Customer Reviews

Chef's Choice 688 SmartKettle Cordless 1-3/4-Quart Electric Kettle

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

So far, I am very pleased with my SmartKettle. It heats fast, it is pretty accurate, and it doesn't leave a funny taste in the water. With the fully adjustable temperature it works great for any kind of tea. It pours easily without spillage, and the top opens wide for easy cleaning.

There are a few things that keep me from giving it a perfect score though:

- There is no physical power off switch. There is a button to start/stop heating, but no physical switch to turn off the unit. You have to unplug it if you don't want to keep the BRIGHT display on 24/7. Not a big deal, but a power switch on the unit wouldn't have cost much and would have made it a bit more convenient.

- There is no way to adjust the volume of the alarm beeps. It can be a bit loud when brewing a cup at 5am.

- The minimum water level for safe brewing is supposed to be 16oz, I've found that you need to fill it closer to 32oz or the unit gives a low water level error and won't turn on. Again, not a big deal, just something to note.

Even with these minor quirks, it is still the best adjustable-temperature electric kettle that I have used.

****UPDATE****
After owning this kettle for 4 months, it began acting strangely. The thermometer would never reach 212 degrees, even though the water inside was clearly boiling. The temp reading would stop at 208, but the kettle was set for 212, so the water would just keep boiling. Eventually it would shut off with an error. I used it sparingly after this as it seemed like a potential hazard. After 3 more months it randomly caught on fire one day. It wasn't even in use at the time. Had I not been in the kitchen to hear the sparking and smell the smoke, I might not have a house right now. I will not be buying another.

****UPDATE 2****
I was contacted by a representative of Chef's Choice who assured me that this was a unique occurrence and not an accurate representation of the quality of their product. In fact, they asked that I send my unit back so they could investigate. They replaced my SmartKettle and the new unit is working perfectly so far. I feel a lot better about using the product now that I know the company stands behind the quality of their products, and will go out of their way to make things right for those who have had problems.

I've been using electric kettles for most of my life. And most of them did the job just fine, though many only survived 2 years (like irons and toasters, they seem to have a limited life). I had 2 cordless Braun stainless kettles before this one, both worked really well but both ended up leaking - likely the reason they were eventually taken off the market.
So when I set out on my quest for another full-auto stainless steel kettle, the chefs choice sounded like the one to beat, and a good match for the rest of the kitchen.

The Smarts...
The SmartKettle 688 LOOKS great, with the red LCD temperature display on the side and all. It's a wonderful feature to actually SELECT a boil point and SEE the temperature as it progresses - if you care.
If you inadvertently boil it empty, it will beep, stop and alert you (H2O) that you need to fill her up.
It beeps when it's done, so you can hear it from the next room whilst you're multi-tasking.
The 10-page instruction manual (read it) has a nice guide for beverage temp ranges.

The Not So Smart (where to start...)
The water measure - This single window is hidden below the handle, so a little difficult to see as my handle usually faces to the right, and it only shows ounces/liters, no cups. I've not had the low water errors some reviewers complained about.
Boil time - the problem with watching the temperature rising is that it seems painfully slow - that, on top of the fact that it really IS slower than my old Braun (something about a watched pot...).
Inlet - The spring-loaded lid (top) doesn't open far enough, so you have to prop it open with the faucet to get the water in. Also, the top sometimes gets real hot - don't touch it.
Beeping - This kettle beeps A LOT - 1 beep when placing it on the base (you have to give it 2 seconds to sense the temp before pressing the ON switch), another beep when you press the ON switch, 3 beeps when boiling at your chosen temp, and of course again if you choose to switch it off manually.
Boiling - Now, this is the part that should be simple and straightforward, right? First you select your temp you want to boil the water - I like my black tea and French press hot, so I select 210F. You only need to do this once really, it's smart enough to remember that. When starting from cold (around 65F), it seems uncomplicated and boils in about 7 mins, a full minute longer than my old kettle. Now for the anomalies - when it gets to around 200, it starts switching off and on all by itself so as to not "overheat" or something, even if you select the hottest "Rolling Boil" temp. Once boiled, if you don't remove it from the base, it attempts to keep it at boiling point for a few minutes, then cools real slowly. But if you leave it and just switch it back on a little later to get it to boil again, it goes into a painfully slow reheat stop-start process that can take 5 minutes for just the last 20-30 degrees.

Bottom line - If you just want to boil a kettle of water, look for something a lot simpler. If you're a green tea aficionado who needs an exact temp for your beverage, this may be just the one!

Have used this a fair amount at this time. A great kettle! It works just fine and I really like the ability to set the temperature. Contrary to the instructions, the English (don't know about the Japanese or Chinese), insist you NEVER boil water for tea, of any kind. It ruins the flavor, by de-oxygenating the water. I have visited with several Englishmen in recent years, about their tea drinking. You bring the water just short of boiling. This kettle is perfect for that!

The only con is relatively minor. It is quite touchy how much water is initially put in. I recommend a good 4 cups. If you don't put enough in, when it goes into the heating cycle, it will tell you there is not enough water. You add more and it goes into warming mode, and takes FOREVER to reach temperature. I just turn it off and start over, usually, if I do this. Two or three cups of water is not enough, even if you only want one cup of tea.

Chef'sChoice 688 SmartKettle Cordless 1-3/4-Quart Electric Kettle

This is a well made cutting edge electric kettle with one major flaw. It takes a minimum of a quart of water to work. That means if you want to brew a humble tea bag in a 12 ounce cup you must heat three times the water that you need. According to Chef's Choice, there is no way to adjust this feature. Too bad.

I really wanted to like this kettle: visually appealing, heavy, sturdy, and a brand that I've been pleased with in the past. Unfortunately, the thing was a nightmare to use: constant error messages telling me that the pot was too full or not full enough, when it was just below the maximum fill line, and more error messages when I would try to adjust the temperature. I also thought the pot would maintain a constant temperature throughout the day, but it shuts off after 20 minutes or so. That's actually a safety feature, not a defect, but if you want something that will keep the water warm for several hours, you should look for another kettle. One final point: this is a heavy kettle, so you might want to think twice before you get it for someone who is frail or has arthritis.

I like certain aspects of this product. I do wish it would maintain the temp you've set until you were to turn it off, which would mean an On-Off button, rather than only an On. I know it has to have that safety mechanism built in, but I'm constantly having to re-start for additional cups.

Pros of this pot:

1. Heats faster than a pot on the stove
2. You can program the temperature, so you can make something drinkable temperature from the start, you don't have to wait for it to cool
3. Temperature is accurate, I used a scientific temperature gauge to see if the water temp was correct, and after I set the pot to 180, the water measured at 179.8 degrees.
4. Will keep your water at a constant temp for awhile before the auto shut off
5. Has a screen inside the spout, so you can add teabags to the water and not have to worry about them coming out of the spout when you pour
6. Looks nice
7. Unit beeps loudly a few times when the water is ready, unlike a teapot where you have to remove it from the heat source to make the whistling stop
8. Good way to reheat tea or coffee to the perfect temp

Cons:

1. Shuts off too quickly, it would be better if it would have a programmable shut off as opposed to a set turn off time
2. Pot should be insulated, so if you take it off the heating base and put it on the table, it would stay hotter longer
3. While the pot itself is cordless, the unit does not heat up cordlessly. You could not, say, take this pot camping without having an outlet to plug it into.
4. You have to make sure you have a certain amount of water in the pot, you can't heat small amounts of water, or if you had a smaller amount of coffee or tea to reheat, it may not be enough to heat in this pot
5. The bottom of the pot seemed to get a rusty like appearance after leaving liquid in there for a few days. I only had water in there, but it made the bottom of the pot look odd and I can't seem to wash it out.

If you have certain kinds of teas that need to be heated to a specific degree, this pot would be perfect. Or if you don't want to have to jump up to take your teapot off the stove because of the whistling, this pot would be a good alternative. The main thing to make it better would be for it to be insulated.

I drink tea several times a day, mostly black, and some green and herbal teas, too, so my kettles are subjected to heavy use.
Out of the box this kettle smelled bad, and in the manual it says to boil and discard the first batch of water. So I did, it smelled much less, I repeated the procedure two more times and then I couldn't detect any smell from it.
I really like that fact that it beeps when ready, although the beep is quite loud, as it was mentioned by other reviewers. I want to prepare my tea right when the water is ready as it really improves the taste, so audible ready signal is very important to me. For some reason, in the last several years I couldn't find a good tea kettle that would beep when ready.
I like all the safety features the kettle has - like boil-dry shut-off, it shuts off after you lift it from the base, so you need to turn it on again if you need for it to continue warming your water. You can also first boil the water (if you think it is unsafe) and then put the desired temperature, and the kettle will beep when it cools down to the right temperature, which might be nice.
For some reason, the kettle also beeps when you put it back on the base, I do not understand why does it have to beep at this time. Unfortunately, it is not only beeps but also trips off my GFCI outlet about every other time I put it on the base. My husband replaced the GFCI outlet thinking it was at fault, but no, the kettle trips the new one still the same. I had to move it to another outlet without GFCI and now it works OK, but I am still concerned.
The kettle keeps your water at the right temperature for some time, but only if you don't use rolling boil setting. It shuts off after boiling water for about 40 seconds, which I really like.
Also, some other reviewers complained on the water gauge being hidden behind the handle - I would say it is just the right place for it, since it keeps your hand from being burned on hot steel surface. I also found that the spout is big enough to fill the kettle with water without having to open the cover.

I read all the reviews, both good & bad, before asking for this for Christmas. I'm glad I took a chance & got it anyway. I am very sensitive to noise so I was concerned about the complaints that it beeps a lot. I have other kitchen gadgets that are way more annoying than this! I also have not experienced any of the error messages some have mentioned. If things change, I will revise my review. So far, so good & I am very happy with this item.

I've been using a very simple GE kettle for years, and wasn't sure this would be an improvement over my beloved electric kettle. Well, this has every feature you could want!

The design is an elegant smooth stainless kettle, with a solid feel. The lid pops open with a thumb lever and stays open for refilling (really nice if you have arthritis or other hand issues). You close the lid with a light touch. I found the water temperature accurate within a few degrees, and it kept the water hot for 20 minutes. It beeps, but I didn't find the beeps loud at all.

Since I use the Aeropress for superb coffee AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker(175 degrees), drink Irish Breakfast Tea (185 degrees), and offer my guests a variety of teas and coffees (165 - 210 degrees), this kettle is perfect. It also heats water for cooking a lot faster than boiling it on my electric stove, a big convenience.