Morphy Richards Accents Hot Water Dispenser - Black

I needed to replace old kettle as it was leaking and decided to go for this water dispenser instead of buying yet another kettle. Idea of getting a full cup in 35-40 seconds and saving some electricity was appealing and I guess it hasn't failed to deliver those points.Upon arrival, internal packing of the product looked like it had been opened and repacked. I really expect food / drink related products to be sold sealed, but not a big deal, a good cleaning was all I needed. Well, unlike a standard kettle or brita jug, it was not really possible to open water reservoir and clear thoroughly. Water is filled through a relatively small, self opening lid which automatically opens half way upon raising the handle. Nice feature I must mention. However, half open lid and no other access to the reservoir makes cleaning almost impossible. I might be over-thinking so I convinced myself that it was clean after filling it up few times, shaking and emptying (then boiling few cups of water and disposing, as suggested in the manual).Again, it does what it says on the tin. Upon pressing main button, water actually gets heated up somewhere else in the machine and eventually dispensed. Good water temperature but it felt slightly cooler than the kettle. I am judging this based on the cup / drink getting cold a bit quicker, otherwise tea/coffee just fine.Pros:- It looks better than couple of alternatives I considered- It fills a cup in 40 seconds, remember also there is few seconds delay between cups if you are preparing tea for a few people- It actually boils one cup saving electricity- The unit itself is quite tall allowing taller mugs to be used- It illuminates the cup while heating up the water, cool, white light with some intentional or unintentional flickering.- Cup size is adjustable, good range of sizes- Stop button cuts water flow immediately. This is something I really liked. Similarly at the end of the cycle, water just stops completely at once (instead of keep dripping for a while).Cons- Everything is a bit too plastic. It doesn't look and feel as good as on the website. Buttons are a bit rough to operate.- Water reservoir is made up of a dark plastic which makes it impossible to see the water level if the unit is a relatively darker corner of the kitchen. A clear glass container, similar to the ones on coffee machines would be fantastic.- Sometimes but not always, steam comes out from the top of the unit. This is described as normal operation in the manual. This makes it hard putting it under a wall unit in the kitchen. Again, from the picture, I was kind of expecting a simplified coffee machine, but this one feels more like a kettle with a pump to fill your cup in the end. Not a big issue, but unexpected. In the end it is sold as a water dispenser.- When you want to fill it, entire unit (except a base plate and drip tray) comes out. Unlike similar looking coffee machines where one can remove the water reservoir, fill it and put back. It is relatively heavy. In my kitchen it sits on the desk top, half way under a wall unit (due to steam). To see water level, I need to turn the unit sideways (which requires two hands due to weight). If it is empty, I need to pull it forward, top up from water jug and push back. Just to let you know from practicality point of view.It think I would buy it again, it would be a perfect unit with a few more refinements.

We bought this as my hubby is gadget mad and we've always fancied a hot water tap. We live in a very hard water area and so our kettle is terrible as a result of re-boiling water (we try hard not to but it is difficult). The one cup meant we'd only boil the water we need and never re-boil, so we thought we'd give it a go as the price was barely more than an average kettle anyway (we got it for £50 mark). I was a little sceptical about what would happen if I needed a saucepan of boiling water, for which I would normally boil the kettle, so we had a race - Meno vs Kettle. It took longer to boil the kettle than it took to make 7 cups on the one cup - hence filling the saucepan faster than the kettle, which was a good selling point for me (the kettle having been a reasonably good kettle with the same wattage/ampage/power rating as the Meno). I have not given the Meno 5 stars as it is still just off boiling for gravy - tea is too hot to drink immediately after making it so it is very close to boiling point compared with a lot of hot water taps, but it doesn't make my gravy thick - possibly because I have to get 2 cups made, in which time it's cooled by a few degrees. There has been a definite improvement in the limescale department - by now a new kettle would have had a good coating of sediment, but there is no evidence anywhere on the Meno yet. I strongly recommend this product - particularly good for people that don't want to lift kettles of boiling water - I am now not worried about my 8 year old making me a brew (which she has never done to date) - it seems perfectly safe to get the hot water straight into the mug, rather than having to tip up and aim a kettle - also probably a very good idea for elderly people who don't have the strength to lift a kettle reliably (like my grandma). You have to have a few goes to get the setting right for the amount of water you need and it is very sensitive, but works for all but our very largest one pint mug! Overall, we love it and think it was a great buy. Bye bye kettle!