# Bonavita Versus Brewista Kettle



## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

Bonavita has 1ltr capacity and rated at 1000 watts. Costs £85.00 at CoffeeHit

Brewista has 1.2ltr capacity and rated at 1500 watts. Costs £85.00 at CoffeeHit but currently on offer at £60.00 delivered at CoffeeHit

Both have several pre-set temps plus manual set. Both have auto temp lock which has to be re-set if kettle is removed from base and then replaced. Bonavita is supplied with a plastic cover to place over base and front dial giving a degree of protection from accidental water spillage.

Lid on the Brewista can't be removed unlike the Bonavita which I don't like.









Brewista has one additional feature over the Bonavita - it has a built in clock so can be programmed to come on at a pre-set time - useful for early morning pour over. The Brewista also beeps when set temp is reached - useful function.









*Time to heat up and temp accuracy:*

Kettles were set to 94c and filled with one litre.

Bonavita took 6 mins 10 secs to reach 94c

Brewista took 4 mins 23 secs to reach 94c

Water temp accuracy was measured as soon as the dial temp read 94c and checked with a Thermapen probe which showed the actual temp in the Bonavita to be 1.5 - 1.7 degrees above that set on the dial (94c), i.e. the water was actually 95.5c - 95.7c.

The Brewista under-read. With dial temp set to 94c and temp read as soon as 94c appeared on dial, actual temp was 93c.

Both kettles are great for pour over. The Brewista edges it for being much faster to reach operating temp, being slightly more temp accurate (on the kettles I tested) and having a couple of useful extra features.

Whilst the Brewista is priced at £60.00 delivered from CoffeeHit, it's a no brainer.


----------



## NickdeBug (Jan 18, 2015)

Looks like I chose wisely then









Probably a bit of an extravagance as I am only really using it for the odd aeropress, but it works well.


----------



## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Any difference in pouring?


----------



## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

Both remarkably similar - very controllable.


----------



## PPapa (Oct 24, 2015)

What about the build quality? Bonavita seems to be fairly well built even if it has quite a bit of plastic. I like the finger rest on the handle.


----------



## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

Both look and feel pretty robust.


----------



## NickdeBug (Jan 18, 2015)

The Brewista kettle unit (not the base) feels pretty well made, but fairly lightweight.

Having said that, I am comparing it to the Kitchen Aid Artisan kettle, which is basically the kettle equivalent of a Volvo.

edit - the base feels very good quality as well


----------



## Orangertange (Jul 4, 2013)

Great review,

thinking about a new electric kettle, just wondering how they fare for general kitchen use, can they replace a normal kettle for Ie cooking?

was thinking of getting a Bonavita so could switch between the two types they make, but can't find anywhere that sells just the 1.2l (normal) kettle


----------



## PPapa (Oct 24, 2015)

I never really understood the need to boil the water in order to boil eggs/pasta/etc.

Tea making wise, I hate Bonavita. I'm just not patient enough to fill my 0.5l mug. It just feels like eternity! Can't quote on numbers, but it's really slow. That's that makes the gooseneck kettle, though.


----------



## aaroncornish (Nov 7, 2012)

Thanks! Just ordered a Brewista


----------



## Step21 (Oct 2, 2014)

What is the minimum amount of water you need to put in the Brewista to operate safely? e.g. if you just want a small brew or mug of tea


----------



## NickdeBug (Jan 18, 2015)

Modern kettles, including these, have hidden elements so I'm not sure that there is a minimum as such. Old kettles used to have to have the water level above the element.

You would certainly be okay boiling up enough for one cup.


----------



## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

I like the idea of being able to program it to come on at a set time, that would be great for the morning ritual - one less thing to do on autopilot at 6am. Can't justify one though since my other half bought me a goose-neck kettle for my birthday (after telling me off for nearly buying one beforehand..)


----------



## PPapa (Oct 24, 2015)

Rhys said:


> I like the idea of being able to program it to come on at a set time, that would be great for the morning ritual - one less thing to do on autopilot at 6am. Can't justify one though since my other half bought me a goose-neck kettle for my birthday (after telling me off for nearly buying one beforehand..)


By the way that wouldn't be possible with Wemo and Bonavita. If you keep it plugged in, nothing really happens, you still have to press "on" button (!) and then "hold" to keep the same temperature.


----------



## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

PPapa said:


> By the way that wouldn't be possible with Wemo and Bonavita. If you keep it plugged in, nothing really happens, you still have to press "on" button (!) and then "hold" to keep the same temperature.


Wouldn't know, don't have a wemo... Suppose all you need is a timer plug on my normal kettle, only needs a quick flick to re-boil lol


----------



## risky (May 11, 2015)

OK so I also bought the Brewista recently. I think I got a duffer as the clock is all over the place and doesn't keep time at all. However I bought it off Amazon (same deal as coffeehit) so I'm sure I'll get it swapped over no problem.

Another feature Patrick didn't mention, and I'm not sure if it is unique to the Brewista as I have never used the Bonavita, is that the Brewista has a built in timer.

When you lift the kettle off the base the display changes to 0:00. If you then press the + button it will start counting up. Very handy IMO and saves me looking for my phone or timer when making v60/aeropress or the like.

As I pointed out on the deal thread, Brewista claim their kettle was made by the guys who designed the Bonavita, so in that respect I'd expect the Brewista to basically be Bonavita Mk2.


----------



## PPapa (Oct 24, 2015)

It's pity regarding the time inaccuracy! I hope you get yours sorted. Brewista isn't great at QA, it seems, but their customer service isn't too bad.



risky said:


> Another feature Patrick didn't mention, and I'm not sure if it is unique to the Brewista as I have never used the Bonavita, is that the Brewista has a built in timer.
> 
> When you lift the kettle off the base the display changes to 0:00. If you then press the + button it will start counting up. Very handy IMO and saves me looking for my phone or timer when making v60/aeropress or the like.


That's also available in Bonavita, but once it is started, you cannot put the kettle back as that would reset the timer. Never understood the reasoning of it, but oh well. I never used that timer anyway.


----------



## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

I guess they'd reccomend you bought their scales


----------



## PPapa (Oct 24, 2015)

Surely Acaia could create a kettle operated via Bluetooth. Combined with their scales and some sort of smart OD grinder, you wouldn't need to worry about recipes. Temperature, grind size, water and bean weights, pouring profiles all logged. All you would need is a mini coffee farm and a smart roaster.

LOL I hope that doesn't become true.


----------



## tambu (Sep 7, 2015)

Orangertange said:


> thinking about a new electric kettle, just wondering how they fare for general kitchen use, can they replace a normal kettle for Ie cooking?


I have the Brewista kettle (pre-ordered from coffee hit last year whenever it was) and I thought I'd bin the other kitchen kettle, but I ended up keeping both - it's a lot slower than a "regular" (e.g. 3kW) kettle and it doesn't hold much water, and then it takes ages to pour which I found a bit annoying for regular (non-brewing) use.

As a standalone item I like the Brewista kettle, although as TSK mentions the lid is attached and I've not owned a kettle with a push button lid that hasn't failed yet (I'm being extra careful with this one). The temp setting functionality is great, it's very easy to brew at a specific temperature.

Personally I prefer my buono and thermapen combo because the buono seems easier to pour to me - it's more balanced, and it's what I'm used to - but if I didn't already have a buono then I think this is a great purchase at £60, especially if you drink different teas. I probably wouldn't pay £85 for it though, not when the buono + thermapen is £60 via amazon at the moment and I mainly brew coffee at the same temp.


----------



## Step21 (Oct 2, 2014)

My Brewista arrived today. First impressions are good, i've not used a pouring kettle before and it certainly makes things easier. It will also be very useful for tea.

A question about the "keep warm" function. The instructions say that after you lift the kettle off the base you then need to press the "keep warm" button to engage that function. If you are doing several pours and want to keep the same temp does the initial press keep it there for the duration of the brew or do you need to re-press each time it's lifted off the base? I find the instructions unclear on this.

After having got used to the automation of the Brazen, i'ts a challenge going back to manual pourover!


----------



## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

With the Brewista and Bonavita, you have to press the 'keep warm' button each time the kettle is taken off the base.

On my Brewista, the digital temp readout goes way over the temp I've programmed in. Set 86c for Aeropress and noticed th temp reading go up to 98c when kettle replaced on base and 'keep warm' button re-activated. Checking the temp with a digital probe revealed the actual temp to be 85c so the digital readout is up the creek.


----------



## PPapa (Oct 24, 2015)

I have seen a suggestion to glue/tape the base to the kettle. Sounds like a horrible idea, but seriously, a single unit kettle would be a huge improvement. It shouldn't be too heavy anyway.


----------



## Step21 (Oct 2, 2014)

The Systemic Kid said:


> With the Brewista and Bonavita, you have to press the 'keep warm' button each time the kettle is taken off the base.
> 
> On my Brewista, the digital temp readout goes way over the temp I've programmed in. Set 86c for Aeropress and noticed th temp reading go up to 98c when kettle replaced on base and 'keep warm' button re-activated. Checking the temp with a digital probe revealed the actual temp to be 85c so the digital readout is up the creek.


Thanks TSK. That's what i thought. I've only tried it once and noticed that on the first press it kept temp at 203F but on the second press after replacing on the base the digital readout soared way up beyond that to 209F. Hence, i thought "that can't be right!".

So, it must be a generic failing - keep pressing and ignore what the digital display shows...


----------



## malling (Dec 8, 2014)

I don't even use the "keep warm" as Mine refuses to warm up above the temperature I previously used after using that. If I do I need to unplug it - big software issue


----------



## fatboyslim (Sep 29, 2011)

My kettle is in the post. Just wanting to ask here if people think it'd be OK just boiling 400ml of water at a time as I use bottled water.


----------



## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

400ml will be fine.


----------



## jlarkin (Apr 26, 2015)

I do ~250ml in the bonavita for an aeropress *touchwood* is working fine


----------



## risky (May 11, 2015)

Afaik there is no minimum limit of water to be boiled. It was only when kettles had exposed elements that you had to make sure there was a certain level of water in it.


----------



## fatboyslim (Sep 29, 2011)

Very happy with my kettle! Glad I bought the flow restrictor. Little bit more difficult to pour accurately compared to a Hario Buono with only 500ml of water in but I'm sure I'll get used to it.

Does everyone else's element click on and off a few times as temps get near 90? Presume this is to reach the higher temperatures more gently which allows it to be more accurate?

Do people use the count up timer? I tried to use it to time the brew but at 2:00 it flashed 100 C and went back to 0:00 ???


----------



## risky (May 11, 2015)

fatboyslim said:


> Very happy with my kettle! Glad I bought the flow restrictor. Little bit more difficult to pour accurately compared to a Hario Buono with only 500ml of water in but I'm sure I'll get used to it.
> 
> Does everyone else's element click on and off a few times as temps get near 90? Presume this is to reach the higher temperatures more gently which allows it to be more accurate?
> 
> Do people use the count up timer? I tried to use it to time the brew but at 2:00 it flashed 100 C and went back to 0:00 ???


Yes mine clicks on and off as it gets close, I presume it's to stop it overshooting.

I regularly use the count up timer. I've had it go as far as 8:00 before when I forgot to put the kettle back on the base.


----------



## PPapa (Oct 24, 2015)

Bonavita does the same so it does not overshoot, but I think it's playing it too safe and it takes quite a bit of time to reach the last ten degrees or so.


----------



## fatboyslim (Sep 29, 2011)

Has anyone made a homemade flow restrictor? Even the one from coffee hit doesn't reduce the flow enough for my liking. I used to use an aeropress filter folded into a cone in my Hario Buono but I find that reduces the flow too much in this kettle. ARrghhh!


----------



## Orangertange (Jul 4, 2013)

Just unpacked my brewista, and seems to be overshooting temp by about 6c am I doing something wrong?


----------



## Orangertange (Jul 4, 2013)

Just unpacked my brewista, and seems to be overshooting temp by about 6c am I doing something wrong?


----------



## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

Mine do the same. Not sure the digital readout is that accurate. When set to 95c - have had it read 99c before the thermostat kicks in. Checking with a digital probe shows actual temp to be somewhere between 96-97c. All in all, not too critical for pour over. Thermostatic kick in on the Bonavita's seems to mirror set temp more accurately but when the temp is measured with the digital probe, there is a discrepancy of between 1-2c. So, both the Brewista's and Bonavita's digital readouts don't reflect actual water temp but I can live with that.


----------



## Orangertange (Jul 4, 2013)

Cool, seems to be working better now, but seems to sit at a degree higher than set when in keep warm mode,

actully just seen they are about to release a new, more aesthetically pleasing model next month, I should of held out, but guess that's why there's a discount


----------



## risky (May 11, 2015)

Reviving this thread. I've just had mine replaced by coffee hit as it didn't keep the time. And it looks like there's a new version. It's not even on the Brewista website.

Model number is BKV12S0*2*

Key changes as far as I can see:

Cord can be removed from the base. No more cord storage in the case. Supplied with a short kettle lead.

Handle is more like Bonavita

Lid comes completely off like Bonavita, no more flip up mechanism.

Min/Max guides are stamped on the outside (were impossible to see before on the inside IMO)

Temperature probe has been relocated to the handle side rather than the spout side










Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

So you not only got a replacement but also upgraded for free?

#bonus


----------



## risky (May 11, 2015)

DoubleShot said:


> So you not only got a replacement but also upgraded for free?
> 
> #bonus


Looks that way.

Also great service from coffee hit as I originally bought the kettle from them through Amazon. Amazon were only offering a refund, no option to replace, so I contacted coffee hit and they replied two minutes later and agreed to replace it directly.


----------



## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

That is decent service and it's good to hear. All too often nowadays, a lot of what we read about is poor or disappointing service.


----------



## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

Same as Risky - thermostat on mine packed up so the temp was all over the place. Bought it from CoffeeHit via Amazon. Didn't bother going through Amazon - emailed CoffeeHit and they replaced it with a new one straightaway. Excellent service from CoffeeHit.


----------



## PPapa (Oct 24, 2015)

Sounds great. I suppose you can still use the other one without the timer then?


----------



## Step21 (Oct 2, 2014)

risky said:


> Reviving this thread. I've just had mine replaced by coffee hit as it didn't keep the time. And it looks like there's a new version. It's not even on the Brewista website.
> 
> Model number is BKV12S0*2*
> 
> ...


I have just received this newer version as a replacement from CoffeeHit. The digital base on my original sparked and fried. Super service! Contacted them yesterday, new kettle today.

As risky points out there is a 0.5L min marker printed on the side of the kettle which was not on the original. It is also on the inside which was not the case with the older version. There is no reference i can see in the manual to filling with a minimum amount. I generally put 250ml in, so that's a bit worrying...


----------

