My old toaster had two settings: pale and burnt. I'd had it for six years and somewhere around year four it lost the ability to produce anything in between. I'd learned to manage it — a quick check at the two-minute mark, a manual cancel if things were going well, a resigned acceptance when they weren't. It was a low-level daily frustration that I'd normalised so completely I'd stopped noticing it.
Then it died entirely, mid-slice, on a Tuesday morning when I was already running late. I stood in the kitchen holding a piece of untoasted bread and decided that this time I was going to buy something actually good.
What I Was Looking For
The requirements were simple but specific. I wanted proper browning control — not two settings, not a vague dial with no clear calibration, but actual levels I could set and trust. I wanted a defrost function because I keep bread in the freezer and the workaround of waiting for it to thaw before toasting is one of those small daily inconveniences that adds up. And I wanted something that looked good on the counter, because my kitchen is small and everything on the worktop is visible.
Black, compact, and actually functional. That was the brief.
Why I Chose the Tower Sonar
The Tower Sonar 2-Slice Toaster met every point. Seven browning levels — not a vague dial, but seven distinct, calibrated settings that give you genuine control over the result. Defrost, reheat, and cancel settings as dedicated functions rather than workarounds. A removable crumb tray that actually makes cleaning straightforward. And 900W power output for fast, consistent heating.
The black finish was the aesthetic confirmation. It's a clean, modern design that sits quietly on the counter without demanding attention — which is exactly what a toaster should do. It looks like it belongs in a kitchen that's been thought about.
First Morning
I set it to level four — the middle of the range, a reasonable starting point — and waited. The toast came out golden, even, exactly what I'd have described as "perfect" if anyone had asked me to define it. I tried level three the next morning: slightly lighter, still even. Level five: deeper, still not burnt. The calibration is accurate and consistent in a way that my old toaster never managed even when it was new.
The defrost function I used for the first time on a Thursday — frozen sourdough straight from the freezer, defrost setting, done. It came out properly toasted rather than the slightly damp, unevenly heated result I'd been getting from the thaw-then-toast method. That alone was worth the purchase.
The Crumb Tray
I want to say something specific about the removable crumb tray because it's the detail that has made the most difference to my daily routine. My old toaster had a fixed tray that I cleaned approximately never, because cleaning it required turning the toaster upside down over the sink and hoping for the best. The Tower's tray slides out, empties in two seconds, slides back in. I clean it every few days without thinking about it. The counter around the toaster is clean. This is a small thing that is not a small thing.
Eight Months On
The toaster has been used every morning for eight months. The browning levels are as accurate as they were on day one — I've settled on level four for most bread, level three for thinner slices, level five for sourdough. The defrost function gets used two or three times a week. The reheat function — which I hadn't anticipated needing — has become useful for warming toast that's cooled while I've been distracted by something else in the morning routine.
The 900W power means it's genuinely fast — two minutes or less for most bread, which matters when you're getting ready in the morning and every minute counts.
The Difference It Made
Breakfast is better. That's the summary. Not dramatically, not life-changingly — but consistently, reliably, every morning better than it was before. Toast that's exactly how I want it, from frozen bread if needed, ready in two minutes, counter clean afterwards. The morning routine has one fewer friction point, and friction points in the morning compound in ways that affect the whole day.
I also stopped thinking about the toaster, which is the goal. It does its job, every time, without requiring management or attention. That's what a good appliance should do: disappear into the routine and make the routine better.
Who I'd Recommend This To
Anyone whose current toaster has two settings — pale and burnt — and has been tolerating it. Anyone who keeps bread in the freezer and wants a proper defrost function rather than a workaround. Anyone who wants a toaster that looks good on the counter rather than something they're slightly embarrassed by. And anyone who, like me, has been putting off replacing a dying appliance and needs a reason to finally do it.
The seven browning levels are the feature that makes the difference — once you've had proper calibrated control over your toast, going back to a vague dial feels like a step backwards.
You can find the Tower Sonar 2-Slice Toaster in Black in our store. It also sits within our Toasters, Toasters & Grills, and Home & Garden collections if you'd like to explore more.
Replace the toaster. Fix the morning.
— Owen Fletcher, Bristol
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