I received this USB mug warmer as a gift in the office secret Santa at Christmas. I am one of those people who always make a cup of tea/coffee and then get so held up by work that it ends up being cold by the time I finally remember about it, so needless to say I was initially quite impressed with my gift and excited to give it a go in the office! However, since then, it has hardly blown me away.

What doesn't help is the fact that it is pretty difficult to determine if it is switched on or not! There is a small switch at the back but no narrative/colour coding telling you which side is on and which is off! The only way I think you can tell is by physically touching it, which firstly isn't the safest thing to be doing and secondly, it's questionable as to whether you would even be able to tell!

I didn't have overly high expectations for the product in the first place as, after all, it is only being plugged into to a USB port so was hardly going to be the most powerful thing in the world! But I can say after trying it a few times now that I experience absolutely no difference in the length of time my drink stays warm. Personally, I think it may be the case that people presume it is staying warmer for longer without actually checking. Either that or I have a faulty one!

To be fair though, it does have some advantages. For a novelty gadget it does look pretty good and at less than £10 it's a fun gift idea I suppose. It is also practically designed in that the wire is long enough to keep the drink away from the laptop to avoid any disasters and there is a short barrier around the edge to prevent any spillages from accidental little knocks.

Overall though, whilst this is a fun novelty product, I definitely wouldn't recommend it as it doesn't perform its primary function of keeping drinks warmer for longer!