As an Amazon Associate, The Counter Lab earns from qualifying purchases. We don’t do hands-on testing and we don’t accept free units. Every label decoded below comes from a manufacturer product page we opened ourselves. When a spec sheet didn’t print a number, we say so, and we never borrow a claim from a review site or a marketplace spec table.

Rice cooker spec sheets read like alphabet soup: Micom, Neuro Fuzzy, Induction Heating, HP Pressure, IH Pressure, Pressure Induction. Each label marks a real step in how the cooker heats and controls the cook, and the prices we read line up behind the labels in the same order. This post decodes the four labels you will see most, using verified models and dated prices, and closes with which label fits which buyer.

Micom: programmed logic instead of a simple switch

Micom is short for microcomputer. On a spec sheet it marks a cooker whose cooking is governed by programmed logic: timed phases of heat and rest that shift across the cycle and across menu programs, rather than one heating element flipping on and off at a fixed temperature. It is the mainstream tier of modern rice cookers. Zojirushi’s whole mid-line carries the word in the product title: the Neuro Fuzzy NS-ZCC10 (5.5-cup, $279.99 at the Zojirushi Online Store, read Oct 13, 2026, 680 W, made in Japan), the Micom NL-BAC05 (3-cup, $179.99, read Oct 13, 2026, 500 W), and the Umami NL-GAC10 (5.5-cup, $329.99, read Oct 7, 2026, 610 W). Cuckoo’s budget tier is Micom too: the CR-0633F (6-cup, $149.99 at CUCKOO America, read Oct 7, 2026) and the CR-0655F ($139.99) are both titled Micom Rice Cooker on cuckooamerica.com. Tiger sells Micom models as well, including the JAX-T10U (1 L, 641 W, per tiger-corporation-us.com).

Two things the label does not tell you. It does not say how the heat is produced (a Micom cooker still heats through a conventional heating plate under the pot), and it does not publish the logic itself: no brand’s spec sheet prints the algorithm, so “Neuro Fuzzy” and “Umami” are manufacturer family names, not comparable specifications. Compare Micom models on published specs (capacity basis, wattage, menus, country of manufacture) and price, because the word Micom alone covers cookers from $139.99 to $329.99 in our reads.

Induction heating (IH): the pot becomes the heater

On a spec sheet, Induction Heating marks models where the inner cooking pan is heated by induction rather than by a heating plate underneath it. Zojirushi’s product names state it outright: “Induction Heating System Rice Cooker and Warmer” (NP-HCC10, 5.5-cup, $419.99 at the Zojirushi Online Store, read Oct 7, 2026, 1,230 W) and “Induction Heating Rice Cooker and Warmer” (NW-QAC10, 5.5-cup, $399.99, read Oct 7, 2026, 1,080 W, flat-top). The 3-cup NP-GBC05 ($354.99, read Oct 7, 2026, 700 W) carries the same Induction Heating System label.

In Zojirushi’s lineup, IH sits a clear rung above Micom-only, and the prices we read follow that order: the cheapest induction model we verified ($354.99) costs more than the most expensive Micom model we verified ($329.99). Note the wattage jump as well: 700 to 1,230 W across the IH models we read, against 500 to 680 W in the Micom set. A wattage figure is not a cooking claim, but on spec sheets it is one of the few numbers that separate the tiers.

Pressure: cooking under a sealed lid

A pressure label means the cooker seals and cooks under pressure. Brands split pressure into sub-labels, and the splits are worth reading carefully. Cuckoo publishes two: HP Pressure and IH Pressure. The 6-cup HP Pressure CRP-P0609S ($269.99 at CUCKOO America, read Oct 7, 2026) and the 6-cup IH Pressure CRP-JHR0609F ($469.99, read Oct 7, 2026) sit at the same capacity with a $200 gap between the sub-labels. Zojirushi publishes one pressure model, and its label stacks both technologies: “Pressure Induction Heating Rice Cooker and Warmer” (NP-NWC10, 5.5-cup, $634.99 at the Zojirushi Online Store, read Oct 13, 2026, 1,240 W), the most expensive model in every price read we have taken.

One caution about comparing pressure labels across brands: “HP Pressure” and “IH Pressure” are Cuckoo’s words, and “Pressure Induction” is Zojirushi’s. The labels do not define the same thing, so a Cuckoo IH Pressure and a Zojirushi Pressure IH are not the same specification just because the words overlap. Compare them the way you would any two cookers: capacity, published wattage, menus, price.

Conventional: the baseline the other labels sit above

Tiger’s spec sheets use the word “Conventional” for its non-computerized line, which makes it the honest baseline for this decoder. The JNP-0550 is titled Conventional Rice Cooker on tiger-corporation-us.com, with 0.54 L capacity and 305 W published; the JNP-1800 is the 1.8 L version at 650 W. No Micom, no induction, no pressure: a single heating job with a single switch. Tiger published no price on the official page we opened, so there is no price read attached to these models.

The baseline is useful because it shows what the other three labels buy. Conventional tops out at 650 W in the largest size; Micom models run 500 to 680 W with programmed logic; induction models run 700 to 1,230 W; pressure models start at $239.99 in Cuckoo’s line (the 10-cup HP Pressure CRP-PK1001S, read Oct 7, 2026). The ladder is visible on the spec sheets without any testing claim.

The four labels in one table

Per-case verdicts

• For the cheapest computerized pot, Cuckoo’s Micom tier is the pick. The CR-0655F at $139.99 (CUCKOO America, Oct 7 2026) is the lowest-priced Micom model we verified. The honest trade is documentation: Cuckoo’s pages do not publish wattage, so if a complete spec block matters, the Zojirushi NL-BAC05 ($179.99, 3-cup, 500 W, read Oct 13 2026) is the cheapest fully-documented Micom, but it is small.
• For induction heating at the lowest verified price, the Zojirushi NP-GBC05 is the answer. At $354.99 (Zojirushi Online Store, Oct 7 2026) it is the cheapest model we verified with an induction label, and its 3-cup size keeps the price down. The honest trade is capacity: you give up pot size for the heating tier.
• For pressure cooking at the lowest verified price, Cuckoo wins. The HP Pressure CRP-P0609S at $269.99 (CUCKOO America, Oct 7 2026) costs less than half of Zojirushi’s pressure model. The honest trade is documentation: Zojirushi publishes wattage and manufacture detail for the NP-NWC10, while Cuckoo does not publish wattage for the CRP-P0609S.
• For the top of the ladder on one spec sheet, the Zojirushi NP-NWC10 stands alone. Pressure plus induction at $634.99 (Zojirushi Online Store, Oct 13 2026, 1,240 W), the highest price and the highest published wattage in our reads. The honest trade is verification: nothing in the spec sheet converts that price into a result we can check, and the conventional baseline (the 305 W Tiger, no published price) reminds you the labels describe technology, not dinner.
• For the most complete published specs, Zojirushi’s Micom tier is the pick. The NS-ZCC10 ($279.99, 680 W, made in Japan) publishes capacity basis, wattage, and country of manufacture on one page; Cuckoo’s Micom pages skip wattage. The honest trade is about $130 more than Cuckoo’s 6-cup Micom for the same heating tier.

How we compared

We decoded the labels from manufacturer product titles and spec blocks on pages we opened ourselves: store.zojirushi.com, cuckooamerica.com, and tiger-corporation-us.com. Plain-language readings of the label terms (what “microcomputer,” “induction heating,” and “pressure” denote) are definitional, not performance claims, and we make none: nothing here says one label cooks better rice. Prices were read at the brands’ own stores on Oct 7 and Oct 13, 2026, and each price names its retailer and read date. Where a page did not publish a figure, the table says so. No model in this post has a model-confirmed Amazon ASIN on our list, so there are no buy buttons.

Ready for the next layer: our Zojirushi vs Cuckoo comparison lines the two brands’ lineups against each other on these same labels, the budget-vs-premium breakdown prices the $30-to-$280 spread, and the best rice cookers guide collects the picks. Start with Zojirushi vs Cuckoo: Micom vs Pressure, on Specs, then Budget vs Premium Rice Cookers, then the best rice cookers guide.