Philips PerfectCare Aqua steam generator iron

I confess that ironing is amongst my least favourite household chores as it is so time-consuming, boring and ungrateful activity. As I do the washing on a daily basis, the pile of things to be ironed never seems to disappear, as soon as one lot is done, there's a new pile ready for ironing. My old (or should I call it vintage?) iron has been on its last legs, and I was delighted to receive an email from Philips offering me to test and review a new Philips PerfectCare Aqua Steam Generator Iron GC8620/02. Will it make my life easier to help with all those pesky shirts and uniforms?

Wouldn't you be tempted by a promise of:

"The Philips PerfectCare Aqua Steam Generator Iron GC8620/02 features OptimalTemp - one setting for all of your clothes: the perfect combination of steam and temperature; is 100% safe on all ironable garments; up to five bars of steam pressure for fast ironing; plus large 2.2 fully visible water tank – to name a few!"

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Well, anything that would make my ironing less cumbersome is most welcome. The innovative gadget has duly arrived at the beginning of July, and for the last month I have been testing it.

What did I think of it?
Pros:
- The speed of ironing is amazing. I was absolutely impressed with how quickly I have done the load of clothes, it would have taken me twice as long with the old iron, if not longer.
- The quality of ironing is also very impressive. Even the stubborn creases disappeared after the ironing.
Even the much hated linen looked as a newly bought variety (I always struggle with making the linen look good). The wrinkle removal is one smooth operation.
- No fuss with choosing the right temperature for the different kind of fabrics. It is adaptable for almost all kinds of textiles.
- You can place the iron directly on the ironing board while adjusting the item you are working with, or if you finished and need to fold it, the iron wouldn't burn the board.
- The design is ultra-modern (and a bit spaceship-inspired). Clean looks, smooth lines.
- The iron has a SteamGlide non-stick ceramic soleplate with a unique steam tip, which allows you to reach and press even the smallest areas, or most difficult ones.
- You can also use this gadget vertically to iron the curtains (though I confess I haven't tried it yet on the curtains, I did try it on a suit on a hanger to give a last minute pressing), now tell me that you are not impressed?

Cons:
- It is on the big size and takes the valuable space. Unless you have a special utility room (and I don't), it does take quite a bit of space.
- The cord is attached to the iron, so the steam part has to sit pretty close to where you iron, which is not always convenient, if you like to pile things-to-be-ironed on the board itself.
- You have to be extra careful handling the iron. I am used to moving the items with one hand while ironing, and moving the iron with the other hand, but found it a bit tricky with the new gadget, as the steam can easily hurt your fingers. Ouch. And there is a bit too much steam for my liking. As the last couple of weeks were pretty hot, I found it too hot to do the ironing,with an additional steam it was truly sweltering.


For me the Pros outweigh the Cons. The main pros are the quality, efficiency and speed, which are probably the essential features when looking for a new iron/steamer.
I would rate it as 8/10 (2 points deducted for the size and the amount of steam).

Disclosure: I received this gadget- Philips PerfectCare Aqua steam generator iron- to test and review on this blog.  All opinions are mine.