The Philips Air Fryer 3000 series has RapidAir Plus Technology and it gave me the best results of any air fryer I have tried

I’m gonna say it: The Philips Air Fryer 3000 Series is the best air fryer I have ever used. It was able to cook anything I threw at it. And it was quick!

The only issue I found was that the items sat near the back of the basket crisped up a little faster. But that is all I can find wrong with the air fryer!

I was able to achieve a perfect cook on the top and bottom of all of my food thanks to the RapidAir Plus Technology, which negates any need to flip food. And for items like chips or tater tots that need to be shaken, there is a handy halfway timer to give you a reminder.

Best of all though, just like the Philips Air Fryer 2000 Series, the 3000 Series has a window so you can keep an eye on your veggies or watch your cupcakes rising.

You can find out more in my full Philips Air Fryer 3000 Series review.

Philips Air Fryer 3000 Series review: Specs

Philips Air Fryer 3000 Series review: Price & availability

The Philips Air Fryer 3000 Series is available from the Philips U.S. site for $149 or from Amazon U.K. for £169. The air fryer also comes in a smaller 6.2 Liter size which can be purchased from Amazon U.S. for $199 or Amazon U.K. for £129.

You’re able to purchase extra accessories to get the most out of the air fryer. These include a baking and cooking set (which is a deeper pan for baking cakes), a grill insert to sear meat, a two-layer cake stand with muffin cups, and a breakfast set to hold toast and eggs to make busy family mornings easier.

This is more expensive than the previous Philips Air Fryer 2000 Series, which is $96 for the 6.2 Liter version, but the upgraded RapidAir Plus Technology of the 3000 Series is worth the price increase in my opinion.

Philips Air Fryer 3000 series review: Design & setup

There is no doubt about it — this is the most stunning air fryer I have seen. A matte black design with rose gold accents give the Philips 3000 Series a premium look and feel. The accents are what make it stand out in the crowds, and definitely make it look more sleek than the 2000 Series.

The fryer measures 13 x 17.5 x 12.25 inches and has one basket which is 7.2L (I could fit two personal pizzas comfortably). Since the basket is so big, you could easily cook a few items at the same time, as long as they require the same cooking temperature.

The 3000 Series only weighs 13lbs and I was able to carry it myself and set it up with ease by simply plugging it into the wall outlet. The basket is also light and I had no issues holding it, shaking it, or tipping it to get my food out.

The insert of the basket has a locking mechanism which attaches it to the base. This needs to be detached for cleaning, but that’s easy enough. The tray of the basket also sits quite high in the base, so it catches any fat run off incredibly well, making this fryer a relatively healthy cooking option.

The window, which stretches around the top of the air fryer, lets you take a look at how your food is cooking without having to take out the tray and disrupt cooking. I found the window particularly useful when making cupcakes so I could watch them rise (which is the best part, right?)

The window also meant I knew when to give the air fryer a shake to ensure even cooking when making potato snacks, and didn’t have to pull the drawer out multiple times to check on them. I’m a big fan of an air fryer window for this reason.

Speaking of the vital air fryer shake, there’s a timer feature on the 3000 Series that alerts you when half of the cooking time has elapsed, so you can shake or flip to ensure an even cook. The beeping of the timer is quite incessant (so it’s not one you can ignore) but it means you’ll get perfectly cooked goods every time.

As someone who is super forgetful, the timer is one of my favorite features. When I use my usual Ninja Dual Zone air fryer I often forget to shake the basket halfway through and end up with super crispy french fries on top and soggy ones on the bottom.

The timer can be turned off with a simple tap of the touch screen — useful for things you don’t need to do that with, like cupcakes, so you won’t have to endure the beeping every time you cook.

The basket of the air fryer has a max indication line specifically for potato products like french fries and tater tots, making it even simpler to get an even cook. On the screen you can select cooking time from presets, or manually control the time or temperature from the range of 140-400ºF.

The 3000 Series can be used with the HomeID app. While this doesn’t let you control the device directly, it gives easy access to the user manual and access to air fryer recipe ideas.

It’s a bigger fryer than the Ninja Air Fryer Pro 4-in1 ($119), and has more cooking presets and features such as a Keep Warm setting and the halfway timer. So, while both fryers are single-basket, the Philips is more versatile, offering a wider range of cooking possibilities.

Philips Air Fryer 3000 Series review: Cooking performance

The Philips Air Fryer 3000 Series gave me the most even cooking results I have ever experienced from an air fryer. I have the RapidAir Plus Technology to thank for this.

The base of the air fryer basket has a star shape with raised peaks and troughs, creating faster airflow that is directed towards the base of the food sitting on the tray.

Pastries

The effect of this was most evident when I cooked frozen sausage rolls. The pastry puffed up beautifully and the bottom was as crispy as the top when I went to flip them halfway through the cook. I decided to leave them alone and was super impressed, as browning all over isn’t something I can achieve with my Ninja air fryer — no soggy bottoms here.

Tater tots

I cooked frozen tater tots to test out the performance with potato snacks, and they only took 10 minutes! I cannot express enough how fast this air fryer is. Any grease run off was caught below the tray in the base of the basket which meant the tots could get crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside.

The only criticism I have with these is that the tots at the back of the fryer seemed to brown more than the ones at the front in the first half of cooking. I shook them halfway through so this wasn’t an issue, but is something to bear in mind if you’re cooking something that doesn’t require a shake up.

Pizza

Next, I tried some small personal pizzas. The tray of the basket is so big I was able to fit two pizzas in there! The air fryer was able to achieve an even bake of these pizzas and the middle was cooked well without burning the cheese on top.

Vegetables

I also made chargrilled mixed Mediterranean vegetables using the Vegetable preset. I tested the air fryer on a whole bunch of vegetables including zucchinis, tomatoes, and peppers, and boy was I impressed — they were all still so juicy!

Cupcakes

Finally, I whipped up a batch of cupcakes. I used the muffin preset for this which took 18 minutes. I was able to watch the cakes rising through the window of the air fryer, which is my favorite part when cooking them in a conventional oven, so I was very pleased.

The cupcakes had positive reviews from everyone in the office, and they were moist so the air fryer didn’t dry them out.

Philips Air Fryer 3000 Series review: Storage & maintenance

For any dishwashing haters, you’ll be glad to know the Philips Air Fryer 3000 Series basket is dishwasher safe. I opted to clean it with dish soap and a sponge though to see how easy it was to tackle the grime.

It took me no time at all to clean since it’s non-stick, just like the Philip Air Fryer 2000 Series ($96). Although the peaks and troughs from the RapidAir Plus Technology require a little extra attention. You do have to detach the inside of the basket by unlocking the mechanism from the handle, but this is easy enough.

Philips Air Fryer 3000 Series review: Verdict

This is the best air fryer I have ever used. Its ability to crisp up the bottom of the food as well as the top because of the RapidAir Plus Technology design is really great.

The presets on the device are easy to use with a simple press on the touch screen, and it gave me perfect cooking results, even with the tricker cupcakes. The halfway timer is also very useful if you, like me, are a forgetful cook and get sidetracked easily. The window also helps to ensure your food is evenly cooked if you keep an eye on it so you can see when it needs a shake.

The only qualm I have with the air fryer is that the back cooks slightly faster than the front. But when you shake up the food anyway it doesn't make a difference.