iKettle Lets You Boil Water With Just a Tap on Your Smartphone

Evening boiling water has gone digital.

ByABC News
October 9, 2013, 4:43 PM
The iKettle lets you control a kettle with your smartphone.
The iKettle lets you control a kettle with your smartphone.
Firebox.com

Oct. 9, 2013 — -- It seems like it will only be a matter of time before you have the option to replace every appliance and utensil in your house with one that is connected to the Internet or to your phone.

We've seen smart refrigerators, smart thermostats, the smart fork, smart locks, the smart smoke detector and now we bring you what UK retailer Firebox.com calls the "world's first WiFi kettle."

The aptly named iKettle is what you expect it to be. The stainless steel 1.8 liter kettle has a wireless-equipped base station. When the kettle and smartphone are on the same network, using the app you can not only turn on the kettle but also set the temperature. Even better, the app has an alarm that allows you to turn on the heat as you hit the snooze button so your hot water is ready and waiting when you get out of bed.

The iKettle was first reported on by the Daily Mail.

There is also a setting that will keep the kettle warm after it first heats up. Some of this does sound like a safety hazard, but according to the site there is an auto shutoff with boil-dry protection feature.

Of course it is only available to the British tea-drinkers first

According to Firebox.com, the site that will exclusively sell the high-tech water heater, the iKettle will be available during the last week of November for $160.79. It is available now for pre-order and will ship in one to two months. The site did not return ABC News' request for comment about a U.S.-compatible version of the iKettle.

In a related note, earlier this week when ABC News spoke to Tony Fadell, the creator of the new smart smoke detector, he said his company wasn't just trying to make the next "Internet kettle," but rather useful and helpful connected home devices.

That may have been an unintended dis of Internet kettles, but the iKettle still may prove its digital mettle while boiling water.