Panasonic - 2.2 Cu. Ft. Full-Size Microwave - Stainless steel

I doubt I would pay full price for this but with the points I had and the sale they were running at the time, my final price was about $110. I added the 4 year geek squad protection because some reviews complained about a door latch issue. So we've have this microwave now for about 2 months and that is long enough for me to write a honest review. As far as looks go this thing is gorgeous. If you have other stainless steel appliances then all the more reason to buy it. It really is nice on the eyes. I like the blue display because it reminds me of a more modern, digital color. The LED interior light is nice too. Both are such a step up from the old Sharp this replaced. I recently used the Sensor cooking setting on some cold, prepared meals from the local Wegmans. Meatloaf, mixed roasted vegies, and mac & cheese. It was two plates of each. We use microwave covers (real common, the hard plastic types, acrylic, with the hole in the top) and I had to switch them after the first cycle. So two cycles total. It was perfect. I have used the defrost cycle too and set the weight to what I thought it would be, guessed, as I was pre-heating frozen meatballs (2 oz angus) to add to spaghetti sauce. It did a really nice job and didn't overcook them at all. I had to run a couple cycles, rotating my balls in between. It was a huge success. Mostly we use it like 99% of people that have a microwave and that is to heat things up that aren't hot enough. It works perfectly for that. I'm sure any self respecting chef would not admit to using a microwave to cook an entire meal but it seems to have enough bells and whistles to do it. We have a convection oven for those tasks so..... I do like it, as I said, it is nice to look at and matches our other appliances, it is quiet, and produces the results I would expect from a device that costs as much as it does, full price. I would never pay that much, so look for sales. But that is just me. Oh, some people write negative reviews about the knob and how it is harder to operate. I'm not sure what to say about that but for my wife and I, it is not an issue. I actually like it now more than touching all the buttons I had to on the old one. I do use the power level in addition to timed heating and for me, it is perfect in every way. Sure, it will take some time to adjust to the new power if you have a lesser power version, and yes, the knob will be different but all in all, it's not a rocket your putting on the moon, it's a room temp cup of coco you are reheating to make hot again......

After reading many reviews that seemed to indicate that all the various brands have problems, even if top rated in Consum. Reprts., finally decided that the dissatisfied are the most motivated to take the time to write a complaint/review. Even so, some important issues are noted. I also have experienced that many of the loudest complaints regarding things other than outright part failure appear to be heavily influenced by impatience, a lack of basic manual reading, a misunderstanding of what is to be expected, or a lack of common sense. I like my unit very much after 2 months use. It cooks very well, evenly, fast. Easy to use the dial to set time. Unit is very classy looking. It does take some counter space, so premeasure. Large glass turntable, easily removable to clean, needs to be placed properly on hub and guides but works fine. Like all things with plastic parts, don't force it to turn by hand or it could break, but otherwise no problem. There are a number of auto features that truthfully we have not made use of yet, but will probably try, such as the sensing auto cook that stops after sensing steam. So far, we have used it like we always have in a hectic busy family, setting a time and Start. Can see through glass OK to see if need to stop early. Sound level is comfortable, beeps too. Both better than my previous brand. I ordered online for instore pickup. Very smooth system. So far, I highly recommend this model. Apparently all microwaves want a dedicated 20amp circuit, and have for many years (who knew?). If your house outlets are standard 15amp lines and you choose to continue to use one, be sure not to use the same line for your coffee maker, etc. Circuit may trip, or line may overheat. I suggest using a surge protector on the line like your PC to protect the electronics from degredation from spikes/brownouts/RFI.

This is the fourth full size Panasonic Microwave we have owned in several years. We like the capacity, power, and the easy to use settings. The first lasted eight years and the second is in our bar, still working great after 10 years. We purchased the third one for our kitchen, but it lasted only 26 months and then died abruptly in late March, 2008. It came on for a few seconds, then - nothing. I thought we just got a lemon, but still thought highly of their product. So I looked in local stores and online for a month before I was able to locate the large 2.2 cubic foot model in stainless steel - each store listed it as 'unavailable at this time'. I then called Panasonic and asked if they were experiencing a problem and was informed that it should be available soon. I continued checking frequently and found it in late April. I picked up the new one on April 29, 2008, and it died today AFTER ONLY 10 WEEKS!!. Same problem as the last one - came on for a few seconds and then an error message: 'H97'. I checked the owner's manual for the explanation: POSSIBLE CAUSE: "This displaying indicates a problem with the microwave generating system." REMEDY: "Please contact an authorised Service Center (see page 27). I kept the box and it's going back tomorrow and I will purchase an LG and try it. I believe Panasonic has some major quality issues right now.

I don’t understand why Panasonic felt they had to abandon the traditional numeric entry keypad we are all so accustomed to. The dial that must be used to set time and weight functions is a big nuisance. It takes more time to precisely set the cook time and weights when programming for a cook or defrost session. I always thought one of the big features of microwave ovens was to provide for fast and convenient cooking? There’s nothing fast or convenient about having to use an analog dial to set time and weight numbers into a cooking process. PANASONIC, what were you thinking? As nice as your machine looks and functions in cooking, it is equally disappointing in how we have to program it for use. I don’t know if Panasonic did any consumer based product tests before they settled on this design but I find it difficult to believe the average user would prefer this design over a traditional digital keypad. My guess would be they chose this design based strictly on the cost of production materials, and no consumer based blind product testing. This machine is nice looking and functions as advertised. However, because of its size, it would have been nice if they had used a 90 degree AC plug in order to give me the opportunity to save another inch of counter top space from in front of the machine. Bottom line here, is that if you can tolerate the analog dial for setting time and weight functions you will like this machine. The inverter technology is the biggest advancement in microwave oven technology that I’ve seen since their introduction.

The Panasonic NN-SD987SA is a full sized 2.2 cu.ft. microwave, that looks and works great. We have been Panasonic microwave fans for decades, and this one was a replacement for a 27 year old model that was going strong, but didn't match our kitchen remodel. The NN-SD987SA is very spacious, you can cook a roast or even a small turkey in it, and it fits most pans or casseroles that might not otherwise fit in smaller microwaves. The inverter technology isn't a gimmick and really does heat more quickly and evenly, and at 1250 watts, it doesn't take forever to heat things. I've had no issues with the door yet, although I am dreading the day when it fails... Our old microwave door had no button to press to open the door, but I've had other models at work fail when the little plastic piece inside the latch broke, rendering the entire microwave unusable. The digital dial is smooth and easy to use, and the buttons have a nice feel to them that seems sturdy. Overall an excellent deal for the price ($150), and we are happy although we've only had it for 2 months. We were without a stove for three weeks, and having this large capacity microwave was a lifesaver. It is very deep, and it is the largest countertop microwave that we could find, that was shorter than an undermount model, and fit the space we needed it to fit. Overall, very pleased.

If I could give a half star or a quarter star, I would. It died in the middle of a meal after 7 weeks of working fine. 7 weeks! Sure, it's covered under warranty, but... Best Buy, which previously made warranty repairs painless, said that Panasonic wouldn't let BB handle the repair. The BB lady (very nice) printed out the ticket with the Panasonic repair number...which was disconnected. After an hour going through the online robo-tree Panasonic number for customer support, I got a human who asked me the exact same questions the robo-tree had asked. Finally he bounced it up to a supervisor who determined that yes, failure after 7 weeks qualified for warranty. Now more fun...I live in a metro area of over a million and he said I had to ship it to their center 90 miles away in a city a quarter the size of mine. Okay...even though I had the original box, I had to wait for them to FedEx me an "official return box"--a few days. Then I had to arrange for a FedEx pickup (I hauled it directly to a FedEx office instead to save time). About two weeks after it broke, we got a repaired microwave back. When it works, this microwave works great. Ours died after 7 weeks, and the combination of Best Buy and Panasonic made the warranty repair horrible. I will no longer buy any Panasonic products because of this cumbersome process, starting with Panasonic giving Best Buy an invalid bogus telephone number for repairs.

It has two popcorn settings, neither of which matched the weight of our bags. I burned and/or underpopped 6 or 7 bags before figuring that I needed 1 min. and 50 seconds on 80% power for Act II popcorn bags. The instant minute is annoying and not flexible enough. Our old MW had instant 30 secs, and no need to push start. The rotary timer dial works faster the faster you turn it, so there are no absolute settings. It always takes some searching to find the right times. Ten second increments after the first minute also mean you cannot be precise to a 15 second time marker. This is very annoying. Lastly, once the timer has gone off, it does not give any reminders. So, If I am out getting the mail and don't hear it, or the phone goes off at the same time, it takes a while to realize that I missed it and my food or boiling water is ready and cooling. It cooks my food well, but I truly wish that I had stuck with my old brand with the keypad entry. Its popcorn setting wasn't efficient, either, but it only took two tries on full power to learn what it took to get a good bag of popcorn. I bought the Panasonic because I thought the other one wore out too quickly, and that Panasonic would last longer. Now I am stuck with it for however much longer that is!

Get the extended warranty no matter what type of microwave you buy. Gone are the days of a microwave that lasts 10 years. This Panasonic NN-SD987s (beautiful device - not cheap) displayed a H98 error code (filament blown - not user repairable) 16 months after purchase. I had read other people say the same thing (some had it happen days after purchase). The microwave has such an attractive look that I could not resist buying it, but thank goodness I had read the reviews that predicted the certainty of premature element failure. Yee Hah! I have the coverage. I will never buy a microwave again without it. By the way, when you read the "Extended warranty policy", they have the right to give you a cash card equal to the product "replacement cost." What that means is that when they do that your extended warranty is over -- it doesn't extend to the next item that you get to replace the item that is in the trash. RESULT: They don't need to cover your appliance for the full term that you purchased. You cannot fight it -- you just need to know those are the rules.