Sunbeam 6131 Hot Shot Hot Water Dispenser
by Sunbeam
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List Price: Our Price: $10.87 Category: Kitchen See more product details |
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Sunbeam 6131 Hot Shot Hot Water Dispenser
Customer Review: Great product, but 2 less desirable caveats
Summary: 4 Stars
I have had this product for about 2 years and it has worked great for my family. I would recommend this for anyone looking to buy for its purpose, but would point out 2 minor issues from using this regularly:
1) If you have some warm water left over from previous use, then the unit refuses to turn on when you press the 'on' button on top until you pour away the warm water and put in cooler water. Perhaps this is a safety design that shuts off the switch when water is already at some temperature, but somewhat inconvenient when you have to replace the lukewarm water with cool water before it will turn on again.
2) The water dispensing lever finally broke on us this weekend after 2 years. I guess after many pressing motion of this lever stressed out the plastic. Looking at the broken plastic they could have made this mechanism stronger instead of 2 plastic clips. I now use a screw driver to push down mechanism manually to dispense water, and will continue this until we find a replacement.
Despite the above issues, it is a great unit for getting a cup of hot water for your beverage, and it has served my family well over the past 2 years.
Customer Review: Additional point
Summary: 4 Stars
I came here to write essentially what Elliot wrote below -- the Hot Shot product description does not seem to indicate vertical space for your mug, and the photos do not really show scale. So if you have a tall mug or thermos and do not feel comfortable modifying your Hot Shot, you might want to consider other options. (However, it does come apart with a screwdriver so all you really have to do is mount it to something taller).
The point about not plugging it in before pressing the power switch is correct -- for the first use, that is. The device shuts itself off when it finishes, and you can actually leave it plugged in at that point. At least, this is what I've been doing for the past week since I first got it and I'm still happy.
One final comment: If you're in a hurry, be sure to contact the third-party seller if you can before ordering this product. Amazon showed it in stock when I had placed my order a while back, and it took the third-party (Polsteins Home & Beyond) over a week to inform me that they did actually not have any in stock.
Customer Review: It does what it's supposed to do
Summary: 4 Stars
This does exactly what it's supposed to do: heat about 16 oz of water quickly. There are no moving parts so I don't expect it this to break anytime soon unless the mechanical piece or heating element goes bad.
A few negatives that prevents it from getting 5 stars:
1) Can only fit a regular sized coffee mug or smaller. If you have a tall glass or a wider mug, it does not fit under the dispenser.
2) Lever to dispense water doesn't have a good tactile response - I feel like I'm pushing down on it too hard sometimes (note you have to hold the lever down until all liquid is dispensed). Hopefully it does not break since it's plastic.
3) There's a place where you put the wire while using to keep it out of the way. Unfortunately our model's wire tends to get loose and make the unit uneven - still quite usable but slightly annoying wobble.
4) No way to turn off unit without unplugging as others have mentioned. So if you only wanted to heat something a little bit, the only way to stop the unit is to unplug it.
Customer Review: Great, but button broke.
Summary: 4 Stars
For every busy person out there with a need for caffine, but no time, the Sunbeam Hot Shot is the perfect answer. Other reviewers despair of the limited space under the drip, however, I have found that my cup of tea cools so fast (government building and regulated temperature) that a fresh cup is always near a hand. Somehow, tea just takes better when it isn't out of an insulated mug. My hint: rather than running back and forth from the sink, I keep a gallon water jug in my office. Instant fill-up. The only negative comment I have for my 1 1/2 year old model is that the dispensing button is made of plastic, and the connecting hinges have bent and broken. So now I am ordering Hot Shot #2. Considering how little money it costs and the convenience, it is still a great deal.
Customer Review: fast and hot
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a purchase to replace our dead water cooling dispenser. The cooler would dispense instant hot water which was nice but wasted electricity like a water heater tank unit. This unit was well worth it, we've had one of these at work for over 8 years now. The water will get hot fast. Wish it were a little bit bigger, my wife and I like big cups of hot drinks in winter, and this dispenser can't fill more than one cup. But I guess that would take away from the fast heating time. As fast as this heats, I don't mind the wait. Recently I found out that taller mugs can't fit under this unit, I hope they redesign this product one day. This unit is not as fast as instant heat like the water cooler, but for 1 -2 minutes it sure is faster than the kettle.