Choosing a microwave oven that's easy to use (view report contents)

Introduction

While many people have a microwave as well as an ordinary cooker, and use it mainly for fast cooking and reheating, for some elderly and disabled people a microwave can be an easier way to cook altogether:

• A wheelchair user, or someone living mainly in one room, can put a microwave exactly where it’s most convenient to reach and use. Cooking can be quicker and there’s less washing up.
• Some blind or partially-sighted people may feel safer cooking when there’s much less risk of burns from flames or elements.
• People with painful or limited use of their hands or arms may find the controls easier to use than those on a big cooker.
• People with learning difficulties, or who are easily confused, can select a model which is easy to set.

With the help of people with partial sight or arthritis in their hands or wrists, we assessed a range of microwaves to see how suitable they were.

Many microwaves have grills and convection cooking facilities. If you know exactly what sort of microwave you want, you can go straight to the Buying Guide which recommends models we found generally easy to use. If, first of all, you’d like more details of the different sorts, take a look at microwave types.

Many of the microwaves tested had a mixture of good and bad features for elderly people and people with disabilities. Click here for advice on finding an easy to use microwave. There is a also a special section of advice if you have poor sight or poor grip. This will also be useful if you’re looking at other microwaves in the shops.

You can also browse through the full test results for each microwave tested, including what convenience features they had, how well they worked and how easy people with disabilities would find them to use.

The guide was published in 2000, however contact details have been updated where possible.

There are also Ricability ease of use guides on a range of other domestic appliances. Check out our full publications list.

Ricability are grateful to Comet for funding this publication.