I love making corn dogs, but frying them in a pan inevitably ends up with them being far too greasy. I've spent years looking for a way to make waffle dogs that doesn't involve having to use a huge amount of grease, which is how I managed to find out so much about waffle dog makers.
Unfortunately there aren't that many options for people who want a machine capable of making battered hotdogs. The choice comes down to two major options, a cheap corn dog making machine, or a more commercial level multi-purpose crepe on a stick or waffle dog maker.
Built In Microwave
The low end corn dog machines are pretty good at making savory battered hotdogs, though trying to use anything but a light pastry batter in them can be disastrous (as they don't heat up enough to be able to handle sweet batter mixtures). Also the cheaper dog on a stick griddles tend to be too small to actually cook the 'jumbo' style hotdogs that are commonly found in grocery stores. It's easy enough to cut your dogs down to the appropriate size before cooking, but it does mean that you end up taking quite a lot of time to prepare more than half a dozen small battered hotdogs.
If you're on a tight budget the corn dog bakers are available for around , and take up the same room as a medium worktop griddle. I use mine to make quick snacks, but I find it's too much work to make a full meal for the family on it.
If you have a large family, or if you plan to make some money by offering sweet and savory battered dogs from your place of business, then you are better off investing in a more commercial level of waffle dog maker. The high end crepe on a stick machines come with various levels of heat control, built in timers and more than enough room to let you make full size waffle dogs.
Obviously the high end machines are considerably larger than the low end ones, usually taking up the room of a small microwave and coming in at several hundred dollars new. The expense usually means that only commercial vendors make use of them, but if you think you will use it enough to justify the expense they can also be an excellent piece of equipment for the home kitchen.
Waffle dog makers are providing an opportunity for fast food stores across America to provide an interesting new way to supply these tasty meat based snacks, and getting one for your home or store is definitely something I would recommend doing.