Verdict
Pros
- Double wall insulation
- Safe to touch sides
- Lightweight
- Good value
Cons
- No water level indicator
- Boring looks
- Basic features
Key Specifications
- Review Price: £29.99
- 1.5 litres
- 3kW
- 360° base
- Removable limescale filter
- Concealed element
- Thermally insulated
- Auto shut-off
- Light-up switch
- 75cm cord
What is the Tefal Safe to Touch Kettle?
The Tefal Safe to Touch Kettle is a straightforward jug kettle, in black plastic, with one neat trick: double wall insulation. This keeps the water warm for longer and it also means the kettle is safer, you’re less likely to burn yourself by touching the sides.
For the price it’s a good jug kettle and the insulation is a nice bonus that will save you time and money.
Related: Best kettles
Tefal Safe to Touch Kettle – Design and Features
The Tefal looks like a pretty standard jug kettle, in gloss black plastic. It’s subtle and attractive enough but not very striking.
It’s main selling point is the double-wall for extra insulation, like a Thermos flask. This keeps the water inside warm for much longer than a regular kettle. And as an added benefit it means the sides of the kettle don’t get too hot – hence the name “Safe To Touch”.
It claims to keep water warm for 30 minutes after boiling and this can only be a good thing – why don’t more kettles have double-walls? There is just one downside of the feature: there’s no water level indicator, you can only see the fill level by opening the lid.
The control is a simple power switch that lights up blue. And the lid opens manually, you grip it and tilt it back by hand.
The jug is fairly light and 1.05kg and the handle is comfortable enough in the hand but a bit unforgiving: hard plastic where many kettles now use softer materials.
Tefal Safe to Touch Kettle – What’s it like to use?
Filling the Tefal is fine. The spout is just about big enough to be filled from but more likely you will open the lid because there’s no water level indicator anyway: you need to open the lid to see how full it is.
The lid opens well, giving good access to the insides for filling and cleaning. The 360° base is less good though, the kettle noticeably wobbles on it. It’s not dangerous, just a mildly annoying design flaw.
We found that it took a pretty average 2m35s to boil a litre of water that started out at 14⁰C from the tap. We measured the temperature after 10 mins (an impressive 90⁰C) and again after 30 mins (79⁰C). Both these temperatures are higher than other kettles we’ve tested. So if you regularly have to reboil the kettle for a forgotten cuppa or for cooking, the Tefal is a great proposition: it will save you time and money.
Even 8 hours after boiling we found the water temperature was 3⁰C higher than the other kettles on test. Of course, it’s best never to boil more water than you’re going to use, but no-one’s perfect so an insulated kettle is a great plan.
And while the product information doesn’t mention an auto shut-off feature, we tried to boil the kettle dry and it did indeed turn itself off promptly.
Should I buy the Tefal Safe to Touch Kettle?
Yes, quite possibly. It doesn’t have any fancy features apart from keeping water warm, but that’s an excellent and practical feature that will save you time and money.
It’s worth considering the Breville Impressions Gloss White Jug Kettle, which is also good value. Or spend more on the beautifully designed Morphy Richards Prism Traditional Kettle or the feature packed Sage Smart Kettle.
Verdict
This black jug kettle impresses thanks to its clever double wall design that keeps water warm for longer.
Trusted Score
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Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
