3 stars

I just purchased this item because it was the only hot plate they had in stock at a target store. Bought it for a dorm [shh!], I tested it out at my friend's with a sort of rusted pot and it made a strange sound. Later, I tested it out with a regular pot half-full of water and there was no sound. It took about 20 minutes to boil a pot of water and more than that long to cool down. The only bad part is that the whole piece gets extremely hot [it's made of metal] and you cannot move it immediately after you turn it off. Wish it was quicker and cooler, but I have the receipt just in case!

4 stars

This burner has been great for travel. The whole thing does stay hot, but the rubber feet allow you to set it almost anywhere. It does take a while to warm up, but it's faster than cooking over a campfire. No wood or matches necessary :). We have used it in a hotel room (which we werent suppose to do. sshhhh!) and in our church room we are borrowing for after church. it takes about 15 minutes from cold burner to heat up 5 rosarita cans of beans to fully hot, cooking on high. We only use this on high, unless we are heating up tortillas directly on it. We really like it! I can understand complaints if you were trying to use it every meal every day to eat on. But for traveling, if you have done much like we have, then I would definitely recommend it. I just pick it up after use and stick it up on the top shelf of the hotel closet to cool, or somewhere out of the way. If you want something sturdier, save up for something that costs more!

3 stars

We don't have a stove at the moment so I was using this for the time being until we moved. It worked for a whole year and just died. I believe it was a year ago I bought it. Doesn't surprise me since my guess is that the warranty is probably only a year and alot of applicances seem to die right after their warranty is up. What do you expect for 20$..

1 stars

I purchased this hot plate for use in my trash-can smoker, and it heated the air inside the sealed cant to more than 160 degrees. Very disappointing--it goes back tomorrow.

4 stars

Mine has now died but it has been maybe three years. I do not have a stove so this was it for burners. That means I made hot water, fried things, boiled things and even made jams and chutneys [which required hours at a time]. I gets hot enough but it does take longer than a more powerful burner does to get hot. Also the top was starting to look a bit rusty in places. Still it was a good run for the money.

2 stars

Bought one of these during a kitchen remodel and it did well until... suddenly it started coming on after the switch was turned off. Nothing like walking into the room and realizing that a burner turned off is now on full-tilt with no auto shut-off when over-heated. That is when I noticed it is not UL listed. It's gone now.

1 stars

i bought this hot plate along with a cast iron pan as I awaited the installation of my cooktop. I have had it about a week. It heats unevenly--there is a 2-3 inch section that gets really hot while the rest of the unit does not. It has ruined my cast iron pan. the manufacturer's warrranty demands that you pay for shipping and return check for freight. I am assuming the shipping out is the same, so it will cost $16 to send out and get fixed or replaced. So, I end up paying for a unit, plus the pan it ruined. We will see how Target deals with this, because I am bringing it back to them.