I am pretty picky about buying kettles for boiling water. I usually try to get good quality ones, but the last one I bought from National Stores was this one: Panasonic NC-KD300. Honestly, it’s not the worst one I’ve ever bought but it’s very unlikely I’ll ever buy anything similar.
It’s a design that allows the user to burn themselves. Steam comes out of the top very near the handle (too near). When you pour, water tumbles out from the sides. If you open it, while it is hot, you’re likely to burn yourself. When you pour the water also cascades out, this causes frequent sperking and splashing on the user. It’s really just a ridiculously hazardous kettle.
Supposedly designed by Strix, you can see that design in the shape of the handle, but in the cost-down movement, I’ll bet that the Panasonic team opted to cost-down every single component. I wonder what the original design actually looked like. But that’s what happens when things get OEM-ed. Outsourced manufacturing to keep costs down results in lower costs but lower quality as each tier of the outsource supply chain is trying to maximize its own profit.
I wasn’t particularly happy with the choice on the store shelves at the time I bought it… but honestly, next time I’m faced with stupid designs, I’ll just pick the cheapest, and buy a decent one from another store another day.