The Panasonic NE-12523 is a small commercial microwave. While it lacks features common for residential microwaves, like dedicated programs for specific foods and a steam sensor, you can program your own modes and label the buttons with the included stickers. You can also customize many aspects of its performance, like the cooking chamber light's brightness and the end-of-cycle beeps' pitch and volume. It has a small cooking chamber, so it's best suited for smaller plates or cups, not bigger bowls or casseroles.
Our Verdict
- Heats food quickly.
- Programmable buttons.
- Compact design.
- No steam sensor.
- Small cooking chamber.
The Panasonic NE-12523 is a very fast microwave. It can heat food just as quickly as or faster than any microwave we've tested.
- Heats food quickly.
- Programmable buttons.
- Compact design.
- No steam sensor.
- Small cooking chamber.
Changelog
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Updated Mar 03, 2026:
We noted the IKEA GÅTEBO in the In-Use Noise box for users looking for a quieter option.
- Updated Feb 24, 2026: Version 1.1 of our microwave test bench adds a score for Internal Capacity and adds tests for Ease of Use and In-Use Noise. For a more detailed breakdown of the changes, see our full changelog.
- Updated Jul 10, 2024: Review published.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
This microwave has several variants: NE-12521, NE-12523, NE-17521, NE-17523, NE-17723, NE-21521, NE-21523. The different models have slightly different dimensions, power settings, and required power. The Panasonic NE-17723 model comes with an SD card that can be used to save a greater number of programs than other models. We tested model NE-12523, and you can see the label for the unit we tested here.
If you find another variant, let us know in the comments, and we'll update our review.
Popular Microwave Comparisons
The Panasonic NE-12523 is a commercial microwave, and it's likely too expensive to be worth considering for home use. Aside from some extra customization options, like adjusting the brightness of the light inside and the ability to save many custom programs, it doesn't do anything special. It heats food quickly, but other cheaper microwaves are just as fast, like the LG LMC0975ST and Panasonic NN-SN67HS. It doesn't have a steam sensor for more automatic microwaving.
If you're looking for a recommendation, check out the best microwaves and the best over-the-range microwaves.
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