Convection Vs Radiant Stoves

A convection style stove heats and circulates warm air around a room.

A radiant stove will heat nearby objects.

Convection stoves are designed to distribute heat a lot more evenly around the room.  Air is drawn into the side and back panels which form a channel between the stove's outer wall and the fire box walls. Some of these stoves have fans to assist the distribution of heated air through the room (Inset stoves in particular).

A radiant stove emits heat from the front, back, sides and top. The heat travels in straight lines from the stove, and is absorbed by any surface it hits.

They have been used for many years and are by far the most popular (i.e. cheapest) type of stove.  Ultimately, the air in the room gets heated through contact with the hot stove and surrounding heated surfaces, and a warm room temperature is achieved. Because walls interfere with the flow of radiant energy, radiant stoves do not heat adjacent rooms well.  

A convection stove:

1. is safer because the channels that draw in cold air stay much cooler than that of a radiant stove

2. is much better at giving out even and comfortable heat into the room.is also extremely good if you wish to heat adjoining rooms.

A radiant stove:

1. heats people and objects directly and gives uneven, "localized" heat within a room. 

2. has extremely hot surfaces and can be hazardous, particularly for young children and the elderly.