Black & Decker JKC650 Stainless Steel/Black Smart Boil 1.7 Liter Electric Kettle

Pros: - boils quickly, esp. when you only fill to 0.5 L line
- durable
- clean

Cons: - no "done" noise
- hot surface
- poor water level design

Other Thoughts: Have been using this for over a year for making tea. Generally does a great job. Takes less than a minute to boil 0.5 L of water. There is no insulation for most of the exterior surface, so when the water is hot, you don't want to touch the metal---keep out of reach of children. The only indication that water is "done" is that the lever flips up and there is steam coming out of the top. I can also tell by the fact that the bubbling noise goes from high frequency to low frequency. But, you do have to pay attention, since it's easy to miss. The "level" indicator is designed badly and doesn't reflect the actual water level quickly enough, esp. around 0.5 L. You have to pour water slowly else you could easily pour 1 L before the level fills past 0.5 L. One big plus is that the entire interior is nonporous metal so it's easier to clean than plastic.

Pros: Boils water relatively quickly.

Cons: This electric kettle has one major problem: It's leaking water from the on/off switch or right underneath the on/off switch. With the first kettle this problem occurred the first time we tried to use it. With the replacement we received from Newegg (excellent return service, no complaint there) it happened about 2 months after using it (on average we boil water once a day).

Pros: Boils water faster than my microwave and electric range, cordless kettle, stylish (kettle and base), soft touch button.

Cons: Hard to clean, noisy, could need some kind of "ding" instead of flipping the switch loudly. Concerned about long term quality. Has a replaceable "filter", but I've never seen it in any store, and I'm not convinced it really does anything.

Other Thoughts: Gets the job done. It absolutely is faster than my microwave and [electric] range. I wasn't sure that eletric kettles are supposed to make so much noise even pre-boil. I like the stainless steel, but somehow I was expecting it to be insulated between the inner boil chaimber and the outer facade like, say, deep fryers. No big deal, no kids running around. It's hard to fill from the filtered water dispenser on my fridge. The cons are pretty minor except the cleanability, otherwise I'd give it a five. I can't reach inside and scrub, and the instructions don't say whether or not it's safe to swish around some vinegar to descale it: maybe they think it'll break before that becomes a problem?

Pros: Heats very quickly. Cordless design (when separated from base, that is) very handy. So far, has never dripped while pouring. Seems to be quite well-made, and stainless steel construction is appreciated.

Cons: A bit expensive, but quite well-made, which makes up for it. Larger capacity would be nice.

Other Thoughts: I bought this to use at work, and I've been quite happy with it so far. I did a lot of looking around before I bought this, and most other products available appeared to be of questionable construction and quality, and often had silly-looking decoration. I'm unashamed to have this stainless steel model in my office.