Braun WK200B AquaExpress Electric Water Kettle
|
List Price: Category: Kitchen See more product details |
|---|
(Click here)
Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Braun WK200B AquaExpress Electric Water Kettle
Customer Review: Good enough for my picky husband!
Summary: 5 Stars
Before ordering this item, I spent half a day reading just about every single review of every electric kettle on Amazon.com. Why? Because my husband HATES change and will look for any excuse to decide he hates something I've bought.
This is the first electric water kettle I've ever bought, but we nearly burned down our house last month by accidentally leaving my beloved Chantal kettle boiling on the stove as we left the house for two hours. OOPS!
So I read every review and tried to anticipate his every concern. The Braun has a separate heating element, so you don't have to unplug the whole thing to tote the kettle to the faucet. The heating plate doesn't require you to position it "just so" to work. The lid opens fully for ease of filling. There is an on/off switch and the all-important "boil-dry" auto-off feature.
The first thing my husband did was check to see how easy it was to pour hot water from a full kettle without spilling or splashing ... it passed with flying colors! In fact, he hasn't been able to come up with a single complaint about this kettle.
I like the fact that it boils water much faster than a kettle on the stove, and that it turns off once the water reaches a full boil. I even over-filled the pot a bit the first time, but no boiling water splashed out.
If Mr. Picky likes it, you probably will, too!
Customer Review: Very well designed
Summary: 5 Stars
We've been using this new electric teapot for about a week at least 2-3 times/day and it is the best! I've owned several other electric kettles and this one is surely the best designed.
The highlights are:
- teapot is very light (plastic body, metal only in base for electrical connections),
- the buttons are in the right place right at the top of the handle,
- the handle is at the perfect angle for pouring (I'm used to more traditional kettle handles that are curved, so was a bit skeptical figuring they were like that for a reason - wrong, this form factor is hands down much better)
- easy-view window for water level - love this as our prior kettle had a terrible design for this
- sturdy cabling with wrap-around storage underneath for extra length - this keeps things nice and neat
- water heats very fast and reliable
- looks good on the countertop
Can't point to any negatives - except very minor point that the top lid should open more fully. It opens perfectly far enough, but would be even better if it opened just a bit wider for cleaning and filling with water.
But overall this is a great product and is the best of several electric kettles I've owned.
Customer Review: Great Product, Ridiculous Price
Summary: 5 Stars
Yesterday I broke one of my electric kettles. Knocked it off the counter and the handle broke next to the on/off switch. I like electric tea kettles. Now, minus yesterday's casualty, I own 4. Two of them are Braun WK200, one white, one black. I have had the white one for about four years and it still works perfectly. The prettiest kettle I have is a stainless steel DeLonghi, but the Brauns are functional and affordable.
Oh, wait a minute. Did I say affordable? Sorry. I used the loss one of my kettles as an excuse to go kettle shopping. I always check Amazon first. So scrolling through their list of the usual suspects I came to the Braun WK200. $129.99. What??? All the other kettles are still in the same price range, what, are they using a solid gold heating element now?
So I googled "Electric Tea Kettles, Braun," and found the WK200 at any number of dealers for prices ranging from $38 up to the upper 60's. I think I paid about $60 my first Braun and the price was down to about $45 when I purchased the second. So Amazon--what gives???
If you must have a Braun, do not pay this price. I am a big fan of Amazon and a loyal shopper, but loyalty has its limits.
Customer Review: Reheating water when it's cooled down
Summary: 5 Stars
Didn't read all the reviews but enough to be convinced so maybe I am repeating others, however: The question I had before buying was how hot did it keep the water and could you reheat previously heated water. The answer is very simple - you turn it on, it boils, then it stops and does not turn back on or keep the water to some thermostatically set value.
For tea, I want it hot when I brew mine (black Chinese teas usually, Yunnan or Keemun). So if my wife has gotten up first and the water has cooled off some I just hit the on button and it quickly reboils the water.
It's very fast, and especially so when the water in it is already warm.
At night, I put in about 5 cups of filtered water and in the morning whoever gets up first hits the start button.
We had previously been using (and competing) for the microwave. The Braun boils enough for 2 in less time, and if one if us gets up earlier, the warm water in the pot can very quickly be reboiled and you are ahead of the game! These things are important, and my life is better as a result of this device.
Customer Review: very poor quality, broke within 6 months of light use
Summary: 1 Stars
I'm very surprised to see this kettle is still available because when I called Braun to report that mine had broken (part of the handle broke apart somehow, exposing the switch that turned on the element -- eventually my son ripped that off & lost it and the kettle won't work at all), they claimed that they were no longer selling it so couldn't send me a replacement for the one that had broken and since I didn't have the receipt, they couldn't send me a check for the value of the kettle either. The woman that I spoke to (I'm pretty sure she was in India) seemed to be reading from a script and could care less that the kettle wasn't working. I was not happy with the non-service that I received from them (who has the receipt after 6 months? -- should have ordered it online, cause Amazon keeps them!), but was ok with their not sending me one if it was true that they didn't have any more. But if it's still available.... By the way, we purchased it because we thought Braun was a good brand and it wasn't made in China. After that experience, my family is going to avoid Braun small appliances.