Touchstone Sideline Infinity Pro 72" Review: a wide 3-sided electric fireplace that looks high-end without the crazy price

I’ve had the Touchstone Sideline Infinity Pro 72" installed for a bit now, in a living room where we built a simple false wall around it. I’m not an interior designer, just a regular homeowner who wanted that long, modern fireplace look without running gas lines or dealing with venting and inspections. I’ve also tried a couple of cheaper electric fireplaces before, so I had a decent idea of what usually feels fake or annoying with these.

First thing: this thing is big and heavy. You don’t just unbox it and stick it somewhere in 10 minutes. It’s about 95 pounds and the 72" width really dominates the wall, which was the goal for me. If you’re in a small apartment or a bedroom, it might be overkill. For a living room or open space, the size finally looks proportional instead of those tiny 36–50" inserts that look lost on a big wall.

In daily use, the main thing that stands out is the flame realism and the 3-sided glass. Straight on, the flame looks pretty close to a gas fireplace, especially on the warmer color settings with the brightness dialed down. From the sides, you still see movement and depth, which is something the flat, front-only units just can’t do. That’s really what makes it look more “built-in” and less like a TV screen with fire.

It’s not perfect though. The heater is fine as a backup or to take the chill off a room, but it’s not replacing a real heating system. The smart features are handy, but the touch controls on the front can be a pain if you have small kids who love pressing buttons. Overall, I’d say it’s a pretty solid choice if you want a modern focal point and you’re ready to do a bit of install work or pay someone to do it right.

Price-wise, this Touchstone Sideline Infinity Pro 72" sits in the mid-to-upper range for electric fireplaces, but still well under what you’d pay for a similar-sized gas fireplace with a full build-out. I checked some local fireplace shops before buying, and their linear gas setups were often more than double the cost once you factored in the unit, venting, gas line, and install. For what you pay here, you get a pretty convincing visual upgrade without all that hassle and ongoing maintenance.

Compared to cheaper electric fireplaces (the 200–400 dollar front-only models), you’re paying extra mainly for the 3-sided design, better flame effects, and smart features. If you just want some fake flames in a bedroom for occasional use, those cheaper ones might be enough. But if this is going in your main living area and you care about the look, I think the price difference is justified. The side glass and more realistic flame really do change how it looks in the room.

In terms of running cost, with flames only, it barely uses power. I’ve left it on for long stretches without worrying. The heater at 1500W is like running a standard space heater; fine for a few hours but you don’t want it as your only heating source. The fact that you can choose between plug-in and hardwire is also nice from a value perspective, because you can start with a plug-in setup and later have an electrician hardwire it if you’re doing a bigger renovation.

For the money, I’d say it’s good value if you specifically want a wide, 3-sided built-in look and are okay investing in the install. If you’re on a tighter budget or don’t care about side viewing, you can definitely spend less and still get something that throws light and a bit of heat. But if the fireplace is going to be a main feature wall and you don’t want it to look cheap, this hits a decent balance between price, quality, and features.

The design is where this fireplace makes more sense than cheaper flat-front units. You get four install options: fully 3-sided (front and both sides visible), left-visible, right-visible, or front-only. I went with the full 3-sided look in a false wall, so the glass wraps around both ends. That’s what gives it that more “custom built-in” feel. Guests always notice that the flames are visible from the side instead of just from the front.

The frame and body are black alloy steel, nothing fancy but it feels sturdy and doesn’t flex or rattle. The glass looks clean and the edges line up well with the framing once installed. It doesn’t scream luxury, but it doesn’t look cheap either. It’s more in that “good quality, no nonsense” zone. The touch controls are on the front glass, very low-profile, so when the unit is on, you see little icons, and when it’s off they blend in and don’t dominate the look.

In terms of proportions, the 72" length with the relatively low height gives it that modern, linear gas fireplace vibe. If you’ve been to showrooms where they try to sell you gas units for double or triple the price, the visual impact is in the same ballpark, even if obviously it’s still electric. I’ve compared it side by side to a cheap Amazon 50" flat fireplace I used to own, and the difference in depth, flame spread, and side viewing is pretty obvious. The cheap ones look like a shallow TV; this one looks more like an actual built-in feature.

The only design thing that bugs me is the touch panel behaviour. You can lock the panel when the fireplace is on, which is good to avoid turning on the heater by mistake. But when the unit is off, the panel can still be used to turn it on. If you’ve got a toddler who loves pressing glowing icons, that’s annoying. A full lockout when off would make more sense. It’s not a deal-breaker, but it’s one of those little design decisions that feels half-finished.

In terms of comfort, I look at three things: heat comfort, noise level, and the overall vibe when you’re sitting near it. The heat it puts out is gentle and targeted. Sitting about 6–10 feet away, you feel a warm airflow, but it doesn’t roast you. It’s more like a decent space heater built into the wall. In shoulder seasons (fall, spring), I’ve used just this in the evenings and it kept the room comfortable without needing to kick on the main system.

The fan noise is there, but it’s not obnoxious. You’ll hear a consistent whoosh when the heater is on, similar to a small fan heater on low/medium. Watching TV at normal volume is still fine. When the heater is off and just the lights/flames are running, it’s very quiet. There’s no loud mechanical hum or clicking that I’ve noticed so far, which is a big plus compared to some cheaper units I’ve owned that buzzed constantly.

The built-in crackle sound system is an interesting touch. It doesn’t sound exactly like a real wood fire, but it’s close enough to trick your brain a bit when you’re not paying attention. The volume is adjustable, so you can keep it very low in the background. I wouldn’t buy the unit solely for that feature, but it does add a bit of atmosphere, especially if you’re just relaxing on the couch at night. If you hate fake sounds, you can just turn it off and forget about it.

From a day-to-day comfort standpoint, I like that I can control everything from the couch with the remote or my phone. If I’m already in bed or on the sofa, I don’t have to get up to tweak the heat or brightness. The only comfort downside for families is again the lack of a full child lock when the unit is off. If you have a curious toddler, you’ll either need to keep an eye on them or cut power at the breaker or outlet when you don’t want the fireplace turned on. It’s not the end of the world, but it’s one of those practical details you notice quickly in real life.

Material-wise, this fireplace is mostly what you’d expect at this price: alloy steel body, glass front and sides, plastic remote, and decorative media made of painted glass crystals and fake driftwood logs. The main unit feels sturdy; it’s heavy and doesn’t flex when you lift it (with help, ideally two people). Once it’s framed and screwed in, it feels like part of the wall, not something that’s going to rattle loose.

The glass is clear and doesn’t have weird distortions. I haven’t noticed any warping or discoloration so far, even after running it regularly with and without heat. The side glass pieces line up well with the front, so you don’t get ugly gaps or misalignment if your framing is done correctly. The black finish on the metal frame is even and doesn’t chip easily; I bumped it lightly during install and didn’t see any scratches, which is reassuring.

The decorative media is decent. The painted crushed glass crystals catch the light nicely and help sell the ember effect. The driftwood logs look okay from a normal viewing distance, not super realistic up close, but once the flames and lights are on, they do the job. I ended up mixing the logs and glass to get a less “plastic log set” look. If you’re really picky, you could swap them for higher-end fake logs later, but for most people the included set is fine.

Overall, the materials feel like good mid-range quality. It’s not flimsy big-box-store level, but it’s also not ultra-premium. For the price and size, I think it’s pretty solid. The important thing is that nothing rattles, the fan doesn’t feel like it’s going to fall apart, and the frame doesn’t get too hot around the heater vents. So far, it gives the impression it should hold up well with regular use, as long as your install is done properly and the unit has the right clearances.

On performance, I’d split it into three parts: flame realism, heating, and smart control. For the flames, this is honestly one of the better electric units I’ve seen in person. If you stick to the classic orange/red flame with medium speed and medium brightness, it looks quite close to a gas fireplace, especially from a few meters away. The motion isn’t jerky, and the flame height and depth look decent. Some of the more colorful modes (blue, purple, etc.) are clearly artificial, but they’re there if you like messing with colors for parties or holidays.

The ember bed and downlighting add a lot. Having 13 ember colors and 13 downlight colors lets you dial in a warmer or cooler look depending on the room. I usually pick a warm ember and a neutral downlight, so it doesn’t look like a nightclub. Being able to change flame speed and brightness is actually useful; at night, I drop the brightness so it doesn’t look like a fake bonfire shining across the room. During the day, I bump it up so it doesn’t get washed out by sunlight.

For heat, the 1500W heater is fine as a supplemental source. In my roughly 350–400 sq ft living area, it warms the space by a few degrees if I leave it running for a bit. It’s good for taking the chill off, but if you’re thinking it will replace your main heating system, that’s unrealistic. The fan noise is noticeable but not crazy; you can still watch TV over it. It’s similar to a small space heater, maybe a bit quieter. I like that you can run flames without heat, so I actually leave the flame going quite often just for ambiance.

On the smart side, the WiFi and Alexa integration through the Tuya Smart app work decently once set up. I had to repeat the pairing process a couple of times, but after that, it’s been stable. From the app, you can control flame color, speed, brightness, ember and downlighting, heater, and timer. Voice commands for on/off and heat on/off are handy. The remote also works fine, with straightforward buttons. The only real performance gripe I have is the control lock limitation: you can lock the panel when it’s on, but not when it’s off, so kids can still power it up from the front. That’s more a software/logic flaw than a performance issue, but it matters in daily use.

Out of the box, you get the fireplace unit, a remote, the decorative media (driftwood logs and painted crushed glass crystals), and the built-in crackle sound system already integrated. No batteries are included for the remote, so you’ll need 2 AAA on hand. The unit itself is 72" wide, 17.25" high, and 9.25" deep, so it’s made to be built into a wall rather than just hung like a cheap wall-mount TV fireplace.

It’s rated at 1500W with a stated coverage of about 400 sq ft. In practice, that’s about right: in a medium-sized living room, it’ll raise the temperature a few degrees and keep things comfortable, but you’re not heating an entire floor in winter with this. It has two power levels (750W and 1500W) and a thermostat you can set between 68–88°F, plus a timer from 30 minutes to 9 hours. I’ve mostly used it at the lower setting just to take the edge off without blasting hot air.

Feature-wise, it’s loaded: 6 flame colors, 5 flame speeds, 5 flame intensities, 13 ember bed colors, and 13 downlighting colors. Some of the wild colors (blue, purple, etc.) look kind of fake to me, more like a club light than a fireplace, but if you like that LED vibe, it’s there. I pretty much stick to the classic orange/red flame with a warm ember color and maybe a white or warm downlight. It’s nice that you can mix and match everything instead of being stuck with one preset.

There’s WiFi and Alexa support through the Tuya Smart app. Setup was okay—not totally smooth, but not a nightmare either. I had to run the pairing process a couple of times before it finally connected, which matches what some reviewers said. Once it’s in the app, controlling it from the couch or by voice is actually convenient, especially when you’ve already sat down and realize you forgot to turn the heater off or change the flame brightness.