Sunbeam Hot Shot 3211 Hot Water Dispenser Review

I first got my Hot Shot when I was living in a dorm in college. You aren't allowed to have anything with exposed heating elements, but something like this appliance was within the rules. It let me make tea, oatmeal, hot chocolate, even instant soup. I don't know what I would have done without it. Now that I live in a real apartment, I still use the Hot Shot all the time. If I just want to heat up water, this is what I use. It is faster than boiling water in the stove or in the microwave, and I'm sure it uses less energy. It will heat up enough to make about two mug-fulls of hot water. I'd say it takes about one minute to get to boiling. It's true that you can hear it go when the water starts to boil, but there is no way to avoid that really. This little thing does its job really well. The only downside is that you can't fit tall mugs (or most travel thermoses) under the spout, but you can work around that by pouring from a different mug. I'd say it's worth it!