OXO Brew Cordless Glass Electric Kettle

I’m on my fourth one of these and here’s why:

The first was my error in placing the base plate on a hot stove and having it melt. The unit was roughly 1.5 years old at the time and functioned well with no issues.
I purchased a replacement from Amazon sometime around 8/2023. I have mineral rich potable water and the kettle began to develop the typical white buildup inside of the unit. At this point I began cleaning the unit with a few mLs of white vinegar, leaving it for about a 1 minute, adding cold water, agitating a bit, and then rinsing. Vinegar obviously cleaned the residue well. Unfortunately after only a few weeks of this, and a cleaning once or twice a week, brown rust-like spots began to develop inside the kettle as some may have seen in review photos here. This rust was not only visible inside the unit but began to develop between the glass and stainless on the outside as well.
At this point in ownership I read reviews here and reached out to Oxo for warranty replacement as I found the rust unacceptable after only a few months when my first unit did not have this problem. They had zero issue replacing it for me.
My now third unit arrived ~11/2023 and it was an even worse experience than the second. Not only was this unit rusting, but leaking between the stainless and glass frame as the water boiled. I used vinegar to clean from day one like with the second unit.
I reached out to Oxo for another replacement, showing a video of the water leaking as the unit boiled water, and they sent a replacement out right away.

Now on my fourth unit, I took a different approach after reading a review here. I began cleaning with citric acid rather than vinegar with the belief that vinegar was damaging this kettle. Citric acid is what is used in the Oxo cleaning solution.

Well sure enough, after over a month of use now, no rust development. The prior units usually developed rust in 2 to 3 weeks.

Unfortunately it took me destroying several units to learn this, but it is why I decided to write this review and pass this info along to others.

What a brilliant electric kettle! I marveled at reviews for it many years ago and decided to invest in a kettle instead of constantly using glass 4-cup measurers in the microwave.

SUPER EASY: fill with water, flip the top down (or don’t — I forget sometimes and it still boils just fine), gently push the simple, handled switch at the bottom front of the unit, and presto! boiling water in less time than it takes in the microwave, let alone on the stove. And if you want to reheat the water and click the handled switch again, it carefully adds only as much time as needed to reheat that particular batch of water, depending on how much it had cooled. What a breeze!

SUPER SAFE: Yes, it turns off automatically once boiled. Yes, the handle is insulated all around your hand, front and back, so you can’t burn your hand by mistake when lifting the boiling water off the base. Yes, it pours easily. Yes, the top lifts slowly, automatically, to prevent lots of steam or hot water gushing out as you open it. And yes, the bottom’s not hot, even as you lift the carafe of boiled water from the base, so you can set it down or even brush someone’s shoulder when pouring out water for individual tea or pourover coffee at the table without burning anyone. The glass kettle itself, of course, *is* hot when filled with boiling water, as are all types, I believe.

I’m on my fourth kettle now, two as gifts (recipients had both raved after making tea or coffee at my house and now enjoy having their own) and the last as a replacement after my first failed following years of service. My first one lasted a lot longer than either of my Cuisinart coffee makers had done, now long retired. The fourth OXO Electric Kettle I’ve bought, the second for myself, is currently three or four years old and going strong. I love this thing. It sits on its base right next to the sink for convenient filling and is used several times a day. What a marvelous gift to myself! Perhaps it’s a little pricey for just a water boiler, but the pleasure it gives me each time far exceeds its cost over the long run. Will buy a fifth if this one ever fails — don’t ever want to do without this fabulous and frequently used small appliance.