Verdict

Pros

• Inexpensive
• Filtered water makes a marked difference
• Looks cool

Cons

• Filters need replacing and aren't cheap
• Build quality should be better
• Small one-litre capacity

What is the Russell Hobbs BRITA Purity Kettle 18554?

Russell Hobbs has combined BRITA filter technology with its kettle knowhow to create the BRITA Purity Kettle. Water is added to the top of the kettle and gradually drips down to the base with many of the impurities found in tap water caught in the filter. At around £25 it’s surprisingly cheap, the question is, can it make a better brew?

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Russell Hobbs BRITA Purity Kettle 18554: Design and Build Wuality

The BRITA Purity Kettle is made predominately of thick clear plastic but has a brushed stainless steel covered area at the bottom. It looks quite swish as it boils, a blue light inside the kettle shows off the water boiling inside. They say a watched kettle (well, pot) never boils but it’s fun to watch this one.

The handle and internal filter mechanism feel sturdy but the lid that gives you access to the top less so. You need to manually pull open the lid – there’s no flip-open mechanism or button. This is one less thing to go wrong but the plastic hinges holding the lid in place are too flimsy and thin to suggest that ruggedness was a primary consideration with this kettle – it definitely could have been made a little thicker to increase longevity.

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The lid hinges don’t look too robust

The base is similarly thin. It does, however, provide 360 degree rotation so you can position the handle of the Russell Hobbs BRITA Purity Kettle in whichever position you want to and it has a cable management system meaning you can wrap any excess cord and tuck it out of sight beneath the base.

Once again the on-off switch doesn’t feel as if it will stand up to too much roughhousing. It’s not tight and moves around a fair bit, although again it did not feel any looser after more than a hundred flips. Used normally we don’t think you’ll have any problems for years.

One potential downside to the Russell Hobbs BRITA Purity Kettle is that it only manages to boil one litre of water at a time. That’s enough for about three mugs of tea. There is a good reason for this though. The filter mechanism in the top of the kettle that removes impurities from the water takes up a fair amount of space. It’s a trade-off, but one we’re happy to make based on the quality of the boiled water we end up with.

Russell Hobbs BRITA Purity Kettle 18554: Performance

You get a speedy boil from the Russell Hobbs BRITA Kettle. One litre of water is ready in 2 minutes and 16 seconds which is good. Left for 30 seconds in the kettle and then poured into a cold mug the water has a temperature of 86 degrees Celsius which is good for use with black tea, although some tea aficionados prefer a slightly higher temperature – around 90 degrees.

Once boiled the water is extremely pure and clear, the BRITA filter really helps remove small particles from tap water and stops the oily layer that appears if you leave a teabag in for too long from forming. Some owners complain that the water tastes a little like plastic but we boiled three full kettles and poured out the water before we made a cup of tea and found no such issue with the taste. In fact we found the tea to taste better – a little sweeter and less acidic than using unfiltered tap water.

The filter really does take out a lot of small particles. The filtered boiled water on the right looks much cleaner than the water from even a new kettle 

Other things to consider

One BRITA Maxtra filter is included with the Russell Hobbs BRITA Purity Kettle and while the kettle itself is cheap at £25 buying filters can ramp up the cost. The BRITA Maxtra filters should be replaced every 100 litres of water in areas with a carbonate hardness of 12 to 14.5 degrees of Clarke Hardness. If the water in your area is particularly hard then it will need replacing sooner. If you drink fours cups of tea a day each filter should last you three months and a six-pack of filters costs £28.50 from BRITA, but there are better deals available online with a little searching.

We think the extra cost is well worth the improvement in the quality of the boiled water and in the taste of tea and other hot beverages, though arguably buying a separate filter jug and normal kettle would be a more adaptable system.

Verdict

While we would prefer it if the Russell Hobbs BRITA Purity Kettle was better made and had a larger capacity, the low price and the quality of water it offers means it’s well worth it. If you treat it carefully it should last a while too.

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