KitchenAid 1.7 Liter Electric Kettle in Porcelain White, KEK1701PL

I bought this kettle at a Best Buy store yesterday, for the same price it was on this website.I chose this model because I own the same type of a kettle, by KitchenAid, which I bought maybe a decade ago or more. That original kettle was so good that when I saw this one, I just went ahead and picked it up, thinking that I would get a more modern version of the one I had, which started showing its age, as the handle was getting wobbly, the lid spring was gone, etc.Right after plugging the kettle in, I realized that KitchenAid didn't actually modernize the design and the implementation, but rather removed many of the features I enjoyed in the original kettle so much.The water gauge in the original model was very visible and clearly shows the water level in the ... MoreI bought this kettle at a Best Buy store yesterday, for the same price it was on this website.I chose this model because I own the same type of a kettle, by KitchenAid, which I bought maybe a decade ago or more. That original kettle was so good that when I saw this one, I just went ahead and picked it up, thinking that I would get a more modern version of the one I had, which started showing its age, as the handle was getting wobbly, the lid spring was gone, etc.Right after plugging the kettle in, I realized that KitchenAid didn't actually modernize the design and the implementation, but rather removed many of the features I enjoyed in the original kettle so much.The water gauge in the original model was very visible and clearly shows the water level in the kettle, while the new one is all but invisible, so one has to really stare at it to figure out how much water there is. Moreover, the old kettle had LEDs inside, so once the kettle was on, the water level was easy to see, even in dim lighting. One needs a flashlight now to see how much water is in the new kettle.The temperature gauge in the original kettle was clear and precise - just shows you the current water temperature. The new kettle has a slider with poorly visible small temperature markings, starting from 50C, with the extra 95C at the end, so if you used to make your tea at 92C, now somewhere between 80C and 90C-95C will have to do.The original kettle had two operating modes - boiling water and keeping water the temperature at some level. When I pressed the ON button, the water was boiled. When I pressed the heating button, it was kept at the temperature selected by the +/- buttons - doesn't get any more straightforward than this. The new kettle has a single gauge/slider, which means if one forgot to push it to 100C every time fresh water was added, it will not be boiled, just heated up to whatever setting it's at.As a side note, KitchenAid's Marketing Department needs to revisit the definition of "boiling" and this bit from the kettle description - "quickly and quietly boil to the temperature you need". The water boils at one temperature - 100C, and the way the temperature slider is designed, one cannot even say whether their tap water was boiled or just heated up.Turning the kettle on in the original kettle was a straightforward button push - one could do it with one hand because the pressure was applied down, against the base. The new kettle has the button on the side, so the kettle will likely move as the button is pushed and the first instinctive reaction I had when it happened was to hold the kettle on the other side, which is a bad idea because it gets quite hot. Get into the habit of holding the base when pushing the power button to avoid this.So, as far as kettles go, this is a good kettle - stainless steel, filter, detachable from the base, being main strengths. However, the new model clearly went through some cost-cutting design measures, while keeping the product price the same. There was one inconvenience in the original kettle in that I had to change 2x AA batteries in the kettle every few years, and it required a screwdriver, so this part could be improved indeed, but that bit and the lid spring were the only features that could be improved in the original design. Otherwise it was one of the best kettles I owned.I will keep the new kettle - it does boil water and looks good and I will adapt to all these little inconveniences, but it just makes me sad that all this design goodness was thrown away by some boardroom people who probably never made a cup of tea in their life.

Look, a kettle is a kettle and, as long as it does the job, that's fantastic. But, when you're paying over $200 on a kettle (all of the others I looked at were on display, but not in stock! Hmmm), you'd expect it to be pretty much perfect. However, the water gauge on this kettle is very difficult to read/see, so filling it to the correct level (without over filling it) can be challenging. Also, if you've just used the kettle but not emptied it and you'd like to top up the water, the lid does not pop open at all whilst the kettle is still hot. It's like there's some kind of heat expansion thing happening that prevents the little latch from working. You need to wait until it's cooled a bit before you can add more water. If you're making tea/coffee for several people ... MoreLook, a kettle is a kettle and, as long as it does the job, that's fantastic. But, when you're paying over $200 on a kettle (all of the others I looked at were on display, but not in stock! Hmmm), you'd expect it to be pretty much perfect. However, the water gauge on this kettle is very difficult to read/see, so filling it to the correct level (without over filling it) can be challenging. Also, if you've just used the kettle but not emptied it and you'd like to top up the water, the lid does not pop open at all whilst the kettle is still hot. It's like there's some kind of heat expansion thing happening that prevents the little latch from working. You need to wait until it's cooled a bit before you can add more water. If you're making tea/coffee for several people this could be an issue. If you don't mind waiting for the kettle to cool down a bit, then that's OK. It looks great and it sounds great (lights and sound effects!) but I would not purchase one again, to be honest.

I have quite a few Kitchen Aid products in my kitchen to use. So decision to get 2 kettles for my relative and myself in instalments was made straight away after watching QVCUK demo. We were both disappointed with very strong noises these kettles produce while heating water, plus start and final sounds, especially if a person gets up very early, like my relative, at 4 am to go to work. Such sounds and noises are very disturbing not only for other family members but even neighbours. Though QVC UK demo presenter insisted on low noise of start and finish of the process, the real noise is strong, not for everyone.The other reason to return both kettles is a very short cable, my measurements of useful cable length is only 75-80 cm. So such kitchen appliance must be very ... MoreI have quite a few Kitchen Aid products in my kitchen to use. So decision to get 2 kettles for my relative and myself in instalments was made straight away after watching QVCUK demo. We were both disappointed with very strong noises these kettles produce while heating water, plus start and final sounds, especially if a person gets up very early, like my relative, at 4 am to go to work. Such sounds and noises are very disturbing not only for other family members but even neighbours. Though QVC UK demo presenter insisted on low noise of start and finish of the process, the real noise is strong, not for everyone.The other reason to return both kettles is a very short cable, my measurements of useful cable length is only 75-80 cm. So such kitchen appliance must be very close to a socket, not every household has enough space to accommodate a kettle. Watch the space before making such considerable purchase. Listen, QVC, the real cable length must be shown in the description like reputable Companies do. Call centre was helpful to provide us with free return labels and collection, thanks. Do not recommend this product to potential customers with sensitive hearing as well as for those who wakes up early in the morning.