I've pretty much always had trouble with toasters. When I moved into my new apartment, I went looking for a new toaster on Amazon. OMG, I couldn't believe the number of toasters and the crazy reviews! People are very particular about their toasters! I remember one guy comparing a toaster to a cadillac or something, it was weird. In the end I went with the one that had the best reviews but it's kind of meh. The bread doesn't really get toasted, it was still kind of soft inside. I'm used to to cruchy (but not blackened) toast. Finally I figured out that it was the bread I was using. If I use a specific brand and kind of bread I can get the toast I want. ^^;