Russell Hobbs 2 Slice Lift & Look Toaster (Longer slots, 6 Browning levels, Defrost/Reheat/Cancel function, Removable Crumb Tray, 1670W, Black & Stainless Steel Gloss finish) 26550

Great toaster although it’s only a 2 slice it fits every type of bread because of the long slots. It toasts evenly and quite quickly. The toaster itself is very stylish and fits perfectly with my new modern kitchen.

Nice cream and stainless steel colour. Toasts the bread nicely. 6 levels of toasting. Fits full size pieces of bread easily.

Looks very smart in my kitchen next to the matching kettle. I like the feature where you can lift the bread to check progress without actually cancelling the process. Doesn't toast particularly evenly, I've found this seems to be impossible with toasters, but this is the best I've found. The slots are nice and wide, and long enough to fit large slices of bread in on their sides, so the whole slice is toasted in one go, without the need to turn it

UPDATE - Nov 2025 - the side of this toaster will burn hands I wouldn’t buy it again! OLD- Bought this to replace a Russell Hobbs Buckingham toaster which we have had since 2018 - like another reviewer - 3 x matching kettles in the same time. But they are best kettles so happy to keep buying them! The 2 slice Buckingham is no longer available - despite being very big and having smaller slots it cooked our toast to perfection. Its Browning Control had many distinct clicks between the numbers - so could be set precisely and did not move. I can’t get the 26550 to toast consistently - usually burns my toast which I like medium - brown but not burnt. I was aware that this was likely to happen given the much higher power of toaster - 1650W as opposed to c 1000W of most other toasters making it more difficult to control. I had the same problem with toasters in the 1980s that used a single bar filament and reflector like old radiant electric fires. Also knob rotates too easily on the 26550- it always seems to always move which doesn’t help. Thanks to another reviewer, I was aware that sides of the 26550 toaster get very hot. Not a problem with two old adults in the house but Russell Hobbs should design better! I am sorely tempted to buy the 4 slice RH Buckingham toaster despite it probably being gigantic and getting poor reviews. It would be handy if Amazon reintroduced the facility to reply to reviews as I would like to ask those who are having the toaster trip the home electricity - to check if a large crumb has lodged itself between the heating element and the metal chassis allowing current to leak to Earth. Its price has just dropped to c£10 more than I paid for 26550!

Good 👍

This toaster really does have great sized slots. They're not only long, but also wide, so we never get things like rolls stuck in the sides like we did with our last toaster. I don't think we've found anything yet that hasn't fit. It's also very compact considering how spacious the slots are. The toaster looks fine - nothing fancy, but blends into our kitchen. I like that you can push the toast up to check how done it is without ejecting/ending the toasting session. The one downside (and it's a fairly big one!) is it just really doesn't toast that well. Most of the time things are not evenly toasted, and it also seems like the line between 'not toasted at all' and 'burned to ashes' is hair-thin. It doesn't even seem to be consistent, so some slices from the same loaf of bread will get toasted differently despite being on the same toaster settings. So unless you are really not picky about your toast then you do kind of have to stay with the toaster the entire time, constantly checking. The toaster claims to have a 'reheat without toasting it further' setting, but it regularly burns our toast when we use it. So annoying because this toaster really would be perfect for us but the inconsistent toasting is just really stressful.

I’ve been using the Russell Hobbs 2‑Slice Lift & Look toaster in cream and stainless steel for a few days now, and it’s been a solid performer. The extra‑long slots easily fit thick or artisan slices—no more half‑toasted bread peeking out the top. The six browning settings give precise control from lightly golden to deeply toasted. The Lift & Look feature is a standout: I can check the toast’s progress without cancelling it, which saves time and avoids over‑toasting. The defrost, reheat, and cancel functions all work as expected and are helpful when dealing with frozen or cooling toast. Cleanup is simple—the removable crumb tray keeps the toaster hygienic. On the downside, several users (and I’ve noticed too) reported the toaster’s sides get quite warm during use—touch with caution. A few online reviewers even mentioned uneven toasting across the slice. Overall, though, it’s a stylish, reliable budget pick under £35, offering more finesse than basic models with useful features you’ll actually use. Given its price point and performance, I’d highly recommend it for daily kitchen use.

We did not have much choice in buying this toaster because it was the only one we could find that fulfilled our needs. As we bake our own bread we need a toaster with extra long slots which this one has. Most toasters seem to be produced for the standard Mother's Pride type bread size, our bread comes somewhat larger and we don't want to cut the top off! This product however does leave a lot to be desired, the toasting is not even, resulting in one edge being burnt and the reverse edge hardly brown. To get the slice down is not easy either and one has to really thump down the lever otherwise it will not engage. We feel that with a little more attention to detail and a price rise would make this toaster fit for purpose, to sum up, rather disappointing when it could be great.