Salton PC2 Popcorn Maker

Pros: No oil necessary; cheap.
Cons: Only a fraction of kernels pop; dangerous spray pattern from popper

I thought hot-air popcorn poppers were foolproof to design. You shoot hot air around the bottom, ha ...

Pros: It's quiet.
Cons: It burns kernels

I love popcorn, so when my popper recently broke, I sought out a new one. Salton is a well-known name in small appliances, and I bought it from an on-line company I trust, so I figured it must be okay.

Now, I like the idea that this popper is...

Pros: Delicious air-popped popcorn, almost every time
Cons: Wastes kernels when it (infrequently) won't pop popcorn

My husband gave me our Salton popcorn popper as a holiday gift last year, and we've used it many times since then. Air-popped popcorn is healthier and (I think) better-tasting than microwave popcorn, plus we can adjust the amount we pop to fit our needs ...

Pros: Ease of use. Only 2 parts.
Cons: No on/off switch -- cannot be used by kids.

I love this product. It's probably the simplest device to operate I've ever had.

The machine has two parts, a base unit, where you put the popcorn, and a lid.

You put the popcorn in the base, pop on the lid, put a container under...

Pros: Easy to clean
Cons: Only 60% pop-rate; popcorn is often burned; popcorn not light and fluffy.

A few months ago, I went out in search of the perfect popcorn popper. I went to several stores, but much to my surprise, there were not very many popcorn popper models to be found. I specifically wanted a hot-air style popcorn popper, because 1) they...

Pros: built in butter melt tray
Cons: Pops too hot, kernels explode in bowl, popper often get jammed.

Heater runs very hot and fan doesn't run fast enough. As a result popper ofter becomes jammed and many times hot kernels fly out and pop in the bowl which causes popcorn to fly everywhere.

Will never buy another Toastmaster product again.