Philips PSG8300/80 Steam Generator Iron review: "the best steam generator I've used"

Price on writing: £550 | Buy now from John Lewis

How we tested

Mumsnet tester Alison put this iron through its paces against a mountain of laundry, ironing approximately 60 items of clothing and bedding. She took detailed notes on the iron's ease of use, effectiveness against creases and its quality. Alison cross-compared the iron with other steam generator models she's tested, such as the Tefal Pro Express Vision and Russell Hobbs Quiet Super Steam. Lastly, she fact-checked the manufacturer's claims by weighing the iron using digital scales, timing the output from one tank of water and recording results after one pass.

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Our verdict

This is an exceptional steam generator iron that impressed Mumsnet tester, Alison, from the first use. She describes it simply as “the best steam generator I’ve used” (and she's tested six for Mumsnet). She praised its ease, speed and ability to handle a large backlog of laundry without slowing down. The automatic OPTIMALTemp feature removes the faff of temperature settings, and the two-minute heat-up time makes it ideal for regular or long ironing sessions.

Its biggest drawback is the instruction booklet, which Alison told me is “in pictorial form and not very clear as to what it is referring to”. But once she got started, the iron delivered excellent results across a range of fabrics. The RRP of £550 is steep, though the current price of around £335 feels far more realistic for what it offers.

"It’s highly functional and delivers on its promise of ease and speed,” Alison says. One of the features that stood out most to her was its OPTIMALTemp automatic temperature adjustment, saying that she was, “especially impressed by its ability to recognise different fabric types, which along with its ergonomic design, made ironing noticeably more comfortable.”

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What's the Philips PSG8300/80 Steam Generator Iron like to use day-to-day?

During testing, Alison used the iron to work through a substantial amount of laundry, telling me she’d used it “to tackle a large backlog of ironing, which took over two hours to complete.”

The iron fitted neatly on her worktop and she found movement easy thanks to the long cord and steam hose. She describes the iron as “medium weight, generally comfortable to use, though it did start to feel a bit heavy toward the end of the session.”

During her testing, she mainly ironed “bedding and t-shirts, and it handled both very well.”

The controls themselves were easy for Alison to get to grips with, despite the manual. She explains, “There are no temperature settings, this is controlled by the OPTIMALTemp feature built into the machine. The two controls you need are ON/OFF and the speed mode which are both very easy to operate.”

The fast heat-up was a big highlight: “Having used steam generators before I was particularly impressed by the 2 minute heating up period before use.” The sound indicator also helped: “There is a very good sound feature which apart from the light on the handle gives a very clear indication that the machine is ready to use.”

She liked several design touches, telling me, “The water tank was very easy to remove and re-fill.” Cord storage was another plus: “The steam cord stores away very usefully as does the power cord if you wish to be super tidy. There is a very handy clip to store the plug against the machine which I have not seen on any other steam generator.”

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Does the Philips PSG8300/80 Steam Generator Iron speed up ironing?

Alison found the Philips PSG8300/80 performed exceptionally well across the fabrics she tested. “For all the material types I ironed and especially bedding, I only had to glide over the material once. It really was very easy to use.”

The steam output stayed consistent throughout: “The steam penetrated the thicker fabrics very well and I didn’t notice much of a difference.”

The 1.4l water tank lives up to the claim that it provides an hour of ironing. “I was ironing continuously for two hours and only re-filled the water tank once.”

The vertical steam function also worked well on a lightly creased dress. Alison said, “It worked well and didn’t make the fabric too wet.”

Compared with her current machine (a Russell Hobbs Quiet Super Steam), Alison found this a clear upgrade. “I thought I was going to find it difficult to beat the Russell Hobbs Quiet Super Steam which I use… but this is a step function better and more suited to my needs for larger items, continuous ironing and storage.”

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Design and build quality

Alison liked the look and design of the machine, telling us, “This looks great in my laundry area! This iron has a smaller footprint than my current one and is very easy to use.”

She also felt the build quality was strong: “The build quality is definitely better than my current machine.”

Living in a hard water area, Alison tested the descaler early on. “I used the descale function to see what it was like and was surprised to find some dirt had been collected. I was impressed by the robustness of the design [of the descaler] much better than I have seen on cheaper irons.”

The water tank also avoids mould. “On emptying the water container I noticed that there were air holes in the cap to allow the remaining few drops of water to dry out and not go green in the container.”

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Does the Philips PSG8300/80 Steam Generator Iron offer good value for money?

The Philips PSG8300/80 Steam Generator Iron has an RRP of £550, which is a lot to pay for an iron. However, it's often discounted to a much more doable £350. In comparison with other premium steam generator irons, like the Tefal Pro Express Vision, which has an RRP of £600, it's well-priced.

You really do get what you pay for in a very measurable way with steam generator irons. The Philips PSG8300/80 has a whopping 9 bar pressure, 850g steam shot and 210g continuous steam - which in plain English means it's incredibly powerful and glides through even the toughest creases in one easy swipe. And when you compare it to a standard steam iron, an iron like this will literally cut your time spent ironing in half.

"It's definitely at the top of the range," says Alison. "I see it as a premium upgrade. It has better functionality than my current steam generator... It would suit a larger family with a lot of bedding and shirts or someone with delicate fabrics who needs consistency and reliability with their ironing.”

About the author

Poppy O'Neill is a Content Editor at Mumsnet and a mother of two. She researches and reviews the products Mumsnetters swear by, with a particular focus on laundry essentials like steam irons, clothes steamers and washing lines.

From a highly recommended retractable washing line to the best quiet fans money can buy, and Mumsnet's favourite dehumidifier to the steam generator iron that'll cut your ironing time in half, she loves to deep-dive into research and find the very best products on the market.