appliance dealers (including Yale Electric in Boston) and they know less about the ovens than I do, except for some pattern sales pitch. I'm not sure any of those people actually cook.

Dogmommy, the Frigidaire PLEB30T9FC, their top of the line 30-inch double wall oven in stainless steel, does have European convection with a third heating element surrounding the fan, in both upper and lower ovens. It lists for $2549 and can easily be found for less than $2,000--sometimes much less.

Monya40, when we looked at the Frigidaire, it didn't seem "generic." It had more features than, and looked and felt more substantial than, similarly priced GE, Maytag, Kenmore, Whirlpool and Amana ovens. I haven't used the Frigidaire--just conveying my shopping impressions.

Monya40, I am confused
This is from GE website:
Convection Bake
Provides ideal convection airflow throughout the oven cavity using True European convection, delivering consistent baking results.

Here is a link that might be useful: GE profile single oven

If the oven has a 3rd element then you will be getting the european convection. I tell you what go to www.wisegeek.com
I think you will find a lot of answers on this web site.. I am afraid I may be just confusing you more.. Dont get me wrong, Frigidaire is built well.. I am just saying that frigidaire is the generic of all brands. You will find that many appliance stores calls this brand the generic brand.. There are just as many generic medicines that are just as good as the name brands.. From experience, I have seen more repairs being done on whirlpool and frigidaire products than any other brands.. from experiences: this is how appliances are rated
1 thermador
2 bosch
3 ge
4 wolf
5 whirlpool products which are maytag,amana,jenn air, they own about 13 companies now
6 frigidaire
This is going by how many service calls we recieve on each of these items.. Top one being the least the bottom one being the most..

Thanks for the wonderful information all. There is some confusion about the Bosch 300 series. It DOES have convection in the upper oven, but not the "true European" convection as the 500 & 800. (I think in previous years it didn't.) So it is probably like my current Whirlpool Gold, which I think I've used the convection twice. Which of course begs the question: Will I use the convection enought to justify the cost?

I am intrigued by the speed cook function for frozen, does it work well for you monya40? Unfortunately with two pre-schoolers, one very picky, I find myself using my oven mostly to cook french fries right now. I do cook pizza often (from scratch). My hope is this oven will last long enough for me to get back to my more interesting meals & cooking. But it does make me wonder if I should be paying a $500-700 premium for an item that I appear to do fine without.

Interesting list of repairs, which of course is the exact opposite of Consumer Reports. I have found them completely useless for any appliance shopping anymore and tend to disagree with their findings 90% of the time.

The speed preheat in Bosch is of interest to me, as with the 2 hour self-clean. But I wonder if it actually uses any less energy or just has more elements going and uses the same amount of energy in less time.

I do like the indea of a built in temperature probe, which is in the Bosch 500 & GE Profile.

Here is where my thoughts are right now:

I like the Bosch 500 look/feel the best for several reasons, including the fact is has an actually KNOB on it. Not sure why I want one, but I like them.

I feel like the GE Profile might be the safest bet for long term repair since that's what I hear from many people, and that is important to us between the nightmare we had with the Whirlpool and that repair vans can't get up our driveway from December to March. (Which is usually when the oven breaks.)

Yet, the frugal person in me wants to go for the Fridgidaire, which will probably be just fine and I won't notice the difference as long as the oven doesn't quit out for the third Thanksgiving in a row. (Seriously, last two Thanksgivings.)

dogmommy, I am right there with you. Any update on what you chose?

We considered the GE Profile and Bosch 800 Series ovens for our kitchen appliance upgrade. Both offered similar options and capabilities (for the type and amount of cooking we do), so ultimately the style and apparent built quality were the deciding factors. For style we liked the Bosch slightly more that the GE. As far as built quality the fit/finish (in automobile terms) was far superior on the Bosch. We could not get past the GE's poor fit of the stainless front door panel, especially on the edge and the way it did not seal with the glass on the door exterior.
We ended up with the Bosch 30" convection double oven and seperate Bosch microwave. They look great installed.

Cuse69

I can't say that I have experience with Bosch, GE Profile or Frigidaire ovens. However, when comparing kitchen appliances I agree that it's more informative to find information here than in the store or from a salesperson! If you're looking for more appliance opinions, you can find reviews at www.viewpoints.com/ovens -- they should have what you're looking for.

Here is a link that might be useful: Viewpoints -- Ovens

sara_ anne, thanks for the link but it did not go to an ovens page. When I navigated there myself, single wall ovens ended up giving me 1 review for a range.

I throw in my 2 cents here as I have done my share of research.
I should say that I am baffled as to why wall ovens are so fracking expensive. If someone can explain that to me I would be grateful.
Right or wrong I ordered the single mid-line Bosch.
Why? I liked the look & feel of it.
None of the "American" brands have a look that I liked and didn't seem appreciably cheaper.
FWIW, Bosch and Thermador are made in the same factory and have the same "guts". Thermador has a heavier look and is more automated in its feature set.
I really don't care about having a separate convection element. Convection is all about even heat throughout the oven. Nothing more, nothing less.
I'm sure the extra element is better but in real world usage I'm a bit skeptical that anyone could taste the difference.
IMO, energy use should be a non-concern as what you're after is an excellent end result.
I've never heard anyone say, gosh those snickerdoodles are awesome and only used .5 kilowatt hours!!
Why someone would use convection when broiling a steak is beyond me. As much as possible I only want to heat one side of the meat at a time.
I don't want the underside to be pre-cooked before turning.
If I had it to do over again. I think I'd buy the bottom line Bosch, order the telescoping rack separately and save a couple hundred bucks.
But that's just me.

Dogmommy, my oven just quit yesterday. Orginally I was going to replace it with the GE Profile. I have been planning its demise for some time. Now that it has dropped dead, I'm now leaning toward the Electrolux. I love the idea of the roller shelves. And I really like the look, at least in the pictures. The price, at least in my area, is actually cheaper. Just something more to throw in the mix.

housefairy, I am also currently leaning toward the Electrolux (just the normal one, not the Icon). GE Profile and possibly the Bosch (500? or 800?) are in close second. We did decide against the GE Monogram - though I really liked it functionally, especially being able to leave the rolling racks in during self-clean, we just plain don't like the industrial look. We do love the Electrolux telescoping racks. I need to see the Bosch in person again. Also, Sears said they would have the Icon on display starting in a couple weeks - it will be the first I have seen it in person.

FWIW, in my area, GE Profile is about $1800 (Black), Electrolux is $1799 (Black, and this price appears to be fixed across retailers), Monogram is $2475 (SS only, store said this is builder price), Bosch 500 about $2k (Black) and Bosch 800 about $2100 (SS only). We were planning on going Black but the Electrolux matching MW apparently comes only in SS.

Getting in late here, but it's important to note a few things about the Fridgidaire/Elux lines. The Fridgidaire name is actually owned by Electrolux. Elux is pretty much the #1 or #2 name brand in Europe and is gettin ready to make a big splash here in North America (we've all seen Kelly Ripa!).

It's looks like the GE name is really starting to slip, so I would certainly consider the Fridge/Elux lines anywhere GE might be in the decision making process.

We have had nothing but trouble with our Thermador SC301TP. The electronic guts of it fail about every year. The door springs fail every 3 years. We are looking to replace it because it has broken again. Our repair company says that Thermador has the highest repair rate of any appliances. If Bosch ovens are really the same as Thermador then do not buy them either.

Thermador is extremely aggravating when it comes to honouring their warranty. Yet another reason to stay as far away from them as possible.

I ordered the GE double oven Product
JT980SKSS
for my make over. My last 2 ranges have been GE and never a repair. My current one is 9 years old and it will replace my old one in a rental of ours. The rental has my previous GE range that is 19 years old now needs it's first repair!

Bumping this -- msgreatdeals, how do you like the GE double oven?

gE wall oven