The concept of air fryer was first proposed by Philips at the 2010 IFA International Consumer Electronics Show, when Philips released a small kitchen appliance called "Air Fryer", which was translated as "air fryer" when introduced to China. The air fryer mainly uses the rapid circulation of heat to bake food, not in the true sense of the word, and the crispy texture is not as good as traditional fried food, but it does reduce the fat of meat ingredients.
 
The popularity of Philips air fryer in China is no less than that of the European and American markets, according to the latest monitoring data of Zhongyikang, the domestic market share of Philips air fryer has ranked first for many years, and there is currently no domestic brand that can challenge its industry position. This is not only because it was the first to introduce the air fryer, but also because of the excellent performance of its products. British media Which? In 2018, a total of 5 Philips air fryers were evaluated, of which 3 were recommended by "Best Buy", HD9621/91 even topped the list, it is also the most popular model of Philips, and the domestic price is about 900 yuan.
 
Looking at the domestic and foreign markets, Philips has few opponents. In the UK market, Tecford, which stands shoulder to shoulder with Philips, focuses on stirring air fryers, with a stirring paddle in the middle of the inner pot, which can heat the food evenly without opening the lid and flipping it when cooking. Although Philips' three-dimensional/drawer-type air fryer does not have an automatic stirring function, the exclusive Turbo Star technology has outstanding heating effect, and the food taste is not inferior to Tefal, and the Tefal air fryer is equipped with a window as standard, with poor thermal insulation, and the shell temperature reaches 100°C when cooking, while Philips is only about 35°C.
 
Loud cooking is a point that air fryers often criticize. In fact, due to the high-power fan on the top of the machine, this is a defect that most air fryers cannot avoid. Although Philips is a pioneer in the industry, it has not been able to solve this problem for the time being. Even if it is influenced by Which? The highly regarded HD9621/91 also seems to be weak in this regard.
 
Philips' main product is a mechanical air fryer, which is generally priced at more than 1,000 yuan, and the microcomputer flagship machine has exceeded 2,000 yuan. On the whole, it is several times higher than the ordinary products in the domestic market, and it is also a relatively expensive product in the European and American markets, after all, GoWise USA, which has the largest air fryer market share in the United States, generally only costs about 500 yuan.
 
It should be noted that the price difference between the microcomputer air fryer and the mechanical air fryer does not necessarily indicate a huge gap in product performance. The three recommended Philips products are all mechanical, and the microcomputer-based performance is decent. The main reason why microcomputerized products are superior to mechanical ones is that they can finely adjust the temperature and time, and the appointment time has been upgraded from 30min to 60min, but the suggested cooking time on the included recipe is only experimental data. If the chicken wings are evenly arranged, leaving enough space between the wings, the cooking time can be less than the recommended time in the recipe, and setting it to "standard time" is more likely to burn.
 
Another selling point of the Philips microcomputerized air fryer is that it comes standard with a 30min heat preservation function, which other brands on the market, including Tefal, do not pay much attention to. Considering that the air fryer is mainly used for cooking french fries, it is not superfluous to be equipped with a keep warm function, and once the crispy fries are cooled, they are basically tasteless. HD9646/11 is the most cost-effective model with thermal insulation function, but it also requires about 1300 yuan, which is suitable for users who have consumption upgrade needs.
 
The Philips air fryer is misleading when it comes to a graphic representation of button functions, especially on models with a "touch screen knob". After adjusting the temperature and time, some users often click the keep warm button in the lower right corner, resulting in cooking failure. The last step is actually to press the rotation button, which can not only rotate left and right, but also move up and down. The HD9646/11 and HD9641/91 panels belong to this design, and users need to be careful when operating them.
 
In order to make full use of the heat of the heating tube, the Philips air fryer does not have a sealed heating tube, and the heating tube will be contaminated with grease when cooking ingredients with high fat content, which may expel oil fumes, so it is best to turn on the range hood when cooking. In addition, the Philips air fryer has more parts than ordinary products on the market, and even if it can be removed and cleaned in the dishwasher, the whole process is still cumbersome, and the oil-stained mesh frame also tests the performance of the dishwasher.