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Frigidaire FGDS3065PF review: Frigidaire oven could use more extras

The Frigidaire FGDS3065PF has fewer bonus features than you'd expect from a $2,399 oven. But it's the cheapest dual-fuel, slide-in range we've tested.

Ashlee Clark Thompson Associate Editor
Ashlee spent time as a newspaper reporter, AmeriCorps VISTA and an employee at a healthcare company before she landed at CNET. She loves to eat, write and watch "Golden Girls" (preferably all three at the same time). The first two hobbies help her out as an appliance reviewer. The last one makes her an asset to trivia teams. Ashlee also created the blog, AshleeEats.com, where she writes about casual dining in Louisville, Kentucky.
Ashlee Clark Thompson
4 min read

When a range costs more than $2,000, you expect a manufacturer to include a few bonus features that can help you try to justify the price: a double oven cavity, a baking drawer, heck, at least a griddle. Frigidaire pummels those expectations of extras in its $2,399 FGDS3065PF, a range that is slim on extra features. The manufacturer opts for a "less is more" approach with this range. There's only four gas burners on the cooktop, the oven cavity is relatively small and there aren't any cooking tools included with the appliance.

7.6

Frigidaire FGDS3065PF

The Good

This $2,399 Frigidaire is an easy-to-use dual-fuel range that performed well in our cook tests. It's also the cheapest dual-fuel and slide-in range we've ever tested.

The Bad

There aren't many additional features that you'd expect on an oven that costs more than $2,000, such as a fifth burner or cooking accessories. It's also pretty slow when it comes to broiling.

The Bottom Line

The Frigidaire FGDS3065PF might not excite, but it's a solid pick if you want a slide-in range with a gas cooktop and an electric oven.

However, this Frigidaire is the cheapest dual-fuel range (a gas cooktop paired with an electric oven) and cheapest slide-in range (all controls on the front of the unit) we've ever tested, which helps justify the lack of extras. And the Frigidaire FGDS3065PF also makes up for its lack of add-ons with a decent cooking performance. The range boils water quickly, roasts a tasty chicken and bakes multiple racks of biscuits evenly. However, none of the resulting food or cook times made this range great enough to be memorable.

The Frigidaire FGDS3065PF is a good option if you want a dual fuel, slide-in range but want to spend less than $2,500. Just don't expect a wealth of extras.

Frigidaire holds back on the features with this oven

See all photos

Appearance

You might feel a bit of déjà vu when you see the Frigidaire FGDS3065PF. This 30-inch wide slide-in range looks very similar to comparable products, especially the Electrolux EW30IS80RS induction range (not surprising since the brands share a parent company). The Frigidaire is wrapped in stainless steel with black trim. On the cooktop, continuous cast iron grates cover the four gas burners. Most ranges in this price range throw in a fifth oblong, middle burner that is designed for you to use with the griddle. This Frigidaire, however, forgoes a fifth burner, which leaves some dead space in the middle of the cooktop. I would've liked to see Frigidaire make the most of this space by rearranging the burners in a set-up that would let you use bigger pots and pans without crowding the cooktops. Instead, you have a traditional four-burner set-up with a blank space in the middle that feels like a wasted opportunity.

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Tyler Lizenby/CNET
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A special rack hooks to the oven door so it extends when you open the door.

Chris Monroe/CNET

This Frigidaire comes with a 4.6 cubic-foot electric oven, which is small when you compare it other slide-in, comparably priced models, such as the KitchenAid KSGB900ES (with 6.5 cubic feet of space) or the Samsung NX58H9500WS (5.8 cubic feet). Fortunately, the oven holds large baking sheets without feeling crammed. The oven also comes with a special rack that you hook to the oven door. When you open the door, the rack will extend outward for easier access to your food. It's a thoughtful feature, but limiting in that you can only use the rack on the first two rack positions.

Performance

The Frigidaire FGDS3065PF performed well in our cook tests. It didn't break any records for speed, but it didn't lag too far behind other ranges.

Let's take a look at how fast it boiled water on its "Quick Boil" burner:

Large-Burner Boil Test (Gas Models)

Kenmore 74343 9.75SMEG C30GGRU 10.37LG LDG4315ST 10.65Samsung NX58H9500WS 11.35Frigidaire FGDS3065PF 11.87GE JGB700SEJSS 13.05KitchenAid KFDD500ESS 14.23Dacor DYRP36D 14.85Dacor RNRP36GS 15.38
Note: Time to achieve rolling boil, in minutes

The Frigidaire took an average of 11.87 minutes to bring 112 ounces of water to a boil, a competitive time when you compare it to other ranges with gas cooktops we've tested. And the Frigidaire boiled water nearly four minutes faster than the Dacor RNRP36GS, a gas range that costs three times as much as the Frigidaire.

The Frigidaire also gave a solid baking performance when in convection baking mode. The convection fan in the back of the oven wall circulates air for more even heat circulation, which is ideal when you're baking food on more than one oven rack. With the convection fan on, the Frigidaire evenly baked two racks of biscuits. The color of the biscuits teetered toward being too dark, but you could address that with shorter cook times, an easy fix when you consider the overall evenness.

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The photos on the left shows two racks of biscuits I baked simultaneously on convection bake mode. The biscuits were surprisingly even across both racks. The pictures on the right show color representations of the brownness of the biscuits. The biscuits that baked on a lower rack level (bottom images) toward the front of the oven were the brownest.

Tyler Lizenby/CNET

I also used the convection fan to roast a chicken. The skin wasn't as crisp as I would've liked, but the meat was juicy and tender.

The Frigidaire's broil performance was the biggest disappointment. The oven took an average of 16.78 minutes to broil six hamburger patties, which makes it among the slowest performers of the electric ovens we've tested. And the burgers cooked quickly on the outside, so the patties were nearly burnt before they all reached an interior temperature of 145 degrees.

Hamburger Broiling Test (Electric Models)

Samsung NE59J7850WS 12.32LG LDE4415ST 13.03Dacor ER30DSCH 13.67Samsung NE58K9850WG 14.37KitchenAid KDRS407 15.25Frigidaire FGDS3065PF 16.78KitchenAid KFDD500ESS 17.75Dacor DYRP36D 19.12
Note: Time to achieve 145 degrees F, in minutes

Final thoughts

The Frigidaire FGDS3065PF is a fine product. It boils water quickly, bakes biscuits evenly and roasts a tasty chicken. It doesn't come with a lot of add-on features we've come to expect from an oven that costs more than $2,000. But when you compare the Frigidaire to other dual-fuel ranges like the $2,599 KitchenAid KFDD500ESS, the $4,649 KitchenAid KDRS407 or the $6,320 Dacor ER30DSCH, the lack of special additions is a small price to pay for a lower-cost appliance.

7.6

Frigidaire FGDS3065PF

Score Breakdown

Design 7Features 7Usability 8Performance 8