Customer Reviews

Bodum 5500-01USA Ibis Cordless Electric Water Kettle, Black

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(16)

 

 

I've got a box full of these that have been returned to our store because they burn out. The problem seems to come when the kettle is used multiple times without a cool down period. The switch internals melt down leaving you with a dead pot.

I loved this little kettle--while it lasted. It was the perfect size for my daily morning cup of tea at the office, quickly and quietly boiling enough water for about two large mugfuls, then promptly shutting itself off. I'm also a big fan of Bodum's clean lines and jaunty colors. The one-piece design might annoy some users, because you have to unplug the entire kettle in order to rinse/fill it, but for me this seemed a fair tradeoff for enhanced portability. Lightweight plastic housing is another potential complaint, but again this can be an asset if you're looking for convenience above all else. The biggest drawback is the placement of the metal heating element: it comes into direct contact with the water. After a year of regular use, my kettle's heating element is covered in grim rust-colored spots which I'm not too eager to ingest. So I'm afraid it's time to upgrade to a sturdier, if less fun-looking, electric kettle. In all, a great device if you're willing to take convenience and cuteness (and frequent replacement!) over longevity.

Excellent little appliance for the price. In an office with no coffee bar you have to either get water and heat it in the microwave or use someones coffee maker and heat the water. In my office the only good place to get water is a water fountain that is refrigerated water and it takes 3 - 4 minutes in the microwave to heat it. This little pot takes 27 ounces of chilled water and heats it to a boil in less time that the microwave takes to heat one small cup. It's sturdy construction and small foot print are great for my small cubical. The pour spout pours a concentrated stream without splashing. The lid locks on good, but removes easily. It is easy to clean. The only way it could be improved would be to have a warmer mode that keeps the water warm, but it reheats the water so quick that the potential safety concerns with having it on constantly are outweighed by the few seconds you would save by not having to reheat. All around I think it is well worth the price.

After about 3 months of operation the unit stopped working. I disassembled the base to find burned wiring and a burned contact element. Otherwise a great product.

If you would like a tiny little water kettle for your office, this product may be for you. However, it wasn't for me; and I'll tell you why.

1. From the picture, it looks like the mini-kettle will dislodge from a base. It won't--you have to pour the contents with the cord attached.

2. The kettle feels lightweight, fragile and awkward--like it will tip over and spill at any second.

3. Removing and replacing the safety lid is an annoying chore.

4. The heating element actually touches your water in the containment unit.

Basically? The product feels cheap.

I like the looks of this kettle, it has a ball that shows the water level, and when it works it boils water relatively quickly. However, the base only accepts the kettle in a single orientation. This is a problem with the oval design of both kettle and base. If a circular power stub is in the middle of the circular base, then you don't have to get the angle of the incoming kettle just-so in order to get it on the base. Ok, so then you get it on the base and switch it on. Here you must watch carefully to see if the light goes on on the top, because it is about 50-50 whether or not you have really got the kettle properly on the base. If the light is not on then you have to jiggle the kettle until it comes on. True, we are not approaching the complexity of landing a plane, but frankly putting the kettle on should not be such a fiddly operation.

The spout has a filter, but this is good & bad. Good because you don't get bits of kettle fur in your tea (not that I've ever had this happen). Bad because you can't really fill the kettle via the spout. So you have to lift the lid every time and it's not super convenient to do that.

Final bit of this rant... er, review is that in less than 6 months of use, the kettle stopped working altogether. I am not impressed. I've used many electric kettles over the years and while this is perhaps the prettiest it is perhaps the most flawed.

I have had an earlier bodum kettle which worked great for 6 years. It finally wore out so I bought a new one online. It lasted a month before the switch stopped working. I called customer "service" who said "I feel bad, but theres nothing I can do unless it fails within one month." Mine failed and it seems from a quick google search that lots of other peoples have failed too. Beware of this kettle and read the fine print

We've had this Bodum Ibis cordless water kettle for at least 2 years now, and have always been happy with it's performance until now.

Occasionally it wouldn't sit down on the base exactly, and recently it started shutting off before it was done boiling (though the switch didn't shut off, so I think it was a loose connection). But the worst was the other day when the plastic on the base where the prongs connect from the kettle just started to melt. I don't know how it happened, but it is now no longer usable due to the acrid stench of melting plastic when it is in use.

While this kettle worked, we loved it. I may look at other brands before replacing this one, but most likely I'll end up with another Bodum Ibis because it really did work great for those two years.

have had my mini ibus for 6 years now. I keep one in the office to make tea and instant oatmeal, and another at home to make coffee with a french press. I have recently stopped using a "real" teakettle as it takes too long on the electric range. Have never had a problem with this although it does sputter some water if filled to the max at the boil, but this hasn't been a real problem for me. Am going to give some as gifts. Bodum makes a larger version for those reviewers who found this too small- I find it the perfect size.

I've had my kettle for 5 years now and have used it every day, twice a day in the winter, since I received it. I read the other reviews and was disappointed to find out other people have had bad luck with it. Like any immersion heating product, I use filtered water and make sure that it isn't turned on without the water level well above the minimum. I have had no switch problems, burn outs and very little mineral build up. I would not hesitate to buy this product again and have bought it for others.