Sharp R-530ES 2-Cubic-Foot 1200-Watt Microwave, Stainless Steel and Black

Lots of power, looks good stacked over the Jenn-Air Pro Style oven
This is my second Sharp microwave; we bought it to stack over the Jenn-Air Pro Style oven in our kitchen remodel. (I bought the built-in installation kit elsewhere.) Like my previous Sharp, this thing is *powerful*. It cuts the cooking time listed on the instructions for most microwave items by half or close to it. The defrost mode is excellent. Having a carousel makes cooking more even.

All in all, it would be hard to find a better microwave at anywhere near this price point or even significantly above it.

*****Editing the review in Jan 2012 to add some longer term observations.

Still powerful, still looks great and cooks great. The door latch has developed a small issue that takes a little noodling around to resolve. As near as I can tell, what happens is that after a large number of door opening cycles, the hinges get either loose or slightly "sprung." At that point when you hit the door release it won't open because it's not as solidly...

Same failure of product twice; stay away
We bought this unit when we redid our kitchen in 2002. After a few years, the metal piece inside on the right side seemed to wear away and the oven caught fire. We replaced the unit with an identical unit bought on Amazon (no criticism of them). After about two years, the new unit had the exact same problem: the unit seemed to wear away in the same spot and caught fire. In both cases, there are smoke marks in the same spot, on the inside right near a metal panel.
I am of the opinion that this unit is not safe and seems to have a design or manufacturing defect. Also, the second unit we bought was noisier and seemed to have some sort of mechanical problem, based on the noise it made when in use. If i can find another unit to fit the built in space and trim kit, i will buy that over the Sharp unit. I will also be trying to contact Sharp to see if they have any response to this problem. I will report in if i do hear anything from them.

Sharp R-530ES
Nice unit but vibration noise when operating. Bought 2 reconditioned units from other vendors and both were defective.

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