What is the deal with toasters?

[Urbane Guerrilla]

Related question, I think: why do toasters actually get the toast to dark brown on their darkest-brown setting, whereas toaster ovens' max setting gets the toast to light yellow at most? I've never even seen a toaster oven that gets the toast visibly toasted and not merely warm and dry in a single cycle. I always have to do one long toasting and then a short one.

Some complain the ovens' distribution of heating elements doesn't tan the toast evenly, but I don't mind that; the flavor is still the same -- but if only the toasting setting were adequate to the task without having to fiddle with it!