Do you need a smart kettle? Probably not. But with everything else getting wired into a semi-intelligent automaton, we might as well embrace our ever-connected future. So put down that decade-old plug-in thermos in the kitchen right next to the PicoBrew Zymatic Beer Brewer and make way for the iKettle.
What can it do? First, it hooks up to a home’s Wi-Fi network, allowing it to pair with a mobile app on your smartphone. From the app, you can control the kettle’s operation, so you can start the water boiling for your afternoon tea even while feeding your dogs in the backyard.
More than acting as a remote control, though, the iKettle adds some really useful intelligent features that should make being lazy just a little easier. For instance, there’s a Wake Up mode that automatically starts a prompt whether you want to start water boiling the first time you turn on your phone in the morning; there’s also a Welcome Home mode which asks the same thing as soon as your phone joins the home’s Wi-Fi network. Once water boils, it will send another prompt to inform you, as well as give you an option to keep the water warm for a while. It comes with four tailored temperature settings (65°C, 80°, 95° and 100°), allowing you to get the exact level of heat you like.
The kettle itself can hold up to 1.8 liters of water, with stainless steel construction and a soft-touch handle. The WiFi and accompanying electronics all sit in the detachable base, so you can clean the kettle (it comes with a removable filter) separately without damaging the sensitive components.
The iKettle is available from Firebox, priced at £99.99.