Breville 4-Slice BTA840XL Die-Forged Sensible Toaster, Brushed Aluminum

Initially disappointed, but now we love the toaster better than others we have had
We have a couple of other Breville products that we have been very happy with. So when it was time to replace our toaster, I decided that Breville was the way to go. At this point, I was so looking forward to getting it, and now, I am very disappointed with this toaster. As soon as we got it, I had to make some toast to see how it worked. as soon as the bread went down, I saw that the elements on the inside panels of both sets of slots did not light up or heat and only some of the elements on the other side of all slots heated. I used homemade whole grain bread that usually takes longer to toast. So I put it on the highest setting. At the end of the cycle, one side of the bread was partially toasted. So I turned the bread around to toast the other side – again only partially toasted using the #5 setting. Really, my old cheap toaster did better!!Since I have never been disappointed with a Breville product before, I decided to return this toaster as defective. Since the seller was not Amazon, the seller expects me to pay return shipping for a defective product. This is totally unacceptable, and I have reported this situation to Amazon. I have decided that I will give Breville another chance on this toaster, and will update this review if my experience with this product improves.The seller did finally email me a return shipping label with the help of Amazon customer service.UPDATE 11/10/16I have increased my star rating from 1 star to 5 as we now really like this toaster. Just in case we still didn’t like it, I ordered it from Bed Bath and Beyond so that the return would be easier. They don’t have the 30 day limitation on returns and we have a local store. When we first got this toaster, I did toasting with no bread a couple of times to burn off anything that might be on the elements. This was recommended in the instructions. During this process, I noticed that all of the elements did not heat as much as the other side on one side of each slot. Many more heated than with the previous returned toaster, but still not all of them. Having had problems with the first toaster, I called Breville customer service the next day. They told me that the toaster was designed to make “restaurant style” toast. One side of each slice is not toasted as much as the other side so that toppings can be put onto the softer side, and the other side is crisper. The explanation sounded good, but I wasn’t sure that I would like “restaurant style” toast. Our first test of the toaster was bagels. I set the toaster at level 5, pressed bagel and the toast. Our old toaster had to be set at the highest level to get anything browned. Before the toasting cycle finished, I checked the bagel and it was almost burned. The next bagel I set the toaster to level 3, and the toasting was perfect. The inside of the bagel was golden brown, and the outside was still soft. Perfect!!The ultimate test was toasting homemade bread, All of our bread is homemade and is primarily made from fresh milled whole grain flour. This type of bread is heavier than store bought bread, and takes much longer to toast. I also freeze loaves after slicing, and we take slices out as needed. For 100% frozen whole wheat bread, I set the toaster at level 5, pressed the frozen button, and then toast, and the bread went down to toast automatically.The bread was beautifully, evenly toasted.A couple of things that should be noted. Although the outside of the toaster gets only warm, it does give off a lot of heat from the top. I initially had it in a space on the counter that was under a cabinet. The underside of the cabinet got really hot – too hot to touch. I also mentioned this to Breville customer service, and was told that it should not be placed under a cabinet. I love and would recommend this toaster, but this may be a point to consider if you are considering purchasing it.UPDATE 12/21/21:We have had this toaster for over 5 years, and it still works as well as the day we got it. I love it not only for toasting bagels, but also use the bagel setting to toast hamburger buns. When the hamburger buns are toasted on one side as bagels are, they hold up much better to the hamburger and other ingredients without falling apart. When I make Belgian waffles, I always make extras for my husband to toast in this toaster. After over 5 years, this toaster still works and we still love it. If it ever poops out, I would certainly buy another of these.I hope this review was helpful for you.

It’s tough to rate this 5/5 on “value for money” just because I think it’s a little absurd that anyone would pay $200+ CAD for a toaster…and yet, here I am, doing it for the second time. There’s nothing wrong with the first machine, let me explain.I was married to the kind of man who grumbled at length about anything he found annoying. This included our plastic 2-slice toaster, which we’d picked up from a discount store way back when we first moved in together. It was cheaply made and toasted inconsistently. Eventually, tired of the daily ranting, I donated it and bought him the most expensive toaster I could find, hoping that would improve his quality of life, at least at breakfast.(This was quite a few years ago and I had ordered it from a department store. I had to pick it up at the store and the kindly older sales rep was a little alarmed to see how much it cost, until I explained that I was trying to keep my husband happy.)It worked, to an extent. He did like the toaster and stopped grumbling (about toast, at least). He’s a machinist and particular about materials & finishes; the Breville is a gorgeous appliance. In fact, he liked it so much that he insisted on keeping it when we finally split up (don’t worry, we are both much happier now).Two years post split, I don’t miss him at all but I sure missed that toaster. I’d bought a stainless steel toaster when I moved out and I hated it. For a while, it only toasted one side of the bread, and then it broke.After that, I finally broke down and ordered my own Breville. It is a beautiful appliance and I regret nothing. It is well-built, the controls are precise and accurate, it looks amazing on my counter, and it toasts like a dream. Was it the frugal choice? No, but amortized over time it’s worth the investment. And now that I have the “a bit more” button again, my life is complete. My toast is perfect, every time. My mornings are better and thus my entire quality of life has improved.Maybe this isn’t the toaster for you, but it’s the toaster for me. I finally understand what it means to be treated well and I hope you can also find a way to set standards. If you can find the means in any way, don’t put up with a toaster (or a partner) who treats you terribly. I’ll never settle again. And if I remarry I’m putting this toaster in my pre-nup.

I like the convince, the take a peak option is nice. Stylish designThe kids like usingMakes precise toast preferences

The first one we bought didn’t toast evenly on both sides of the bread. Disappointing for a toaster that costs this much. We tried to return it but it was past the 30-day return date so we had to deal with Breville directly, but they did send us a replacement at no charge and there was no cost associated with the return of the first one.They want you to send the old one back before they’ll send out a replacement which means you’ll be without a toaster for two weeks until the new one arrives OR you can pay $150 deposit by credit card and they’ll ship out the new one prior to you sending the old one back, which is what I did.Not 100% satisfied with the replacement one’s operation but will keep it.Wouldn’t buy one if I had the chance for a do-over.