LG Series 9 InstaView Oven review: Dial-less delight

The promise of a smarter take on a classic appliance like an oven is nothing new you can't say the same for the fact that LG is involved. At least, for those in Australia. The company is one of those tech brands that seems to have fingers in every pie, so the fact that in-kitchen appliances have managed to elude them to date was something of a surprise.

Of course, the fact that LG are a relative newcomer to this specific category might be one reason to hesitate on investing in hardware that you're going to be installing in your home and relying on when it comes to keeping everyone in it fed. That said, having a history with ovens that are guilty of (not literally) gaslighting me though, it wasn't that hard to find many reasons to get excited about the Series 9 InstaView Oven. As far as tech goes, it's more banquet than bare minimum.

In Australia, the LG SERIES 9 76L InstaView Full Steam Oven starts at $2,699.

That sum gets you the cheapest version of the oven, which comes with a standard stainless steel exterior. If you want black stainless steel instead, you're looking at another $100 and if you want matte black glass then you'll have to shell out a whopping $3,599.

While that sounds like a serious investment, you might be able to make it a smarter one if you shop around. Check out the table below for a round-up of deals for the LG SERIES 9 76L InstaView Full Steam Oven.

Don't get it twisted. This thing looks like an oven. While there's plenty of smarter touches that separate LG's first foray into ovens from the competition, the overall look isn't a massive departure from what you'd expect. That isn't to say that the hardware merely meets expectations though.

The LG Series 9 InstaView Full Steam Oven is packed to the brim with premium touches. It'd be easy to get away with spending half of what LG is asking for if all you need is a working oven. However, there's something to be said for getting what you pay for and the LG Series 9 76L InstaView Full Steam Oven is flush with flourishes that help to justify the cost involved.

To start with the exterior is simple but sleek. There's a titanium handle, a matte glass finish and 4.3-inch LCD screen. That last one is subtle enough to not dominate the space but sharp enough to hold up to scrutiny.

On the inside, the LG Series 9 76L InstaView Full Steam Oven features 5-racks, a dual-speed fan and 1900W of convection power. It also ships with deep pan, a wire pan and perforated one. Freebies are always nice, but I could easily imagine investing in something a little more bespoke once I get my bearings with it.

Once you get past how the Series 9 looks, the biggest talking point is the display.

Even as someone who is naturally resistant to sticking screens on appliances that previously did not need them, I gotta admit that I quickly found myself won over to the cause. The fact that the last two ovens I've used had labels that had long since worn off probably helped.

Even still, the bigger upside here is that relying on a screen means that you cram so much additional functionality and flexibility into a less space.  If all you want is to turn the LG Series 9 76L InstaView Full Steam Oven on and warm it up to a specific temperature, you're only ever two or so taps away. However, in the even that you want to make use of all the other more specific options or set a custom time and temperature, the journey you're making through the user interface here isn't much more of an ordeal.

I do have a few lingering reservations about the reality that the LCD screen here is going to have to be regularly cleaned but that's not all that different to conventional dials, even if the latter is easier to ignore and live with.

As someone who likes to bounce between a few different cookbooks, I also really appreciated the diversity of options here when it came to the different modes that the LG Series 9 76L InstaView Full Steam Oven offers. If you're someone who likes to stick with what they know, it's likely to feel like overkill. All the same, those who like to try new recipes with relative frequency will probably get a lot out of the fact that this oven brings a lot more than just the basics to the table. The full list here includes:

• Healthy Fry
• Bottom Heat
• Defrost
• Drying
• Eco Hot Air
• Eco Top Bottom Heat
• Fan Assisted Air
• Frozen Meal
• Hot Air
• Large Grill
• Pizza Mode
• Proof
• Roasting
• Small Grill
• Sous-Vide
• Steam
• Steam Baking
• Steam Hot Air
• Steam Regenerating
• Steam Roasting
• Top Bottom Heat
• Keep Warm
• Warm Dishes

After a few months with it, I'm actually starting to think that the LG Series 9 76L InstaView Full Steam Oven isn't just good but good enough that it's changing the way I think about using the oven. Where it used to be an unreliable gamble, it now feels as consistent as my (beloved) LG microwave.

This oven doesn't just do the job. It makes the work that goes into a good meal feel delightful.

When you warm it up, you get a real-time measurement of how far along it is towards your target temperature.When it's working its magic, you simply knock on outside and a light will turn on so you can check in on things without having to exposing yourself to the heat inside. 

The little chimes it makes and the degree to which it communicates what it's doing (and when it's doing it) also help make it much easier to rely on that a old-school oven.

Once you're done with it, you can also benefit from the dedicated cleaning mode. This feature relies on a reservoir concealed underneath the control panel to steam clean the inside of your oven. It's not only quick and easy, but super effective. You still have to wipe down the inside by hand afterwards but it's a significant improvement on the chemical cleaners I've used in the past, even if it is a little thirstier than I'd like.

Another feature that the LG Series 9 76L InstaView Full Steam Oven offers is the ability to control it remotely using LG's ThinQ app. You'll have to create an LG account to do this. However, once setup, this app lets you start it remotely, diagnose issues and add new recipes to its repertoire. I didn't make much use of this functionality, mostly because I'm constantly changing phones to review them. There are also a few obvious cybersecurity concerns this feature brings with it, though you do have to physical enable the feature before using it so it's easy enough to opt out of for what that's worth.

On their own, these inclusions offer some degree of novelty. Together they add up to more than the sum of their parts. When the baseline here is that you need an oven that works and works consistently, a better looking version of that fundamentals can only get you so far.

LG's attempts to make ovens smarter here land harder than they might because of how they directly address real problems and make for an oven that's just as reliable as you'd like but radical in terms of what that experience can look like.