Sometimes marketed as AirFry microwave combos, do this things actually work as both appliances or they really just microwaves?
I assume they do both, they are different technologies. However the saying applies, “Don’t half ass two things, whole ass one thing”. Still, it’d be nice to free up counter space…
I’m not much help I know. I think they are better suited for sharing space with the oven though, since the air fryer is a very basic oven compared to a microwave.
Yeah - it’s a space and efficiency thing for me. I don’t have the counter space for a dedicated air fryer and I also don’t want to use a whole ass oven in the summer, but a small convection oven would be great. For as little as we use the microwave, I’d probably be fine with a “over the range” option as long as it as the ventilation built in like the microwaves do.
If I were in your situation, first I’d decide how long until a new oven is needed. If you’re staring down a new oven anyway, I’d go that route, most have an air fryer option that doesn’t heat the whole house and use just a drawer or something with it. However, if you’re happy with your oven, they yeah I’d look at a ton of reviews and do your homework, then I could see doing this combo unit.
Oh - a new range is on the horizon, I didn’t realize they had convection/airfry drawers though. I assumed I’d have to spring for one of those fancy split oven options to not have to heat the whole thing up. I’ll definitely keep an eye out. Thanks!
Yeah those I hear work a lot better since they’re already a convection oven, they just have better modes and ways of doing it with air fryers. Personally that’s where I’d start looking. Good luck!
I’m not a fan of single-purpose appliances (microwave notwithstanding), and I recently got a toaster oven / air fryer / grill (so no microwave) and I love it. Haven’t used my full size oven in the 3 months I’ve had this one.
The “Trivection Oven” (as seen on 30 Rock) is a real appliance, and includes microwave heating as one of the 'vections. I believe the microwave heating is just to speed up cooking with the thermal and convection heat for crisping.
Are they a gimmick? Honestly, no clue. I’ve not used one, but the logic checks out and Alton Brown approves.
With three kinds of heat you can cook a turkey…in twenty-two minutes.
Yeah - I’ve seen some higher-end “speed oven” versions of the low end “over the range” type I had in mind. At the price they’re asking for the high end ones I’m gonna assume they must work 😅
Yeah. I read a bit more since I commented, and Alton Brown doesn’t just approve - he actually helped design it.
The cost of those is definitely why I still have a mono-vection oven haha.
I have one in my RV and it does a decent job at air frying and still a good microwave. It works great as a single person. I mainly use it to roast veggies and reheat leftovers.
I’ve got one by LG and like it pretty well. The microwave is great. The air fryer is slightly lower temp then I’d like and so takes longer then a dedicated device, but it will eventually get the job done (a batch of tater tots for 2 people takes about 30 minutes to get right, but they do come out pretty good). As a connection oven it is great and I’ve enjoyed being able to do small cook jobs without the need to heat up the oven (I’ve made cupcakes in it multiple times).
it is definitely worse then a good counter top convection oven and air fryer combo, but I don’t have the counter space for that (which is also why I wanted to get rid of my original air fryer).
All in all, it isn’t as good as I was HOPING it would be (and was stupidly pricey), but I would buy it again if it broke. Based on reviews, I got the best one made (as far as I could tell) for an over-the-range choice.
It has a setting to both convection bake and microwave at the same time but I’ve never found a reason to try it.
I mean I guess as long as the microwave part is no worse than the (mediocre) one it’s replacing, it’s a net gain.
Sounds like it might be a valid option as long as my oven expectations aren’t to high
I had one. The microwave worked as one would expect. The air fryer function was less than stellar, but i don’t have a lot of experience with air fryers, so it may have been fine. It did heat up and crisp things decently, but it took longer than the packaging for the foods I heated up indicated. It didn’t really make French fries from potatoes too well, but that mighr have just needed more testing. I quickly gave up and just used the wok.
I never tried it with things I’d usually put in the oven.
I have a countertop Breville and an air fryer oven and a microwave. I use both ovens enough that I’d suggest saving space elsewhere. You mentioned that an over-range microwave is an option which I would highly recommend.
An uncomfortable truth: There is no such thing as an air fry oven.
Yes, you heard me. This is just a marketing gimmick.
“Air fry” is just a convection bake preset. Convection bake at 425 to 475° F depending on what you’re doing and optionally use a perforated rack. Hey presto! You’re “air frying!”
Thus you can air fry in any convection oven if you know what you’re doing. Consumers just like to see a separate button for it now that it’s the current fad.
The convection microwaves have similar baking/air frying/roasting/whatever capability as a countertop toaster oven style air fryer. What they specifically lack in almost all cases is the broiling and toasting element at the top, like a normal toaster oven has, which blasts items directly below it with infrared. Their heating element is instead fairly low wattage and hidden behind the convection fan, which is usually located on the side wall of the oven cavity. This has the knock-on effect of most models taking a surprisingly long time to preheat. You can bake and air fry and so forth in them, but this may take longer than you expect.
As far as microwave functionality, they work just fine because there’s functionally no difference between this and a normal microwave except that usually the convection models have a slightly lower magnetron output. Instead of 1000 watts it’ll probably be 950 or even 850.
Never fret about the brand of your microwave because almost all of them are OEM commodity junk made in China, regardless of whose name is on the outside. I believe Sharp, Toshiba, and LG are the primary remaining manufacturers of microwave components, particularly the magnetron tubes, and practically everyone else just buys their parts from these three if they’re not just subcontracting their factories to make the entire things for them wholesale. Current GE microwaves (their over the range models, anyway) are 100% manufactured by LG, for instance.
Except the airflow ratio between air fryers and typical convection ovens are usually way different. Having both, the air fryer will get food way crispier way faster.
Air fryer ovens, not the dedicated air fryers with the pull out basket.
Convection ovens are not new. I had one of these combos back in the early '10s before I had ever heard the marketing term “air fryer.”
They’re fine at what they do, and if space is a concern, I’d say go for it.
