Hotpoint ActiveCook ACP778C/BA Built In Induction Hob - Black

Great flexibility and control, but can be a little sensitive

"We are a large household, routinely cooking for 10+, this hob provides great flexibility with up to 8 cookzones, although the rectangular layout means you can struggle to align several large pans simultaneously. Being able to set a timer on each segment is a great feature. Panel buttons can be a little sensitive, and if you get the front control panel wet it will all shut down. "

Great HOB, thoroughly recommended - perhaps arrange own installation?

"I continue to be very impressed with this Hotpoint induction HOB, it's extremely flexible having the facility to have 8 zones, or 4 or 6, or 2 or even 3 I think & perhaps using almost any combination of those for larger cooking zones (like one huge one if you've a pan/skillet big enough). I'm still somewhat used to gas but I am already a convert to induction. No more trying to get that lowest gas flame for a "keep-warm / simmer" scenario (the Hotpoint has 18 power levels). As you'd expect; cleaning it takes literally seconds plus, no more cutting my palm when inevitably, my hand slips across the gas thermocouples which protrude whilst I’m cleaning under the rings. Also, no noise with the rings or cleaning them, no greasy grille / pan supports which are even more of a challenge to clean. I could go on.

So the hob is capable of up to 7.2 ~ 7.4kw (though can be programmed very easily by the user, for a lower max current consumption - dictated by your circuits' capabilities or preference). It is really easy to use & has some built-in pre-programmed functions such as boiling water (which will boil the water then sound a friendly alarm to say it’s ready - perhaps a modern take on the old-fashioned whistling kettle except that it’ll reduce the power automagically!). The hob senses pans wherever they are on the hob too which is a neat feature. Also – functions for simmering, frying etc but once you're used to using an induction hob, they'll be less needed I imagine. The beeper is totally flexible too so those that don't like the beep being too loud - that's tailorable as well. When I was researching which ind. HOB to buy, I read a review of another brand; someone said that they didn't like that the power levels had to be changed by repeatedly pressing + & - buttons, so I looked to ensure that mines wasn't like that, so this one doesn't; instead, it has a capacitive touch bar (like your smart-phone) to slid your finger up & down – very neat – to increase / decrease the power. Sometimes though, if fingers are wet, or have just been cleaned; the finger can be “grippy” on glass if you understand? So, a plus button as well *might* be nice for those odd-occasions - but generally, I wouldn't ONLY want the plus / minus buttons as that would drive me nuts too – the sliding power scale is great. Aside from that, I've no gripes at all and it's an excellent appliance. Re. installation; my advice would be, unless your install is ridiculously straight forward to do (so separate, dedicated circuit JUST for the HOB, with the point already there with not even the slightest access issue – AO will be great); use your own qualified install service - AO did an excellent job for my neighbour but although mine was near-identical, they wouldn’t do mine (another story). So, remember to arrange your installer in advance - they're always very busy. I will say that AO staff were all very polite despite my installation problem plus AO also ensured the appliance was delivered safely and really was new (I doubted that at one point as someone along the chain of events had opened it up).

So I'd recommend this hob & AO as a supplier - but I strongly caveat installation.

Also to AO's credit; AO did a price-match for me too - there was no quibble on that so 10/10 AO. "

Brilliant

"We bought this induction hob just before Christmas to replace our black glass gas hob. I was dreading the cleaning of the gas hob after cooking the Christmas dinners (had flashbacks from last year) as it often takes almost as long as the cooking itself. And I’m so glad we did; I absolutely love love love this Induction hob. The 8 zones can be combined to almost any bigger combination. It’s super quick and has just so many features, which I confess I haven’t tried out yet. It’s also really energy efficient. Best of all, it only needs a wipe clean after cooking!! "

Great Hotpoint Induction hob

"Great improvement on our ceramic hob.

Heats up extremely quickly. Great that the whole surface area is in 8 separate selectable sections to heat and cook on. Inbuilt safety features ( eg automatically turns off if a pan is not placed on the selected element) is beneficial

Delighted with it."

Love

"It’s going to look good in my new kitchen,it’s got eight sections ,so if you got a lot of friends and family you are not going to run out of room to cook.great"