Guillotine Slot and Safety Shield
The bagel stands on edge in a slot in the base, and the blade drops straight through it from above when you press the handle. A clear acrylic shield covers the blade on the side where your hand holds the bagel, so fingers never share space with the edge. That design is the whole point: most bagel cuts happen because the knife comes out of the bagel into the hand holding it, and here the blade has nowhere to go but down into the base. It is a big reason the slicer is popular for households where children or teenagers make their own breakfast, and one owner with arthritis in her hands, who struggles with serrated knives on thick bagels, finds it easy and pain-free. Stability matters for a tool you press down on, and Hoan gives it a non-slip base so it stays put on the counter. It is still a blade, and the usual care applies: keep fingers out of the slot while the handle is up, and clean the blade area carefully. But for everyday use, it is a much safer routine than a knife and a cutting board.