Thread Number: 47506
GE Versatronic Range, Dishwasher & Hood |
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Post# 689885   7/16/2013 at 17:34 (3,537 days old) by xpanam (Palm Springs California )   |   | |
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Post# 689906 , Reply# 1   7/16/2013 at 19:15 (3,537 days old) by goatfarmer ![]() |
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Post# 689916 , Reply# 2   7/16/2013 at 19:45 (3,537 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E)   |   | |
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Post# 689923 , Reply# 3   7/16/2013 at 20:16 (3,537 days old) by appnut ![]() |
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Post# 689929 , Reply# 4   7/16/2013 at 20:43 (3,537 days old) by xpanam (Palm Springs California )   |   | |
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Post# 689958 , Reply# 5   7/17/2013 at 00:11 (3,537 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E)   |   | |
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"I know they still have Convection, but no more Microwave. What happened?"
The Versatronic concept just wasn't a strong seller. It was expensive, and consumers weren't that keen on the idea of learning how to work with it - it had so much capability it sounded complicated (Quick - how do you figure the correct timing for your grandmother's roast beef using both microwaves and conventional?). People want simple, not complicated. And they seldom use all of an appliance's capabilities - how many microwaves are used just for Lean Cuisine and popcorn, when they could be making all kinds of home-cooked goodies? This post was last edited 07/17/2013 at 01:13 |
Post# 689975 , Reply# 6   7/17/2013 at 03:45 (3,536 days old) by xpanam (Palm Springs California )   |   | |
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Post# 690018 , Reply# 8   7/17/2013 at 10:12 (3,536 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E)   |   | |
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You're quite right about how well the Versatronic was supported with instructional material. That was not the problem.
The problem was that the average person could not imagine what the Versatronic could do for them while passing by it on the sales floor. It took a sales pitch, and very many people make it a firm practice never to put themselves into the hands of a salesperson unless absolutely necessary. A lot of people think of all salespeople as slick (with some justification), and they also don't like to put themselves into a situation where it will be apparent they don't know anything about the product. |
Post# 690787 , Reply# 10   7/20/2013 at 20:37 (3,533 days old) by combo52 ![]() |
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![]() Were made from about 1956-current in various forms. The oldest one that I have in our collection is a 1965 dual oven model that Tom and I rescued from a store on the eastern shore of Maryland about 20 years ago. GE did have a few times in this time period that they did not sell this appliance. Barry you are correct about one thing they were very easy to use, but you really did have to relearn many cooking techniques to use this wonderful oven to full potential. The Hi-Low VT range that your parents bought in 1974 would have retailed for between $1200-1500, and GE continued to build full sized Self-Cleaning 30" ranges with this feature into the 1990s and in the later 1990s they introduced the Ti-Vection slide in ranges and both single and double 30' built in wall ovens under both the GE and the GE Monogram names.
While many of these combination ovens did not have a very powerful MW feature it was not necessary, most originally had only 400-500 watts of cooking power. But when combined with regular heat this is all that was required to cook many foods BETTER that is possible with regular heat alone and in many cases 3-8 times faster. These ovens were very energy efficient and the whole thing was Self-Cleaning.
I cannot imagine not having one of these great ovens, I have 4 different full sized SC micro-combo ovens between the three different places I spend 98% of my time, they are one of the best cooking inventions ever. When I was first with my current partner a half dozen years ago I don't think that cooked on his 1990 WP electric range 10 times before I wheeled it out the door and replaced it with a Coloric combination ME range, and this range is used in combination mode at least 3 or more times every week. |
Post# 690830 , Reply# 11   7/21/2013 at 00:12 (3,533 days old) by xpanam (Palm Springs California )   |   | |
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Post# 690938 , Reply# 12   7/21/2013 at 12:29 (3,532 days old) by ovrphil ![]() |
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$1200-1400 orig. price? phew. YES! That is interesting, John. I too would love to see your micro-combo ovens(did not know they made these back then)..if/when it's possible.
And also, if you could even find one of these, aside from the GE above, are the Caloric's or other brands better/more reliable? I'm very interested in this. |