What if modern appliances were built like the KitchenAid stand mixer?
theatlantic.com
theatlantic.com
Today you can buy an Ankarsrum Original Kitchen Machine for $750 and have $250 to buy its high-quality attachments. Hand-assembled in Sweden, all metal including the bits on the inside hidden from view.
Many modern appliances are still built like old ones. They are also priced like old ones.
I mean washing machines / dishwashers / dryers / fridges etc
There were good appliances 35years ago (except maybe GE). Our garage fridge is 20yo. We found a Maytag washer dryer set from 88 (but still using the 90s Whirlpool washer).
We bought a new (entry model) KA mixer about 15 years ago. It had too many issues and went away. We eventually found one from about 35 years old and it's been great. Son #3 replaced something on it recently(& cheaply, & easily), a bearing I think.
*I understand that the lower Voltage means less power but a) there would be much more room for higher powered devices with 1000W+ and b) there are very few stand mixers who support the double voltage outlets which some kitchens offer and those are industrial understandably.
Very underwhelming. I miss the Kenwoods sold in Europe.
They're essentially the respective kitchen power tool brand equivalents of Ryobi and Festool. The KitchenAid looks better, is designed for simplicity and approachability, covers the typical uses of a home kitchen, and sacrifices high-end power for flexibility as a multi-tool.
The Kenwood is larger, heavier, and more difficult to clean and maintain. Its size gives it a larger capacity that most households won't use. It costs 2-4x more than the KitchenAid and AFAICT comes in only the stainless steel finish. Most of the power available to the Kenwood is useless to home cooking and baking.
Also the machine you mentioned is not sold in the US anymore. Afaik the only machine is the 800W Chef Titanium (which is what I have).
That's bizarre, because it was on sale in the US last year when I was picking between it, a KitchenAid, and a Breville.
Coming only stainless being a drawback and the KitchenAid looking better are completely subjective.
I can totally buy it being heavier, but why would it be less approachable? It's a wheel versus a selector knob.
I wonder how the 1.7kW would handle mixing pasta dough.
Being heavier and taking up more counter space _is_ what makes it harder to use, less affordable, and less approachable. The Kenwood would not fit on the counter where I keep my KitchenAid without removing utensils I use while cooking or sacrificing what little prep space I have. If I wanted to store it in the cabinet under the counter when not in use, the extra 4-5 pounds vs. my KitchenAid would make it literally, physically harder to use.
And yes, the appearance is subjective. KitchenAid trades on that; they have more colors and finishes than features. That's important to people who don't care if the mixer can't knead a dense dough or mix a triple-batch of a recipe in one go.
But even more curious, 1200W should work in the US. At 120V and 20 Amps, this gives 2400W max and I think continuous load is allowed at 80% of that, which would be 1920W. But even the Kenwoods in the US only have sub 1000W last time I checked.
When buying a mixer, look for Metal Gearing. Avoid plastic gearing and belt drives.
For an example of a good quality metal geared mixer that is well constructed, check out Breville.