...99 saw me coming home with a Hinari Lifestyle kettle. Apart from the price I was attracted to the fact it was a yummy banana yellow colour and cordless too. Of course, “cordless” just refers to the fact that the actual jug kettle has no wires attaching it to sockets so you can carry it across ... Read review
A review by blurbubble on Hinari Lifestyle August 6th, 2002
Author's product rating:
Performance
Good
Ease of use
Very easy
Durability
Satisfactory
Safety
Safe
Value for money
Good
Advantages:
Cheap and cheerful, cordless
Disadvantages:
Not very sturdy, may not last long
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Household appliances – can’t live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em!! (Haven’t I used that line somewhere else recently?!)
I used to have a white plastic Haden jug kettle – it was cheap, it was sturdy, it lasted me about 12 years before it finally became just a little bit too unreliable and dodgy to use. Once the stage had come when it wouldn’t switch off automatically until it had filled my flat with steam making me feel like an extra in “Wuthering Heights” and had taken to giving out vicious little sparks whenever I switched it on or off I reluctantly binned it. 12 years, one of the longest relationships I’ve ever had!
So my search began (actually I didn’t bin the old one until I had a new one, obviously) for a new soulmate in the kitchen. After searching all the usual outlets such as Robert Dyas, Argos and Index I found my new kettle in Woolworths. The princely sum of £9.99 saw me coming home with a Hinari Lifestyle kettle. Apart from the price I was attracted to the fact it was a yummy banana yellow colour and cordless too. Of course, “cordless” just refers to the fact that the actual jug kettle has no wires attaching it to sockets so you can carry it across the kitchen if necessary and not get tangled up. To boil it stands on the corded bit!
This cheeky looking little appliance has a 1.5 litre capacity with a flip open lid for easy refilling. It has a visible water gauge so you can see how much is in there and an indicator light so you know when it is switched on. It boils quickly and efficiently, taking about 2-3 minutes to boil at full capacity and switches off automatically.
Unfortunately there are bad points – I find mine is not very sturdy on the base when boiling and it tends to shake and rock and spurt water when boiling. The connection also seems a bit dodgy sometimes so you need to make sure it is firmly on the base and in position otherwise it tends to just cut out half way through boiling. This is only a recent development and I have had my kettle for less than a year so I hope it is not signifying a short lifespan.
As with all kettles you can prolong it’s lifespan and keep it in good condition by using filtered water to prevent limescale build-up and/or using a descaler regularly to keep the boiling elements clean and stop it from working extra hard to do its job.
So, that basically sums up my new banana coloured friend – it’s been good so far, but I have a sinking feeling that we won’t last 12 years together.
Advantages: inexpensive Disadvantages: none I can think of
I’ve had this kettle for a good few months now, it’s one of those cordless jobs, you know the ones I mean, the cord is actually attached to the base unit which the kettle sits in and can be lifted out for easy filling from the tap.
The cord on the base unit itself is only 60cm long but I think that’s a good thing as it’s less likely to get tangled with other gadgets and sits nice and close to the wall, also making it less likely for inquisitive ... ...I would say.
The kettle itself is white, with a few touches of green, which are located on, the on/off switch, two on the fill level indicator, one on the power on /off indicator (which changes to orange when switched on) and the word ‘Lifestyle’ is also written in the same green on the side of the kettle. So a few fairly subtle touches of colour to tie in with your kitchen colour scheme, but just as well, as this green is fairly bright and limey. ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: can be left on all day, economical to run, easy to clean Disadvantages: need to remember to put the food in hours before you eat
...For all you busy people out there or people who wish to save on your gas/electric bill and save on your food bill too, then this kitchen gadget is defintely for you. A slow cooker is an extremely low wattage appliance that can be safely left on all day (or night). How it works is you place your ingredients in the pot, add a bit of fluid such as water or broth, put on the lid, and switch on to your chosen setting. It gently cooks your food with steam. More about that later.
The HinariLifestyle slow cooker retails for about £39. It is stainless steel on the outside, with a vented smoked glass lid. The removable inner pot is earthenware (hence why in the USA they are called crockpots)and comes in black. The crock liner is extremely easy to clean as the steam cooking action keeps the food moist so it all just wipes off. Occasionally you...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Can programme time to the exact second required. Disadvantages: Quite small.
...I have owned this microwave for nearly 3 years, it was gratefully received as a wedding present and served me well. Unfortunately after an incident of it shooting sparks we decided to put it into retirement and get a new microwave, a choice we much regretted. It turns out it only shot sparks because there was some food around the seal of the door and once that was cleaned off it was fine but we had been given a new microwave and felt we'd better give it a go, still I put the Hinari into storage reluctant to part with it. My instincts were spot on, I blew up the new microwave after 4 months of use, I only asked it to cook for a minute and it blew all the electrics in the house, so needless to say out came the old microwave and I'm happy again.
HinariLifestyle Microwave-
The HinariLifestyle is a compact microwave with an interior...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: All types of cooking in one oven and a Child-proof lock Disadvantages: Not large enough for big families, but would be good as a backup
...My old microwave was looking worse for wear so decided to look for a new one. As my main cooker had a grill included in the oven, which I find very inconvenient at times, I thought a microwave/grill combination would be my best bet.
I visited Comet and found that there was a huge variety of ovens available, but one stood out amongst them and that was the HINARILifestyle Model MX780CEG. It did more than I originally wanted - Microwave, Grill and Convection, with a microwave/grill and microwave/convection combinations - but at the very reasonable price of £54.99 it looked a very good buy.
As you can see from the picture above it is an attractive looking oven and with outside dimensions of 458w x 295hx488dmm and oven cavity dimensions of 309w x 206h x 334dmm, it is not that much larger than a convensional microwave oven...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
It's Sunday morning, I've made myself a latte and have my toast buttered. I have the apartment to myself for once, I make my way over to the sofa with my coffee and toast and there waiting on the coffee table is a the newest issue of Vogue in pristine... more
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14.02.2003
