Unfortunately, the prettiest kettle of the bunch only gets two stars
17.4.2026
Translation: Katherine Martin
Pictures: Michael Restin
I’d love nothing more than to sing the Aarke Kettle’s praises. With its timeless beauty, it might well have become a permanent fixture in my kitchen. The trouble is, it’d need to do its job properly to achieve that. And in my book, three defects equals two too many.
I never wanted to write this article. In fact, I didn’t even want a new kettle. All I wanted was to get my old one fixed. One last-ditch repair attempt and a broken hinge later, however, I was ready to invest in a new one. A kettle that’d last me a lifetime, no less. Consistent, pretty and preferably sporting very little plastic. A workhorse with the grace of an Arabian stallion. The Aarke brand seems to bring all of this together in its products.
Ever since the Carbonator Pro turned making sparkling water into a fun experience for my family, I’ve been a fan. So the Aarke Kettle seemed like the right model to have in my kitchen from there on out. After all, you get what you pay for. So, I ignored Swiss consumer platform «Ktipp’s» test winner costing just under 40 francs, as well as German consumer magazine «Stiftung Warentest’s» favourite priced at a little over 20 francs (both pages in German). Then, I spent five to ten times that amount.
Classy, classier, Aarke
The Kettle mostly consists of stainless steel, with some parts made of BPA-free, food-safe plastic and silicone. Water comes into contact with the temperature sensor’s sealing ring. On the lid, water vapour comes into contact with plastic. Neither of those things bother me. Nor do I pick up the metallic taste in the water that some users have complained about. Instead, I admire the Kettle’s appearance.
There’s the sleek base with a built-in switch used to select the temperature and turn on the Kettle. Atop the base, there’s the double-walled jug, weighing a hefty 1.3 kilogrammes. While it doesn’t get too hot on the outside, the water boiling away on the inside does so nice and quietly. Once the Kettle hits your chosen temperature, it simply turns off. If you disable the sound by holding down the button, it spares you the beeping. What a treat.
The inside of the jug’s marked with the minimum and maximum water levels – 500 millilitres and 1.2 litres respectively. Since the jug’s well insulated, the water stays hot for a long time. You can check the current water temperature via the Kettle’s subtle white LEDs. The lid opens wide at the press of a button, which echoes the design of the switch on the base. The manufacturer’s commitment to quality is apparent in every detail.
More metal, more screws
The two Swedish founders, Jonas Groth and Carl Ljungh, are industrial designers who set out to create aesthetically pleasing, high-quality, repairable products. When it came to the Kettle, that meant rethinking the design from the ground up. They got rid of visible weld seams and steered clear of plastic wherever possible. Yes, this drove up the price, but cutting corners isn’t in line with the company’s philosophy.
We never cut costs by using fewer screws or lower-quality materials – quite the opposite.
In an interview with Manufactum (in German), he goes on to say: «We add more material from year to year – more metal, more screws – to improve the quality and make it more durable and simply better. It’s worthwhile in the end. We firmly believe that.» I think it’s worth getting behind that approach. It’s a nice alternative to throwaway culture.
It also doesn’t bother me that the Kettle’s made in China. It’s not like it could be made anywhere else. Is it? Having delved deeper into this question, I’ve now learned that brands such as Ottoni Fabbrica, Ritterwerk and Dualit manufacture their products more cheaply by doing so in Italy, Germany and the UK. The thing that does bother me after just three months is my wife saying, «Your expensive kettle’s broken!» Given how sceptical she’s been of my aesthetically motivated purchases in the past, this one really hits home.
One defect is just the beginning
First, the LED display goes on the blink, the lights flickering chaotically between the temperature settings. The Aarke can’t boil water while this is happening. Then, the Kettle seems to recover. Though I occasionally need to press the button twice to get it to switch on. Later, it only switches on at random, eventually refusing to work altogether.
«Too bad,» I think to myself, «but I guess these things happen». Even after malfunction number one, I was reluctant to write this article. Keen, instead, to get the Aarke Kettle repaired, I brought it to the office with me one Tuesday so that I could drop it off at the Digitec store after work. Thanks to our weekly team meeting, that’s not how things panned out.
«We have that one too,» says my colleague Darina as I set the Kettle down on my desk. «It’s already broken twice,» she says. Wait, what? Tell me more, Darina! «Our first one made a deafening, screechy whistling noise as it was coming to a boil – kind of like those old-fashioned kettles you see in films.» The second one, she explains, lasted about a year before acting up in the same way mine did. «Two weeks ago, whenever it came to a boil, the temperature gauge would go dark and the Kettle would turn itself off again.» After about ten attempts to switch it back on, it finally came back to life. Sounds familiar.
Three defects equals two too many
Two luxury kettles, three malfunctions? Once that came to light, my reluctance to write this article faded. When we editors write reviews, we try to share honest, helpful insights into products, based on our everyday experiences. Now, this story wasn’t pitched and planned long in advance – it was a «write in the moment» situation. You can tell by the lousy photos accompanying it. Sorry about that, by the way. They were impromptu shots taken on my old iPhone 10 before I returned the Kettle.
When asked whether I want to exchange the Kettle or get a refund, I hesitate for a moment. Love or money? With a heavy heart, I decide to go for money. There’s every chance a replacement Kettle could malfunction. Three defects suggest a pattern. Plus, when I check the warranty claim rate for kettles purchased on Galaxus, Aarke ranks near the bottom, firmly in the red zone. At the beginning of April, it ranked 64th out of 74 brands. Here’s its current position.
I don’t want to use this article to vent my personal frustrations. The situation hasn’t caused me any financial damage. Even so, I want to point out that Aarke still has room for improvement on reliability.
No response, no explanation
I’d love to give you a good explanation for all of this. Which is why I wrote to Aarke’s press office on 1 April, mentioning my experiences and the warranty claim rate. It may well have been the case that the company was aware of the issue, that some element of the kettle had already been improved or that a fix was in the works. Unfortunately, all I got back was an automated response.
If you’re making a press or media inquiry, we’ll review your message as soon as possible and get back to you if a collaboration opportunity arises. Other queries will be forwarded to the appropriate team within the company.
Based on the statistics and my own experience, I can only assume this beautiful kettle, released in 2023, is still having teething problems. Despite the fact that Aarke spends an average of three years on developing each new product.
Update: 20 April 2026:
My original media inquiry must’ve wound up in Aarke’s junk mail. Once this article was published, Aarke responded immediately, attempting to contact me that very same day. The company said it hadn’t received any other reports of the issues I’ve described. However, it does want to investigate the issue. It offered to inspect and replace the affected devices in Stockholm. Unfortunately, that’s no longer possible in my case, since I’ve already returned the Kettle. Still, it was a concise, professional and polite response.
Everyday life proved too much to handle
What a pity, given the lofty standards set by founder Ljungh in his Manufactum interview: «We don’t really need any more stuff in the world. What we need is better products. Long-lasting products that withstand the demands of day-to-day life, all while maintaining their aesthetic appeal. That’s how you invest in the future.»
As far as aesthetic appeal’s concerned, the designers have nailed it. They’ve still got time to handle the rest. The brand has a future, after all. As does its approach. Fun fact: «Aarke» means «everyday» in Sami. And unfortunately, the Kettle couldn’t handle everyday use at my place. My wife’s waiting to see what I’ll come home with next. In the meantime, she’s using a trusty pot to boil water for her tea.
In a nutshell
Beautiful, but prone to defects
In my opinion, Aarke’s Kettle is the most beautiful one on the market. It boils quietly, doesn’t make annoying beeping sounds, appears robust and consists of very little plastic.
My Kettle broke after just three months, and my colleague reported two separate problems with hers. Plus, its warranty claim rate’s too high for a product costing over 200 francs. The Swedish brand purports to sell timelessly beautiful, repairable, long-lasting products.
That last claim, however, sadly doesn’t hold water. So, with a heavy heart, I’m giving this kettle just two stars. One for the design, and one for the high bar this relatively young company’s striving to meet on quality.
Pro
- Plastic only used on the temperature sensor and lid (on the seal)
- Quiet
- Beautiful
Contra
- High warranty claim rate (16 April 2026: 3.6 per cent, ranked 57th out of 70)
- Three defects in two kettles during the warranty period
Michael Restin
Senior Editor
Michael.Restin@digitecgalaxus.chSimple writer and dad of two who likes to be on the move, wading through everyday family life. Juggling several balls, I'll occasionally drop one. It could be a ball, or a remark. Or both.
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