Anolon Professional Hard Anodized Nonstick 12-Piece Cookware Set

I did a good bit of research before deciding to purchase on this set using my usual methods. Compare and contrast on amazon, read other web reviews, do some google searches. I am sure that if you are reading this you are doing the same. I found that cookware sets in particular are VERY hard to separate because when folks purchase some more expensive ones, they are happy with it, and its the best thing ever. To be completely honest, I cannot tell you if this is the best set ever, or if its better than ones costing $100 more. I'll just try to shoot you straight and give you some of my feelings for it. And as I use it more I'll update it.Like most folks and guys in particular, I had several mix and match pots and pans that I've picked up over the years, mixed with my wifes stuff. After several of the pans were losing their non stick, getting warped and ruined... We decided to buy a new set that matched, and I wanted something higher quality that would last. Here is what I wanted.- Non stick- Preferably hard anodized aluminum (Not a fan of stainless)- Atleast one skillet- Needed a couple of pots and pans- Preferred something with a pour spout / locking handles (Other sets I used had this)- Nice to have something I could stick in the oven- Would not spend more than $300So with those things in mind, I went off and looked around. I found this set because it met most of my criteria above, and it was neat that the handles were 500 degrees safe. Now the set is here, I have to say that it was packaged very well. Inside an amazon cardboard box, wrapped in plastic, and inside an analon box. Everything inside was bubble wrapped and neat in appearance, so kudos for them.Busted out the set, and they are comfortable to hold, have a definitely more heavy feel than the cheap stuff that I've been using. The 12" skillet DID NOT fit in our pots / pans holder that we have, so the wife did not like that. We tested running it through the dishwasher, and they survived, but did not completely dry from there. My wife didn't like this, but it didn't bother me. All of the lids fit perfectly and had a nice solid grip to them.First use of the pan I decided I would make burritos, and that would mean cooking several things at the same time for me. I did my customary throw some oil in the pan, and quickly found out that with this set I put WAY too much in there. Absolutely no sticking within the pan, but the rivets as usual would let things stick on it. No big deal in my mind. Not being used to this level of non sticking I threw things out of the pan several times. Not the pans fault, just not used to it. Heating appeared to be consistent across the pan and was easy to cook with. I finished creating the rest of my mix and lowered the heat. Nothing stuck in using it around 20 minutes or so. Cleanup was next to nothing with these, so far so good.Things that I like about this set so far:Non stick is awesome and really worksNice heavy feelGrip of the pans is niceCleanup is easyLids are solidPackaging was really goodThings that I do not like (And why its not 5 stars for me)The skillet is too large in my opinion. Its really large with the handle and the large pan.I would have preferred to have a 10" skillet and have a 13 piece set.. I'd have gladly paid more for thisOverall I'm really pleased with it... only one real use, but I will update as necessary. I'd rate this 4.5 If I had the choice... but its not perfect so 4 stars it is.*UPDATE 6/11* - Had these for about a month now and used all of the pots, pans, skillets atleast once in this time. Everything is still good with them and I enjoy them. They are SUPER easy to clean up. I've noticed things that would take me quite some time to clean with the cheap walmart type pans are a breeze now. One thing I also found that is in common with other reviews, is that the handles on the pots and pans are NOT insulated. They get very hot, and since they dont have anything on them to keep it that way, you will likely burn yourself atleast once. For this reason I'd still rate it a 4, but probably just a 4 instead of a 4.5 out of 5. I love them, they are awesome, but not perfect. I'd feel good about recommending them to someone, but I'd have to list out some caveats with all of the praise as well.

My family has been using this cookware for more than 3 and 1/2 years. I wish I had purchased Anolon Professional sooner.Our cooking needs are mostly filled by this set, along with a few other Anolon items. We also have a few "regular" (not non-stick) pots and skillets-Magnalite brand- for when we want to use much higher heat. It IS pretty much a fact that all of the non-stick cookware, even the more expensive ones, can be damaged by overheating. When we want higher heat, we use the Magnalite pots and skillets. NOTE: I really like the Magnalite stuff 'cause it lasts 'forever'. But, it is much more difficult to clean. THAT is the reason we added the Anolon Professional Cookware to our kitchen.The long handles on the Anolon really do stay cool when used on the stove top. Obviously the "D" handles on the saucepans and the large stockpot are not insulated and require caution (and a hotpad) when moving. All the glass lids are really nice. They seal very well around the top of the pans and I do like the see-through ability over solid lids. We do put the lids in the dishwasher, but not the Anolon pots and skillets.Some other reviewers have expressed disappointment with the non-stick coating being damaged. I would bet that this is from overheating. All I can say about that is... we've used this cookware set for more than 3 and 1/2 years and the surfaces are as good as the day we bought them. I will admit that we did discard some Anolon cookware about 12 years ago that showed deterioration of the non-stick surface. These were obviously an earlier vintage than this model, and I wouldn't fight too hard with someone who suggested that we had overheated the earlier skillets. It was for that reason that I began purchasing the Magnalite.If I were to criticize the Anolon line, it would be for a couple of small gripes. First the handles on all the glass lids are not insulated and do get hot! Of course, since the all aluminum lids of the Magnalite also did the very same thing, this wasn't really a surprise. I long ago learned to reach for a hotpad before removing a lid. My other gripe is more annoying. The rivets that join the handles to the pats and pans are NOT non-stick, making them somewhat difficult to clean. This is especially true of the skillets where the rivets are almost always coming into contact with whatever you are cooking. Generally, we cope with this by spraying the rivets liberally with a non-stick spray, like Pam.At the price these are available from Amazon, you probably can't go wrong. A single 12-inch skillet of Calphalon from Macy's is almost as much as this whole set.