Electric kettle advice

"Controller falls back to warm setting automatically, to keep water warm after boiling."

the description states it 'keeps water warm after boiling'.

It does not state it will keep the water at exactly the set temperature.

am i missing something in the description ?

Yes but if you follow the same logic you can say that a $1000 kettle used over 20 years is just $4/month. That's the kind of silly thinking that left me pennyless and having to settle for a $50 kettle. So you see that the answer is already part of your question?

I already have a Zojirushi and I suspect that hold temp feature results in less-tasty tea. Digital temp control is no better than analog, the real issue is how accurate the thermostat is, the Zoji I have cost $120 and is often listed at around $140-150, so I think it would have thermostat as good as kettles in sub-100 range, and it's not terribly accurate, it can read 85 and then if you unplug and plug it in again it will read 90, very often. So, analog would be just fine for me as long as it's accurate and consistent, but some people in adagio UtiliTea reviews say that it's not consistent, i.e. same setting will sometimes produce different temp.

I don't want to pay more than $50 because I'm not sure I will use it at all. I think tea from electrically heated water won't taste the same/as good. Also the reviews say that if you use less water, same setting will produce higher temp.

My main concern is inconsistent heating at same setting, because then I'd rather buy a $40-50 kettle without variable temp locally and use a timer with it.

BTW Zojirushis look very nice, and they do temp hold by heating. They only have one model that _in addition_ works like a thermos, so that it spends less energy to keep water at high temp.

The real problem with Zojis is that white and green teas don't taste very good. I think because of electric heating and slow heating.. Actually blacks don't taste quite the same either.

Questionable logic. Anything can be taken to a silly extreme. If your self-control is so impaired that you bankrupted yourself buying the top-of-the-line everything, then you probably can't even afford the $50 unit. Or, if your time and convenience isn't worth the extra $50, don't buy it. You know what your time is worth.

More questionable logic. But, then, I think we'd had this debate before. However, I'd give you the extra $50 if you could tell the difference between tea brewed from water heated in a glass kettle and used the instant it was warm and tea brewed from water heated in a stainless kettle and left on warm for 10-15 minutes in a double-blind test. I guess if you let it boil for 10-15 minutes, assuming you had any water left, that would probablyt be detectable due to lack of oxygen, but not just keeping it warm well below boiling.

That's not true. With the digital, you get an exact setting. With the analog, you cannot be sure you set it to exactly the same place unless it has places where it clicks into place.

So you're willing to "risk" $50, but not $51?

Again, I'd wager you can't tell the difference in a double-blind test.

Yeah, I know you believe that the molecules somehow know where the heat came from. They don't. Maybe if you heated the water under one of those pyramid thingies from the 60s (or was it the 70s?) or hung some crystals around or played some new age music.

Have you tried homeopathy techniques on tea? Maybe you could brew one perfect cup using perfect spring water heated in a glass pot, etc., etc., ... Then, through a process of diluting and succussing, you can have an endless source of perfect tea forever.

Just kidding. I tried to give you some information on tea kettles. If it wasn't useful, I'm sorry. Good luck with your $50 kettle. I'll report back on my $90 digital after tomorrow.

Well, it's always a sliding scale. 9 times out of 10, paying more will yield some advantage in ruggedness, looks, features, etc. You have to draw the line in the sand somewhere.

Where are you? I don't want to spend $500 on travel to win $50 in a blind test!

It's not exact with digital because it depends on thermostat which likely isn't exact. Weakest link in the chain and all that. I'd think that far more inexactness is introduced by thermostat than being 2mm off on the analog dial, but that's just my opinion.

Will the next question be something like "you're willing to risk $51 but not $52??". I'm hoping actually that the $40 one will do. It sound like AK16 is the very similar to the adagio kettle. In fact it's $50 and then discounted to $38.

I could tell a huge difference with electric range and Zoji pot. I would have preferred not being able to, because it's far more convenient to use Zoji pot and I paid $120 for it.

So, how do you explain HUGE difference with *both* Zoji pot and electric range when molecules are the same?

Yet in food preparation it's a well known fact that type of stove and material of the pan will affect the taste. There's brick ovens, pizza stones, copper pans, even though "heat is the same".

Here's a quote from 'water encyclopedia' site: Although water has the simple formula H2O, it is a complex chemical solution. "Pure" water essentially is nonexistent in the natural environment. Natural water, whether in the atmosphere, on the ground surface, or under the ground, always contains dissolved minerals and gases as a result of its interaction with the atmosphere, minerals in rocks, organic matter, and living organisms.

Why don't you try a green or white tea first with electric range and then with gas range and report on difference? I already tried it so I'm arguing from experience and you are arguing from theory.

No, I appreciate your help but I asked for some specific criteria. That's like someone asking how to get from NY to Niagara falls by bus and someone else replying that you shouldn't do that but instead fly to Bangkok and have striped mussels in "Golden Lotus" restaurant because they're un-be-li-eve-able. :-).

I think the digital pro kettle's temperature control is relatively sophisticated. Since heating slows down as it nears the setpoint (when not in boil-first mode), this suggests the control algorithm tries to avoid overshoot.

I've used it for gong-fu a couple of times, and the water temperature has been quite stable. I haven't noticed the instability (overshoot, I bet) at lower water volumes, since I add a liter of water after pouring the current infusion's when the kettle starts to get low. It's within a degree or so of the setpoint by the time I'm ready for the next infusion. Initially, I measured with my regular thermometer, too. They only differed when the element has been engaged recently -- the difference is probably just due to transient temperature gradients and the different sensor positions. (The tea was really good, too -- Harney & Sons' da hong pao.)

Another approach that might be feasible for you is to get a decent (i.e., not the T-fal Vitesse) non-smart adjustable electric kettle to see if you like them at all, and if you find you need it, adding smarts later on as budgeting permits. E.g., I would love to have an Auber Instruments' plug-and-play temperature controller (or two; or ten) someday:

HTH, and best luck finding a kettle that meets your needs, N.