Thermador Shows Induction Cooktop

By Alan Wolf -- TWICE, 1/23/2012

LAS VEGAS – Premium majap brand Thermador introduced a full-surface induction cooktop at 2012 International CES.

Like all induction models, the company’s Freedom cooktop uses electromagnetic induction to heat iron cookware without conventional burners, leaving the cooking surface cool to the touch.

The new appliance differs in that it is among the first to feature a natural-mapping user interface that recognizes cookware size, shape and position to deliver heat anywhere and in any shape across the cooktop surface, Thermador said.

The absence of predefined cooking elements adds 63 percent more cooking area to the surface, providing what Thermador described as the largest cooking surface in the industry. The cooktop is powered by 48 individual 3-inch induction heating elements which output from 15 Watts to 4,600 Watts.

Introduced at the show’s CES Unveiled press event, here, where the manufacturer held the cooktop’s first public demonstration, Freedom also features a 6.5-inch, full-color touchscreen display that controls power settings and cooking duration while showing the position of all cookware in real time.

“Induction is perhaps the most revolutionary cooking technology,” said Thermador brand marketing director Zach Elkin. “Thermador takes induction cooking to the next level by answering two questions with the new Freedom induction cooktop — what if you could place cookware anywhere on the cooktop? And, what if you can use cookware of any size and shape on the cooktop?”

To that end, the new cooktop, for which parent company BSH Home Appliances holds 30 international patents, allows home chefs to place specially shaped cookware such as griddles and oval pans anywhere on the cooking surface.

Freedom is expected to hit dealer floors this July with a manufacturer’s suggested retail of $4,949.