In the mid-1980's, I decided to buy one from a thrift store; cost me about $6. This was my first crockpot, but I found they were WONDERFUL, for exactly what you said: toss in a bunch of ingredients, go off for X-number of hours to get work done, come back for a great meal. I ended up upgrading to a 6qt oval with removable porcelain liner and auto-shutoff feature. Basically, living alone by that time, I could toss a bunch of beans, lentils, veggies, and/or meats into it, then go off to work and come home to a great prepared meal that also generated leftovers I could refrigerate or freeze for later.

Currently, I've been living in a studio apartment and unfortunately the LEASE forbids any resident to leave the apartment with a crockpot running (fire safety issues). And having my apartment door within 10ft of where the crockpot sits, and the apartment door 8ft from the elevators (so they can smell if something's cooking), has meant that I can't use the crockpot unless I am home. Frankly, there's very little reason to run a crockpot while you're in a studio apartment; you might as well just cook things normally, because you're right there to keep an eye on it. Very sad…

But, yeah; I was part of the resurgence of crockpot use that continues to this day.

So now I've joined the throng moving to 'multicookers'. What they do that crockpots don't do is cook things in much shorter time than crockpots or even conventional cooking can achieve. I purchased a Zavor (ATK-approved, however without the enthusiastic media presence that includes use tips and a multitude of recipes), which I have yet to use. I bought it figuring this was a work-around for my lease restrictions on crockpots; I should be present to keep an eye on its cooking, plus it cooks meal in short time, whether I'm working or at home.

And now that's I finally retired (and Covid concerns keep me home a great deal more), I should get more use from it than a crockpot. But we have yet to see. I need to 'clear the decks' so I can thoroughly concentrate on learning this new technology, but I'm still settling into my nest and culling my possessions, I so haven't had the mental room to put my full attention to it. Once I do, I will experiment and test, then decide whether I keep the crockpot or the multicooker; I don't really have room for both.

I was planning on replacing my 8 quart Duo with the Duo Evo Plus. Should I consider one of the newer models or look for either a NOS or refurbished Duo Evo Plus?

I'm also going to be looking for a new slow cooker. I have all older Hamilton Beach 8 quart model. The Kitchenaid shown in this video would be great but I don't think it comes in 8 quart (which is important to me). So what would you recommend in that size?

Thanks and happy new year.

Not able to cut up chicken or even fresh vegetables I found it perfect for just throw it in food and coming back later.

Although the IP Duo Evo has some good improvements there is no reason to upgrade from my original Duo now!