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COMFEE CFO-BB101 vs Instant Omni Plus 18L Toaster Oven Side-by-Side Comparison
Our Verdict
- Performance (50%)5.3/10
- Design (25%)2.9/10
- Usability (25%)4.5/10
- Performance (50%)8.1/10
- Design (25%)9.7/10
- Usability (25%)8.4/10
The limitations of a small toaster oven are made all the more apparent when comparing the COMFEE CFO-BB101 to the Instant Omni Plus 18L. The Instant has one of the best performance scores among all the toaster ovens we’ve tested thanks to its consistently great cooking results.
On the other hand, the Comfee just can’t compete using the same amount of food. This was most likely due to its small capacity, power rating of 1000 W, two quartz heating elements, and the absence of a convection system. In comparison, the Instant has 1800 Watts of power, four quartz heating elements and one swirl nichrome heating element, and a convection system.
The Comfee doesn’t offer much in terms of design or usability beside its detachable crumb tray. Its exterior shell also doesn’t have as good heat insulation as the Instant. The touchscreen of the Instant has many convenient features, albeit not perfect, including smart programs, cooking presets, toggles, and audio cues.
The clear winner here is the Instant Omni Plus 18L with its overall efficiency at a good price. Despite the one-side outcome, the Comfee CFO-BB101 is still a decent choice for saving energy, space, and budget.
COMFEE Toaster Oven (CFO-BB101) Performance
- Toast (40%)4.5/10
- Pizza (25%)5.0/10
- Whole Roasted Chicken (25%)7.1/10
- Baked French Fries (10%)4.7/10
- Toast (40%)7.3/10
- Pizza (25%)8.6/10
- Whole Roasted Chicken (25%)8.4/10
- Baked French Fries (10%)9.3/10
Toast
- Function: Toast
- Number Of Slices: 4
- Toast Level: Medium
- Cooking Time: 3m 50s
- Second Batch: 3m 50s
- Convection: No
It was difficult to perform our Toast test on the Comfee as we couldn’t input the exact cooking time or toast level. This was because the timer for toast was a countdown from 10 minutes without any level or minute indicator.
Our first attempt was 4m 10s, but the toast turned too dark, especially on the bottom side. Then we tried 2m 45s, but it barely acquired any color and we figured out that 3m 30s was possibly the best choice.
However, after many attempts, we couldn’t set the timer exactly as mentioned above and had to evaluate the result of 3m 50s. This strongly affected the oven’s toast score, resulting in a 4.6/10.
After setting it at 3m 50s, the Comfee produced four slices of toast with a golden brown color on the top. However, most of the bottom surface had no color but also just a few dark areas, so it got a 6/10.
The first batch, which was slightly crispy, was passable and our head chef Tuyet Pham gave it a 5.5/10 for taste.
The fact that we couldn’t set an exact timer only worsened the results for the second batch. The top had a large burnt area, the bottom had almost no color, and the toast didn’t become crispy at all. This result made the Comfee fail the consecutive usability section of our toast test and got a 2/10.
- Function: Toast
- Number Of Slices: 4
- Toast Level: 2/5
- Cooking Time: 5m 25s
- Second Batch: 4m 1s
- Convection: No
Using the steps of our Toast test, we determined that level 2—5 minutes 25 seconds on the timer—was the best option scoring a 7.3/10. In comparison, the level 1 and 3 had a more uneven while being lighter and darker surface color respectively.
The Toast Level 2 of the Instant Omni Plus 18L produced four pieces with an 85% even golden brown color. Since the fan couldn’t be deployed, the toast had some darker spots and lighter areas resulting in a 6/10.
The first batch of toast was nicely crispy while still soft and moist inside and we gave it an 8/10 for taste. Our head chef Tuyet Pham determined it would be excellent with omelet and eggs benedict but not so good for sandwiches or soup.
This is one of the few ovens with a smart program that automatically deducts time to reach certain temperatures when the oven’s already hot. Thus, the surface color of the toasts was quite consistent throughout multiple batches. In addition, due to its extra crispiness, the second batch was determined to be good enough for soup.
If you want the second batch to be similar to the first, remember to lower it by one level. Overall, the score for consecutive usability was 7/10.
Pizza
- Function: Bake
- Temperature: 450°F
- Cooking Time: 11m
- Convection: No
The Comfee wasn’t suitable for baking a 9-inch thick-crust meat pizza with a score of 5/10.
This oven took 11 minutes, which was over our time limit, to bake the pizza to a desirable outcome. Thus, it failed the cooking time section of our Pizza test.
The crust attained just a light golden color and was very soft, so it got a 6/10. There were some small bits stuck to the baking pan, but they weren’t hard to get rid of.
The toppings had uneven caramelization and were a bit dry throughout, so they scored a 6.5/10. The cheese was slightly melty, but some areas darkened a lot.
Our chef gave the pizza a 6/10 for taste.
- Function: Bake
- Temperature: 450°F
- Cooking Time: 3m 50s
- Convection: High
The Instant Omni Plus, having a very strong convection system, did not seem ideal for baking a 9-inch thick-crust meat pizza resulting in an 8.6/10.
A cooking time of only 3m 50s was extremely fast compared to the recommended 10 minutes on the label. After comparing it to other toaster ovens in our Pizza test, it was more than enough for a 10/10.
The crust, although golden brown, was a little soft with some lighter and darker areas due to the short cooking time plus strong fan. It got an 8/10.
The entire surface was a little too dry due to all the convection. In addition, while the cheese was nicely melted, caramelization wasn’t even due to the short cooking time. Thus, the final score for the toppings was 8.2/10.
Our chef gave the pizza an 8.5/10 for taste.
Whole Roasted Chicken
- Function: Bake
- Temperature: 350°F
- Cooking Time: 1h 20m
- Convection: No
The Comfee’s capacity barely fit a 3 lb chicken, which led to some problems during our Whole Roasted Chicken test. Overall, it left a few things to be desired and got a score of 7.1/10.
The oven took 1h 20m to cook the chicken, which was 20 minutes longer than the standard amount of time so it got a 6/10.
Even though we had to rotate the baking pan 3 times during roasting, most of the skin could only get a yellow color, similar to when it’s steamed. The only exception was the middle area, which was close to the upper heating elements and turned a golden brown color.
Nonetheless, the skin was soft so it could only get a 6.5/10. In addition, the skin on the back got stuck to the baking pan when we tried to flip the chicken.
The chicken was thoroughly cooked and the internal temperature was 183-189°F, which was only a little higher than recommended by the USDA, so we gave it a 9.1/10.
The meat was soft and juicy, so our chef gave it a 7/10 for taste.
- Function: Roast
- Temperature: 350°F
- Cooking Time: 50 minutes
- Convection: Yes
Following our Whole Roasted Chicken test, we chose a 3 lb chicken and it fit without a problem scoring an 8.4/10.
However, cleaning up was a big hassle as there wasn’t enough space below to use the drip pan. Worse still, during cooking fat splashed everywhere inside the oven causing the heating elements to smoke.
The roasting time was 50 minutes which was shorter than average and worthy of a 9/10.
The rotisserie kit and high convection together produced perfectly golden brown crispy skin deserving a 9.8/10. One thing to note is that due to the meat being considerably moist, the skin lost its crispiness in a relatively short time span.
The smooth rotation and high convection also allowed the whole chicken to be thoroughly cooked without any pink spots in just 50 minutes. The internal temperature was only a little higher than the USDA recommended 165°F-180°F at 178-190°F, so it got a 9/10.
The meat was almost fall-off-the-bone. Unfortunately, with it being so moist—to the point of softening the skin, our chef could only give it a 7 for taste.
Baked French Fries
- Function: Bake
- Temperature: 400°F.
- Cooking Time: 35 m
- Convection: No
Baking 12 oz of french fries wasn’t a favorable task for the Comfee; it ended up with a 4.7/10.
Even after 35 minutes, the Comfee wasn’t able to produce a notable change in the texture and color of the fries. In addition, as the time limit for our Baked French Fries test was 25 minutes, this oven failed our cooking time criterion.
The fries lacked color, so they got a 6/10. The oven basically thawed the fries without really baking them resulting in soggy fries with a score of 5.5/10. Our chef could only give the fries a 6/10 for taste.
- Function: Air Fry
- Temperature: 400°F.
- Cooking Time: 15m
- Convection: High
The Instant Omni Plus was excellent at baking 12 oz of french fries with a score of 9.3/10.
After performing our Baked French Fries test on different toaster ovens, we came to the conclusion that the ideal cooking time for baked french fries was 15 minutes. However, it wasn’t the fastest one on our list so it scored a 9/10.
The strong convection combined with the air fryer basket produced evenly golden fries worthy of a 9.8/10 for color.
What helped the color also baked perfectly crispy fries while retaining a nice amount of moisture. This earned the oven another 9.8/10 for the texture of baked french fries.
Our chef gave the fries a 9/10 for taste.
Comfee Small Toaster Oven Design Review
- Exterior (20%)8.0/10
- Interior (30%)1.0/10
- Build Quality (50%)2.0/10
- Exterior (25%)9.5/10
- Interior (30%)9.5/10
- Build Quality (50%)9.0/10
In the Comfee CFO-BB101 Small Toaster Oven Box
- Model: CFO-BB101
- Warranty: 1-year limited (US only)
- User Manual
- Baking Rack
- Baking Pan
The packaging has two foam pads to keep the oven firmly in place. However, the two accessories are simply wrapped in plastic and duct-taped to the oven. Comfee also provides a user manual with some simple recipes.
- Model: 140-4002-01
- Warranty: 1 year (US and Canada only)
- User Manual
- Baking Rack
- Baking Pan
- Rotisserie Kit and Lifter
- Air Fryer Basket
Besides keeping all the accessories in place, the packaging also has interesting illustrations for the key information on the Instant Omni Plus 18L. You can quickly access the download page for the Instant Pot App thanks to the QR code on the package and the user manual.
Their website provides the full manual, how-to videos, FAQs, and more. You’ll also need to go there to register your product and activate your warranty.
Exterior
- Weight:5.4 lbs (2.4 kg)
- Length:13.8" (35.2 cm)
- Width:11.2" (28.4 cm)
- Height:8.0" (20.3 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Color:White
- Door Handle:cool-touch
- Tray Indicators:No
- Crumb Tray:Detachable
The oven’s casing is painted white but also polished, so you won’t have to worry about it getting dirty easily. Besides the two back buffers that keep the oven from being pushed too close to the wall, the Comfee also features carrying handles on the sides.
What stands out to make an impression is the detachable crumb tray, similar to the Mueller MT-175. You can open it by tilting the unit slightly backward and pushing the dial on the tray towards the rear of the unit.
Our measurements of the oven’s footprint were 13.85" x 11.18" x 8" which only had marginal differences from the manufacturer's 14.6" x 11.4" x 8".
- Weight:25.4 oz (721 g)
- Length:16.5" (42.0 cm)
- Width:15.8" (40.0 cm)
- Height:13.9" (35.3 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Color:Silver
- Door Handle:cool-touch
- Tray Indicators:Yes
- Crumb Tray:Yes
An example of the Instant Omni Plus 18L’s clever design is the slide-out crumb tray not to mention its two strong base stands as well as air ventilation on two sides and the back. For safety, it has two buffers on the back to prevent the oven from sitting too close to the wall and a cool-touch door handle.
To accommodate its many cooking functions, there are tray-level indicators on the glass door. Our measurements of the oven’s footprint of 16.54" x 15.75" x 13.90" were quite different from the manufacturer’s 12" x 12" x 13.89" in terms of length and width.
We could explain that the difference in width was because we also took the dial and the back buffers into account but not the difference in length. Nonetheless, we didn’t find this to be a problem.
Control Panel
- Type:2 control knobs
- Temperature:150°F - 450°F
- Timer:1 minute - 30 minutes + stay-on
- Indicator Light:Yes
- Status Bar:No
- Light Toggle:No
- Convection Toggle:No
- Rotation Toggle:No
- Automatic Preheat:No
- Audio Cues:No
The Comfee simply has two control knobs: one for temperature and the other for time. Even though the timer is set only from 1 minute to 30 minutes, it has a stay-on position.
- Type:black LCD digital touchscreen + one master-control knob
- Temperature:150°F - 450°F
- Timer:1 - 60 minutes
- Indicator Light:Yes
- Status Bar:No
- Light Toggle:Yes
- Convection Toggle:Yes
- Rotation Toggle:Yes
- Automatic Preheat:Yes
- Audio Cues:Yes
This oven has a black LCD digital touchscreen and one master-control knob. The display includes the cooking status bar, functions, and toggles for Light, Convection, and Rotation. Besides the automatic oven preheat feature, it features an audio cue to turn food halfway through the input cooking time.
Audio cues include the beeps when you plug in the oven, select a function as well as adjust time and temperature, and when the oven finishes cooking. According to some reviews we’ve seen, they can be a bit loud, especially for households with children and/or pets. However, they can be turned off by pressing and holding the control knobs for 5 seconds until the screen displays S OFF.
Cooking Functions Comfee CFO-BB101 Toaster Oven
- Toast
- Bake
- Broil
If you know your way around the kitchen, the bake and broil functions will be all you need.
- Air fry (180°F - 450°F)
- Broil (350°F - 450°F)
- Bake (180°F - 450°F)
- Roast (180°F - 450°F)
- Dehydrate (85°F - 175°F)
- Reheat (120°F - 360°F)
- Warm (170°F - 300°F)
- Toast (level 1-5)
Even though there’s no Rotisserie function, the oven comes with a tailored rotisserie kit and a Rotation Toggle. Besides making dried fruits, herbs, and meat jerky, the Dehydrate function is also ideal for proofing bread dough at 85°F and Low Convect.
Interior
- Heating Elements:2 quartz
- Convection Fan:No
- Lighting:No
- Tray Levels:2
- Rotisserie:No
- Safety Hook:No
The CFO-BB101 uses 2 quartz heating elements which use infrared light to cook. Each one has its own safety guard to prevent direct contact with baking pans and trays.
Compared to the more common nichrome heating elements, the quartz heating elements produce more heat and cool down faster. They’re also easier to clean and more energy-efficient. However, they are not as durable and will suffer from permanent stains if grease splashes onto them while cooking.
Similar to most small toaster ovens, the oven doesn’t have internal lighting or a convection system and it only has two tray levels. In addition, while it’s common for units this size to have two heating elements, we usually found a less even heat distribution compared to units with four or more heating elements.
- Heating Elements:4 quartz and 1 nichrome
- Convection Fan:Yes
- Lighting:Yes
- Tray Levels:4
- Rotisserie:Yes
- Safety Hook:No
The Instant Omni Plus has four golden quartz heating elements. These pipes use infrared light to cook, which produces more heat and also cools down faster.
They are also easier to clean and more energy-efficient but don’t last as long in terms of durability. However, if grease splashes onto the heating elements while cooking, it’ll leave permanent stains.
Featuring safety guards, the heating elements are kept out of direct contact with baking pans and trays. The oven even includes a coil nichrome heating element at the top, specifically for broiling.
To top it off, this oven has a powerful and not noisy convection system as an interior light. In addition to 4 tray levels, you can make use of the baking rack with its rack-up and down positions.
Capacity
- Length:10.2" (25.8 cm)
- Width:9.6" (24.5 cm)
- Height:6.9" (17.5 cm)
Although compact, the Comfee has enough capacity for 4 slices of toast, a 9-inch pizza, and barely enough for a 3 lb chicken. We measured the cooking chamber’s volume to be around 11 liters which was slightly different from the manufacturer’s provided 10 liters. However, it could just be a difference in measuring standards.
- Length:13.8" (35.0 cm)
- Width:12.6" (32.0 cm)
- Height:8.7" (22.0 cm)
The Instant Omni Plus can comfortably fit a 12-inch pizza or a 4-pound chicken which is true to its description. However, it can’t quite fit 6 slices of toast. Moreover, when roasting only a 3-pound whole chicken with the rotisserie kit, there wasn’t enough space to fit a baking pan below. This wasn’t the case with a larger unit like the Cosori CO130-AO.
We measured the cooking chamber’s volume to be roughly 24.6 liters—a lot different from the manufacturer’s provided capacity of 18 liters. However, this could be because we measured from the cooking chamber’s walls to walls whereas the manufacturer stopped before reaching the heating elements.
Power Cord of the Comfee Small Toaster Oven
- Length:26.4" (67.0 cm)
- Type:2-prong plug
- Power:1000 W
- Rated Output:120 V ~ 60 Hz
The power cord is roughly 26.37"—enough length for household use. However, the back buffers aren’t designed to wrap the cord around, unlike many other toaster ovens.
- Length:2.8 ft (0.9 m)
- Type:3-prong plug
- Power:1800 W
- Rated Output:120 V ~ 60 Hz
The power cord is roughly 33.46"—more than long enough for household use. However, the cord can’t fully wrap around the two back stands as they are too high up.
Accessories
- Length:10.2" (25.8 cm)
- Width:8.3" (21.0 cm)
- Height:0.4" (1.1 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Dishwasher Safe:Yes
The rack fits perfectly with the guide, which helps prevent accidents when placing your food in the oven.
- Length:12.4" (31.5 cm)
- Width:11.4" (29.0 cm)
- Height:0.9" (2.4 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Dishwasher Safe:Yes
The rack fits perfectly with the guide which helps prevent accidents when placing your food in the oven.
Accessories
- Length:10.2" (25.8 cm)
- Width:7.9" (20.0 cm)
- Height:0.7" (1.7 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Dishwasher Safe:Yes
The baking pan has ridges and grooves which can give your food attractive roasting marks and catch the dripping better. However, its coating isn’t completely non-stick, so it may be prone to some stubborn stains after a hefty roast.
- Length:13.8" (35.0 cm)
- Width:12.4" (31.5 cm)
- Height:1.8" (4.6 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Dishwasher Safe:Yes
Thanks to its perfect size, the baking pan does a great job of catching the meat juice and drippings from the air fryer basket. Thus, it helps prevent making a mess and avoid the danger of fire from dirty heating elements. Keep in mind that the dishwasher can damage the enamel coating.
Build Quality
Being a compact product, it’s understandable that the Comfee doesn’t have as many design features as bigger toaster ovens. Even though the price of this product is quite reasonable, it doesn’t have a very sturdy build. In addition, the door can open if you tilt the oven.
The Instant Omni Plus 18L is a well-built and intricate piece of equipment, to say the least. It provides a helpful cooking status bar, smart programs, and automatic features. The oven does consume a lot of electricity so make sure your outlet can provide and handle 1800 W.
The meticulous design shows in the bottom tray, safeguards for heating elements, and cooling fan for its mainboard. However, the bottom tray can easily slide out if you tilt the oven. Also, during our roasting of a whole chicken, the hot drippings created some oxidation on the crumb tray.
Comfee CFO-BB101 Small Toaster Oven Usability
- User Control (30%)5.0/10
- Ease of Use (50%)4.0/10
- Cleanability (20%)5.0/10
- User Control (30%)9.9/10
- Ease of Use (50%)8.0/10
- Cleanability (20%)7.0/10
User Control
Even though the Comfee has only two simple control knobs for time and temperature, there are a few things to keep in mind. For the timer knob, when setting it to less than 5 minutes, always rotate past 5 minutes (Med) and then rotate back to the desired time.
For the temperature knob, both the heating elements function when the oven is set from 150°F to 450°F. On Bake, only the bottom element functions, and the oven’s internal temperature is maintained at approximately 400°F-425°F. On Broil, only the top element functions, and the temperature stays steady at approximately 425°F-450°F.
The other problem relates to time and temperature, both of which cannot be adjusted precisely. Nonetheless, you can get used to adjusting time and temperature on this oven after a few times. You can also use an oven thermometer and an external timer to help with this.
The Instant Omni Plus 18L has 8 settings to choose from but can serve more than 10 functions. Although the LCD display could be improved with better contrast, it’s not a big problem.
The master-control knob can be confusing for first-timers but it should take little effort to get familiarized with it. The temperature can be adjusted in 1°F increments by turning the knob slowly and in 10°F increments by turning the knob fast. Also, the timer is specified by the minute.
If you want to readjust the setting during cooking, simply tap the feature and adjust it with the knob. Don’t tap Cancel as it will reset your inputs and repeat the automatic preheating.
The convection setting is applicable to almost all except for toast. One thing to note from the manual is that most recipes recommend reducing the temperature by 25°F when convection is on.
The convection fan speeds can toggle between high and low which is not very common for ovens, especially at the same price range. The two exceptions are Air Fry which always uses High Convect and Warm using Low Convect.
Ease of Use
With two control knobs, it’s very simple to adjust time and temperature during cooking. When the timer runs out, a bell will sound and the oven will shut off. The oven does not have a digital display, so you can freely leave it plugged in and not worry about power consumption.
It’s easy to keep the door partially open to let food cool down, but keep in mind that this doesn’t stop the cooking. Also, be careful as the oven’s exterior gets hot to the touch quite quickly.
When you adjust temperature and time for a function, the Instant Omni Plus saves your setting for next time use. After the oven finishes cooking, it will beep and automatically switch to Keep Warm mode until the display shows End.
After a period of no interaction, the digital display will show the word OFF similar to when you’ve just plugged it in. You’ll then need to push the knob once to turn it on. It’s advised to unplug the oven after you finish using it.
The light automatically turns off after 30 seconds of no interaction and turns on 30 seconds before finishing cooking. Opening the oven door pauses the cooking but the light stays on for another 30 seconds. Closing the oven door resumes the cooking but it will go into stand-by mode resetting all inputs after 5m30s.
Taking the rotisserie kit out of the oven can be a bit tricky even with the lifter. However, with a bit of practice, it’ll be no problem at all. The oven has good heat insulation, so the casing doesn’t get too hot to the touch at 350°F and 400°F but be careful at 450°F.
Cleanability
We cleaned the Comfee following our toaster oven cleaning guide without much problem. Thanks to the detachable crumb tray, not only were we able to remove the crumbs, we also had better access to clean the oven’s interior.
However, some of the crumbs got stuck inside the bottom heating element’s guard. As for the baking pan, without a good coating, it got a slight discoloration after our Whole Roasted Chicken test.
We cleaned the Instant Omni Plus 18L following our toaster oven cleaning guide. Despite having an internal and external coating, it still wasn’t easy to clean due to some very tricky nooks and crannies. The small gaps between the heating elements and internal walls didn’t help either.
Most of the mess came from the considerable fat splatter from roasting a whole chicken. It left difficult stains on the heating elements and their safeguards which were already tricky to clean.
With the removable oven-bottom tray, cleaning up the crumbs was extremely easy but we still had to tilt the oven to get all of the crumbs out. On the bright side, having thought it would be difficult to clean caramelized bits of food from the air fryer basket due to the fishnet design, we were happy to find this wasn’t the case.