Powerful, energy-efficient cooking with Smart Inverter technology for fast, even results in every dish.
Kitchen appliances are weird. I say that because, despite a significant number of them being essential in my household, including my microwave – I would be lost without it – I have never really spent much thought on my microwave other than “will it fit in that space?” and “Can I push the stop button on 00:01 to feel like James Bond defusing a bomb?”
And so when I was offered a Midea 45L 1200W Smart Inverter Microwave (Model MMW12VT45B) my first thought was “I’ve got one already, why would I need another?” (My second and third thoughts were “will it fit in that space?” and “I wonder if I can push the stop button on…”)
But I was curious to see whether there was much difference between microwaves, and whether Midea’s Smart Inverter Microwave would much difference in my daily tasks.
So, just how good is it, and should you consider upgrading your old, tired unit in the kitchen?
Midea 45L Smart Inverter Microwave: Unboxing and First Impressions
I’m a fan of Midea’s packaging. The crisp white box (with Blue strip on the left side) is clean and minimalist, allowing your focus to rest on the most important details – a photo of the device itself, and the relevant statistics (along with a few self-congratulatory badges by Midea – more on those later).
Inside the box is the Microwave itself, a glass plate for inside the microwave, and the documentation.
Now, the model I received, the MMW12VT45B is a relatively big unit, measuring 553 x 454 x 327, to give it the 45L capacity. But my first impression was of how light it was. Seriously light. I’m pretty sure my 8 year old daughter could carry it around without too much of a problem.
Admittedly, this isn’t really all that beneficial in a house, where it’s unlikely you’ll move it from the spot you plant it in the kitchen, but for those who have a microwave in their caravan, it could be of huge benefit. And for the elderly, infirm, or those who just got back from the gym and can’t lift the weight of their own arms anymore – it will come as a pleasant surprise.
It was also extremely easy to figure out how to use it without opening the instructions. The controls were straightforward and easy to use, the white LED display easy to read at all times of the day and night, and with the useful features like quick-start, pre-programmed recipes all easily selectable without time consuming steps or having to dig through a ton of menus.
The door is sturdy and securely closes, but it does lack a button to open – thankfully it doesn’t require much force to pull open. And it does have a child lock, for those who possess inquisitive toddlers.
The 45L capacity is fantastic for larger households, especially if you need to reheat food in larger dishes, or cook meals for a large household. The 345mm turntable ensures that dishes are unlikely to catch on the sides of the interior, or rotate improperly. I was even able to fit a large casserole dish inside with plenty of room to spare – something I couldn’t do with my previous microwave.
Key Features of the Midea 45L Smart Inverter Microwave
The Midea website details a number of key technology features:
- Smart Inverter Technology: Delivers precise cooking by automatically adjusting power levels for the exact amount of heat your food needs. This means more consistent results, better flavour, and food that stays true to its texture.
- Smart Humidity Sensor: Takes the guesswork out of cooking. By detecting the steam released from your food, the sensor fine-tunes cooking time and power so meals come out evenly heated, and never overcooked.
- Even Reheat: No more uneven heating or cold spots in the middle of your food. This feature distributes heat consistently across the whole dish, so every bite is warmed through from edge to centre.
- Defrost by Weight or Time: Whether preparing dinner in advance or need something defrosted quickly, you can set the time yourself, or enter the weight and let the microwave adjust automatically for accurate results with less effort.
- 1200W Microwave Output: When you need speed and efficiency, 1200 watts of power makes cooking and reheating faster than ever. Perfect for busy households and bigger portions that need a little extra power.
- 10 Power Levels: Take control of your cooking with ten different power settings. Adjust to suit delicate foods that need gentle heating or switch to higher levels for faster cooking and reheating.
- Preset Menus: Cooking your favourites has never been easier. With a range of built-in programs you simply choose the menu, like popcorn, pizza or vegetables, and the microwave takes care of the rest.
At first, some of those features sounded too good to be true – and I’m pretty sure every person who has ever owned a microwave knows the pain and frustration of taking a bite of your food, only to discover one part is still cold, while another burns the flesh from the inside of your mouth. But I was actually pleasantly surprised.
Previously I’d cut food into very small chunks, spread the food out very thinly in a donut shape on the plate, or just heat everything to scalding temperatures, and then let it cool down to the temperature I wanted. But with the Midea microwave it actually came out consistently heated pretty much every time (I say pretty much, because it was user error – me not following the correct preset menu etc – when it didn’t.) And I’ll be honest, I threw everything I had at hand at the Midea – leftover pasta, rice, melting chocolate; everything came out much better than my old microwave.
Perhaps the biggest accolade I can give, I put two identical bags of popcorn into the Midea and my other microwave (I won’t mention the brand, but it wasn’t cheap) and just hit the preset menu option. The Midea produced a bag with almost completely popped kernels. My other microwave burnt some of the bag (days later the smell STILL lingers in the pantry) and had a ton of unpopped kernels.
The Smart Humidity sensor is another feature that works, and that makes life easier. By detecting steam released from your food while cooking, it adjusts the cooking time and power level to suit the food, taking out a lot of the guesswork from reheating meals, and ensuring you’re not going to be left with (as an example) overly dry meat or fish.
At 1200 watts, the Midea is also noticeably more powerful than many other microwaves. This extra power can dramatically cut down on heating times – helpful in a busy household when you have multiple people wanting to use it, or for when reheating dinner for a larger family. And the 10 different power levels mean you can easily scale to purpose, with lower levels ideal for defrosting, and higher settings perfect for large family-sized meals.
One thing that is sure to impress is how quiet the Midea is. With the layout of my house, the main bedroom shares a wall with the kitchen. I’ve lost track of the number of times a teenager using the microwave has woken me just from the hum of the unit (which often persists long after the cooking while the unit runs a cooling cycle). But with the Midea the quiet was surprisingly noticeable.
Midea’s Guinness Record, Warranty and Brand Credentials
I mentioned earlier that there were some self-promoting badges on the box of the Midea 45L 1200w microwave.
The first of these is a gold “World’s No. 1 Microwave company” badge. I’ll be absolutely honest when I say I had never heard of Midea before being offered this microwave to review. But reading their company history, they were founded in 1968 in China, manufacturing bottle lids, before switching focus in 1980 to electric fans, and entering the air conditioning business in 1985 (something that remains their core business).
And apparently, they are indeed the largest microwave manufacturer in the world today, holding a Guinness World Record for the best-selling microwave brand, with over 7.4 million units sold in 2019 alone.
So yeah, I think they’ve earned the right to that badge on the box.
The second is advertising an impressive 10 year warranty on the Magnetron Energy Generator Parts, and 2 year manufacturer’s warranty on everything else. In the past 10 years I have gone through 3 different microwaves, so the warranty offered by Midea is impressive.
And the third amused me: It’s a bad stating Midea is an official partner of Manchester City. I had to look up the reasons why. And I’m still not entirely sure it requires it’s own dedicated badge the size of the other two. But, given this is the closest to a negative I’ve written in the review, I am starting to understand why Midea is the No. 1 brand.
Midea 45L 1200W Smart Inverter Microwave Review: Final Verdict
For families wanting a spacious, powerful and genuinely useful smart microwave, the Midea 45L 1200w Smart Inverter Microwave is an appliance that was far more useful than I initially expected. Fast, easy to use, energy efficient and quiet, It’s going to become my primary microwave – while I retire the other one to the garage.
With generous capacity, even heating, and a range of smart technology and features, the Midea 45L 1200w Smart Inverter Microwave is reasonably priced for the performance delivered by the unit. I would highly recommend it for anyone needing a new microwave, or those wanting to upgrade in size without breaking the bank.
It has a RRP A$239 and is available from Bing Lee (Online and In-Store) and authorised electrical discounters in-store.
And for those looking for something slightly smaller, Midea also has a 34L 1200w model available.
I would like to thank Midea for the unit they are generously allowing me to keep.
