My kettle has died, any recommendations for a new one?

[ariadneoliver]

I know this is hardly riveting, but after the sad demise of my last kettle (it cost £4.99 from Woolworths about 10 years ago) I need a new one. I'm in a hard water area so I need one that will stand up to frequent descaling and is white or grey. Not the same budget constraints these days, but it won't get massively heavy use so doesn't need to be mega bucks.

Not a kettle expert but it might be worth reposting in Good Housekeeping to get more focused responses.

Thanks. I'll see if I can get it moved.

I've got a £5 one from Wilkinsons. Previously had a Tesco Value one for a fiver which lasted about 6 years. They do the job as well as the fancy ones. I mean, boil water, that's it, innit? That's all I require. :)

Make sure it's rapid boil.

Meant to say, they are practically as cheap to replace as they are to descale!

Enjoy I guess at 50p a year of use I have hardly pushed the boat out!

Hullo all - we're just going to move this to Good Housekeeping for the OP.

Is rapid boil much faster? I assumed it was just a gimmick

ariadne Well, exactly! I have bought more expensive kettles in the past, but after I bought the first £5 one as a stopgap, I wondered why I ever bothered to pay more.

Thanks Kate!

I now only buy ones that have a concealed element so the water doesn't go round the element and can't build up chalk there. It's much easier to clean when the chalk is forming on the inside bottom of a jug rather than encrusted on the element.

Argos kettles all seem to show on the details if they have a concealed element and that's where I tend to buy mine.

This one looks OK, half price now

only £6 from M & S

A few more in sale also. Delivery free to a store

I wasn't sure until having to wait AGES for ILs kettle to boil

That M & S one does look good!

I have had a similar one from Tesco which was £10 when I got it but is sometimes more. It's very loud & the lid doesn't open without a fight & it takes ages to switch itself off but it lights up bright blue inside when it's on which makes it all worthwhile

Thanks for the sugestions, that M&S one looks very good for the price. And I'm sold on rapid boil now.

Well just to say that after all that I popped into Wilkinsons for some gardening stuff and came out with their everyday value cordless kettle, it was £5.99 I couldn't leave it behind. Thanks for the input everyone.