Russell Hobbs Distinctions 2 Slice Toaster

Excellent toaster not much you can say about it

Its big, much bigger than I thought for a 2 slice toaster and takes up quite a bit of room. However, the slots are wide and long which fits the artisan bread with room to spare. Toaster gets too hot on the top and crumbs burn around the openings which is very difficult to remove without scratching the finish.

Elegant looking toaster that accommodates thicker and longer slices of toast. Easily adjustable. Downsides are that it does not toast evenly - one side always seems more done than the other, and the top more done than the bottom. The timer design is poor as the numbers are hidden behind the casing, and the gaps between numbers are large so even the current setting might not be visible until you twist the dial to see what number is before or after. Overall it’s fine, but I wouldn’t buy it again.

Elegant looking toaster that accommodates thicker and longer slices of toast. Easily adjustable. Downsides are that it does not toast evenly - one side always seems more done than the other, and the top more done than the bottom. The timer design is poor as the numbers are hidden behind the casing, and the gaps between numbers are large so even the current setting might not be visible until you twist the dial to see what number is before or after. Overall it’s fine, but I wouldn’t buy it again.

The absolute best thing about this toaster is that it fits my homemade (breadmaker) bread. We are a family of 7, so we bake a generous sized loaf - and most toasters on the market don't even fit bread from a standard supermarket sliced loaf. Slots are 17.2cm long, 3.5cm wide and 12.5cm deep (so not ridiculously oversized like many long slot "2 slice" toasters - which in reality can only fit one piece of sliced bread at a time). I'm not blown away by the looks, but the "boxiness" of the toaster means we can actually have two toasters side-by side (one with the press down handle facing towards us; the other facing away) and cook 4 proper slices of toast at once - which is not possible with any 4 slice toasters I've found on the market. The toaster browns fairly evenly - one side perhaps slightly more than the other - but I prefer to toast in two cycles with a gap between the two (for crispiness) so it's no bother to flip my toast. Compared with our previous (nearly 20 year old) toaster, it toasts very quickly, and the lift-and-look function is extremely useful - as is the "little bit more" function. Personally, I find the LED timer unnecessary. It does not have a bagel function, which is not a problem for me as I don't regularly eat them. If I did want to toast something on just one side, I'd use my grill. Because of the slot size, I have actually bought 4 of these toasters - 2 for use now (as a "4 slice" toaster) and 2 for the future when these ones pack in: I'm not holding out much hope for manufacturers to start producing toasters with sensible slot sizes within the lifespan of the first pair, and I can't face the rigmarole of finding something suitable another time!