Functionally, the touch controls make the whole thing much easier to clean, but I agree they are harder to use. As with the touchscreens in cars, I'm sure it's

Functionally, the touch controls make the whole thing much easier to clean, but I agree they are harder to use. As with the touchscreens in cars, I'm sure it's also about marketing a sleeker product and lowering the bill of materials and labor - hence cost of manufacturing. Just wait a little longer and a manufacturer will start offering physical dials on an induction stove as a high-end feature, but also realize that it will still be control by wire like a computer input device, not a mechanically coupled control like a (dumb) dimmer switch - since it would be ultimately controlling the inductor in the stovetop via software.