Breville Smart Oven Pro Review: Is the BOV845 Worth It?

Main Strengths

The pans, rack and tray all come in the box, so you can cook on day one.

Main Drawbacks

Watch the first run of any new food.

The Pro, BOV845BSS, sits in the middle of Breville's countertop oven lineup. It adds a Slow Cook setting and an interior light to the standard Smart Oven, and it stops short of the air-fry features on the biggest model. Because the three ovens look similar online, we kept their facts separate and did not carry any Air Fryer Pro findings over to this review.

Smart Oven Pro vs. Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro

The Pro and the Air Fryer Pro share the same 1800W rating, but the Air Fryer Pro is the roomier oven with more functions, a longer warranty and an actual air-fry mode.

Published dimensions vary by source and measuring method, so treat the exterior figures as approximate and allow for the handle and ventilation space.

We rate a countertop oven on the foods a household reaches for: toast and bagels, frozen and homemade pizza, cookies, roast chicken pieces, reheated leftovers and a slow-cooked meal. For each, we weigh how evenly it browns, how easy the controls are to read and adjust, how loud the fan is, and how much work cleanup takes.

The findings below are stated as plainly as the evidence allows, and where we lack measured results, we say so rather than guess. Because kids of every age walk through a family kitchen, we also weigh what stays hot and how obvious that is.

Its browning quirks are most noticeable in everyday cooking. It cooks well, but it asks you to pay attention the first time you run a new food.

Toasting and Bagels

Bagel cut faces brown well, though they can come out darker than you expect, so watch the first batch. Toast can brown more deeply at the center than at the rear, which means bread placement and the shade setting both matter. If you toast six slices at once, rotate or reposition them rather than trusting one pass.

Baking, Pizza and Roasting

Cookies and small bakes are the oven's comfort zone, and the 13-inch pizza pan is a handy size for a weeknight pie. Pizza browning can be patchy, with pale areas beside darker crust. Roast chicken can keep pale, soft patches of skin even with convection on, so we would not promise crackling skin without a turn or a few minutes under the broiler.

Convection helps, but Breville's claim of up to 30% shorter cooking is a manufacturer maximum, not a saving you should count on for every recipe. Time savings depend on the food, the load and the mode.

Broiling, Reheating and Keeping Food Warm

The oven offers broil, reheat and warm settings, and they cover the leftovers-and-garlic-bread jobs that eat up a busy evening. We do not have detailed measured results for broiling and reheating, so we will not claim more than the modes themselves promise. Remember that the top and door stay hot after cooking, and the display returns to its inactive color before the oven has cooled. Supervise young cooks and keep oven mitts nearby.

Slow Cooking

Slow Cook is the feature that separates the Pro from the standard Smart Oven. Low runs 4-10 hours and High runs 2-8 hours, then an automatic keep-warm setting runs for up to 2 hours. It produces tender meat and vegetables, but large recipes need scaling down to fit the cavity. Use ovenproof cookware, and do not expect it to replace a full-size slow cooker for a crowd.

What Fits Inside?

The nominal interior is about 13.5 x 11.5 x 5.5 inches. Usable rack space differs from the full cavity, so check your pans before you buy. The 12 x 12-inch enamel pan fits, along with the 13-inch pizza pan. Breville advertises room for a 4.4-quart Dutch oven, although fit depends on the lid and handles, so measure the whole vessel. There are 3 rack positions, and the magnetic rack assist works in the middle position.

The wire rack, enamel baking pan with broiling rack, nonstick pizza pan and removable crumb tray all come in the box, so you can start cooking without buying extra cookware. It keeps the first-week shopping list short.

For a large household, this is a supplementary oven. It handles a side dish, a tray of nuggets or a small casserole well, but a big roast or a full sheet-pan dinner belongs in the main oven.

Countertop Footprint and Required Clearance

The oven is wide for its height, so it takes more counter space than its low profile suggests. Breville calls for at least 4 inches of clearance on each side and 6 inches above the oven. If your counter sits under a cabinet, measure before you commit.

The dials and LCD are readable, and the controls become intuitive with use. The dials are sensitive, though, and they can overshoot the setting you wanted, so turn them slowly. Element IQ adjusts the five quartz heating elements to suit the mode you pick, which is why the oven can toast, bake and broil without manual fiddling.

The convection toggle is simple, and the fan is relatively unobtrusive in ordinary operation. That is a real plus in an open kitchen where someone is always doing homework at the counter. Thin fries brown more readily than thick ones, but convection does not deliver air-fryer crispness, so set your expectations accordingly.

Cleanup is a mixed picture. The nonstick walls wipe down easily after ordinary cooking, which is the part that matters most on a busy weeknight. The enamel pan and broiling rack are the weak spot, since chicken residue can cling to them even after washing.

Crumb Tray, Racks and Interior Care

The slide-out crumb tray makes crumb removal simple, though crumbs still collect in the interior corners. Let the oven cool and unplug it before cleaning, use soft nonabrasive materials, and avoid touching the quartz elements. Hand-wash the accessories as the manual instructs. Run the prescribed empty Pizza cycle before first use, as the manual directs, and expect a little smell the first time.

Reliability Reports, Warranty and Support

Premature fan and fuse failures are possible, but no dependable failure rate or service-life estimate has been established, so we will not guess at one. The oven carries a 1-year limited warranty covering qualifying material and workmanship defects. Direct purchases from Breville may qualify for return within 30 days of receipt, with authorization required, and retailer purchases follow the retailer's terms.

The Pro is mid-priced among the three ovens in this review: it costs more than the standard Smart Oven and noticeably less than the Air Fryer Pro. The extra cost buys the Slow Cook setting and interior light, which are worthwhile if you will use them. If you will not, the standard Smart Oven covers most toasting and baking for less.

When a Different Countertop Oven Makes More Sense

Pick the BOV800XL if you want the same Element IQ cooking and 6-slice capacity at the lowest price in this group and can skip Slow Cook and the interior light. Pick the Air Fryer Pro if you want an actual air-fry mode, a 9-slice toaster, a longer 2-year warranty and room for larger pans, and you have the counter space for a bigger oven. Our wider Breville toaster oven buying guide lines up the rest of the range.

Let counter space and household size make the call. If you have at least 4 inches on each side and 6 inches overhead, and you cook for two to four people most nights, the Pro fits. If you feed a crowd, or the counter sits tight under a cabinet, step up to the Air Fryer Pro's larger cavity or look at the standard Smart Oven's lower price.