The Microwave Oven With A Mind of It's Own … SharpR-308H
Written: Jul 13 '04 (Updated May 02 '06)
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Pros: Small size, powerful, self cleaning, inexpensive.
Cons: Keypad is a little too small.
The Bottom Line: Looking for a replacement microwave that doesn’t take up the entire kitchen counter, cost a fortune or require a PhD to operate? Look no further than the Sharp R-308
Freak369's Full Review: Sharp R-308K 1100 Watts Microwave Oven
It’s hard to imagine a time without microwave ovens; just think what this world would be like if they’d never been invented – no microwave popcorn, meals that needed to be reheated on the stove, ice cold cups of coffee and having to wait forever for things to defrost. I, like most people, take my microwave oven for granted – it’s a necessity but something that you walk by twenty times a day without ever even giving it a second though. The ‘old brown bear’, as we affectionately called it, started to growl a little more than usual and the glass turntable inside would get stuck when anything of weight was placed on top of it. This in itself was free entertainment; the plate would sit on top of the little grooves and click away then all of a sudden start spinning around as if it unjammed itself … while this was amusing, it was also a good sign that I better start looking for a suitable replacement.
Since we use this mostly for popcorn, reheating food and beverages and defrosting, I didn’t need one of those monster sized models that every salesman tried to push on me. I eventually settled on the Sharp R-308H based on price, functions and size – all this and a nice looking control panel and under 35 pounds. If you are shopping around for a mid sized microwave oven that comes with an impressive warranty, this is definitely a model to check out! The easy to read digital display and LCD prompts are both great perks – something that I really didn’t expect from this based on the price but after the first couple of uses I realized exactly how archaic my old microwave was. This one will even stop and start cooking items – great for when you are multi tasking in the kitchen and can’t keep track of how long the basked potatoes have been cooking or when you need to allow food to set up between cycles.
Sharp R-308 Microwave Oven
Weighing in at about thirty five pounds, this small but extremely powerful microwave is a true workhorse. A great example of this is how quickly it boils water; my kettle sees a lot of action – at least three pots of tea a day – so the first time I put it inside this, force of habit compelled me to hit 4:00, the amount of time that the old microwave needed to heat it up to the proper temperature. Wasn’t I in for a shock when I reached in and grabbed the handle and felt how hot it was – but that was just the start – as soon as I dropped in the tea bags I saw the water start to “reboil” itself, an odd but interesting effect of superheating a liquid. I knew at that very moment that the $63.00 I paid for this little baby was well worth it. Sure there were others that had more features and that stainless steel one was oh so tempting – but for the amount of use that our kitchen microwave sees, this was more than adequate. The other models in this price range didn’t have a smooth opening door or recessed open and close button – two things that I really wanted from a newer model.
The control panel is flat so there are no individual buttons to deal with – this is both a pro and con since the press tabs are a little in the small side. I have a tendency to press the buttons with my nails – something that has already left a few sections of the keypad scratched. It’s not something that is visible but you can feel it when you press your finger to it. I had one hell of a time trying to figure out how to set the clock and since user manuals are something that I consider a last resort, I stood in the kitchen swearing at it – like that was going to get anything accomplished. The face of the control panel is completely flat so expect some mistakes when you first start using it – especially if you are used to one with larger buttons. There are several quick option buttons to choose from; popcorn, defrosting items according to weight and my favorite “minute plus” – press this button and it adds another sixty seconds to the timer – something that is a godsend when making popcorn and trying to figure out the best time to set it at. There’s nothing worse than waiting in front of the microwave and hearing those kernels just hitting that maximum pop then the timer goes off. There’s no way to restart it without running the risk of burning it … and that stinks, literally.
Another great feature to this unit is “the lock”, you can set it so that you have to press in a sequence of buttons to have it operate. This does not lock the door but prevents the oven from being turned on or activated. This is a great feature for those with younger kids – especially if they are in that “monkey see, monkey do” stage. If only I had this feature on my older unit, I wouldn’t have had to clean up some rather interesting messes when ‘someone’ wanted to make his own crayons from the nubbins of others. In addition to this, you can also program it so that there are no beeps or audible signals – great for when you want to heat something up without anyone else knowing about it [cough, pizza, Chinese food, cough]. But on a serious note, there are some people that can be dead to the world and not wake up even if a marching bang goes through the house – but let the gentle beep of a microwave off and they shoot out of bed like a rocket. Having this feature is great – whether you want to reheat on the sly or maintain “radio silence”. And speaking of silence, this is super quiet when in operation – the carousel spins effortlessly and there’s no loud noise when you press the button to open the door.
Instructions
The booklet that comes with this is pretty straight forward and easy to follow but I have never been one to really sit down and read instructions – I’m more of a “jump right into it” kind of person. The only thing that I trouble setting up was the clock and how to use the timer and both of these were explained clearly in the booklet. It walks you through all the necessary steps to setting up your new microwave including how to make sure it is properly grounded, cleaning the interior and exterior, warranty information, quick use guide and a handy chart for cooking common food items. The bulk of the booklet is in English however there is a quick reference guide on the back page in Spanish. If you need instructions in another language, you can contact Sharp directly at 1-800-BE-Sharp [1-800-237-4277] or visit their website at www.sharpusa.com.
The Technical Stuff
Let it never be said that I deny those interested in such tidbits the opportunity to read about them in one of my reviews … Regardless of how advanced this unit is, there are still precautions that need to be taken – mainly – no metal items! This microwave is UL approved so it’s been quality tested by Underwriters Laboratories and earned their benchmark seal. The three prong plug serves as a grounding device as well as a carrier for accurate voltage – this requires a 1580 watt / 13.5 amp supply so chances are if you are in an older house that doesn’t have modern wiring you will need to use a three prong adapter to use this – it could lead to blown fuses if you try to run too many things at once but I’ve never had this happen [yet that is]. Sharp says that this weighs about 32 pounds which seems pretty accurate. I had no trouble carrying it to my vehicle or getting it in the house and set up.
Outside dimensions: 20 ½ X 12 ¼ X 17 ¾
Inside dimensions: 14 ½ X 8 1/8 X 15 ¼
Warranty
This comes with a one year all inclusive warranty for parts and labor and a five year policy for the magnetron tube [something that still sounds like its from a comic book no matter how many times I hear the term]. You can have it serviced at a local authorized repair center or send it to Sharp directly however if you choose this, you will have to pay postage and insurance and deal with the possibility that it could be further damaged during the delivery process. Make sure that you fill in and mail in the warranty card so that your purchase is protected. If you make a purchase from a place like Target or Wal-Mart, make sure that you make a photo copy of the receipt in case you need to provide a proof of purchase since the thermal printed receipts do tend to wear or fade over time. Of course if you purchase this from a retail location, get it home and find something is wrong with it, you can return it for a replacement instead of having to go through the hassle of getting it repaired.
The Bottom Line
So far this has been a great replacement for the bear – it does take some getting used to but that can be said about anything that’s new. It’s the perfect size for apartments, recreational vehicles and places with limited amounts of space but at the same time will handle almost any microwave job you throw at it. For less than most others that offer the same options and features, this was the best pick for my wants and needs … if only they made the control panel a little more user friendly, it would be a perfect unit. Even so, the good qualities far outnumber the bad so this freak has to give the Sharp R-308 Microwave Oven two big thumbs up for price, quality, size, features and warranty!
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