GREECHO Induction Cooktop

I purchased this product as an anniversary gift. We really wanted an induction cooktop that also featured a griddle, this product looked perfect.

After less than one dozen uses (I acknowledge the nonstick griddle surface was nice for cooking bacon, pancakes, tofu, etc), we noticed a strong electrical/plastic burning smell coming from inside the unit.

Full disclosure: I’m an electrical engineer. The problem developed well outside of our return window. We used it less than one dozen times over a 4 month period. I haven’t contacted the manufacturer yet, but I plan to. I would have thought twice about purchasing if I had seen what I am posting here.

I have included a photo of the sticker on the bottom of the unit. There are no other markings with electrical information. What you should note, however, is the lack of any industry accepted certifications or standards such as UL, ETL, or TUV (which are commonly found in the U.S. or Canada). If you are unfamiliar with what these are, google Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL) markings.

Upon opening the unit, I took two pictures. One is zoomed out to show the whole thing, and the other is a close-up of the where the AC power cord terminates. You can see two screw terminals, one for the hot wire (labeled AC-L1) and the other for the neutral (labeled AC-N1).

Note that the unit uses a 2-prong ungrounded 15AWG AC cord. This wire gauge should be fine for the relatively short length and the rated power draw (1400W). Our unit was always plugged in directly to a kitchen wall outlet. It had not yet tripped any breakers or GFCIs, but it likely would have given what is shown in the photo. It is not clear why this happened without more investigation. When the wire was stripped and terminated onto the screw terminal lug and then heatshrinked, perhaps they removed too much wire material (e.g., when removing the insulation you have to be careful not to knick the wire inside and/or cut through it for a high-power device such as this)–it is hard to know at this point.

I plan to refurbish my unit by reterminating the AC cord properly, and we will see if any problems continue.

If you own this unit and smell burning plastic insulation (e.g., that “electrical” smell), or while using the unit it quickly “flakes out” and then resumes working, you may he affected by the same problem.

I will update this review with any new findings and also report back whether problems recur after reterminating the AC power cord.

UPDATE (2023-May-06): I emailed Greecho support to tell them about a concerning burning wire insulation electrical smell. Their initial response was “During the first few uses of the product, there may be a slight odor caused by the internal plastic components. This is a normal part of the initial usage of the product and should dissipate after a few uses”. After explaining that yes, there initially was a slight odor that went away, and this was an acute burning smell long after that occurred, they agreed to send a replacement product, and have assured me it is on the way. I’m urging them to take the old one back for their technical department to look more closely at, but so far they do not seem interested. I have not yet sent the pictures which are posted here on this review.

This is perfect for truck drivers on the move. Easy to store and easy to use and clean. For those who can’t figure out the c mode, turn on either side and touch the display that says frying pan.

Every attempt to cook with this portable stove failed. Even with the provided grill the system it would shut off with error codes. Can’t cook an egg let alone prepare a meal. Very disappointing! I wish I could return it but my time has ran out. I should have ran it through it’s capabilities before taking camping in our RV. Good thing we had other options for meal preparation. Unless you like very slow and interrupted cooking I would look into other equipment

C mode isn’t working or I can’t figure it out. It heats up on p mode however my small egg pan doesn’t work without the cover since it doesn’t weight much or compatible with the stove apparently.