About a month ago I was happily (ish) ironing away when I noticed little wisps of smoke coming from my iron, at first I thought I had got something stuck to the soleplate so I gave the iron a vigorous rub on the ironing board, only to see that it had burnt my new ironing board cover. I took a closer look and realised that the iron was making a strange crackling noise and the smoke was now pouring from behind the sole plate. I quickly unplugged the iron and marched outside with it to allow it to cool down and prevent a major incident. Once the iron had cooled down I noticed that a massive crack had appeared in the soleplate and it was scorched, I wisely decided it was time to buy a new iron.

After the spontaneously combusting iron, that was a Russell Hobbs 14723 Steam Glide and the one before it that was a Breville who's wire wore through and I nearly electrocuted myself I decided to choose a different brand. After a quick peruse of the internet I picked a Phillips GC3320, I would like to tell you that this was an informed decision after reading plenty of reviews and looking on price comparison websites, but I can't. I chose this iron as it was a middle of the road price, about £40 and it claimed to be light weight and it looked a bit pretty.

Right on to the important bits, the iron has an extra large water inlet, allowing for easier filling. The iron comes with a rather ugly mini jug that holds 300ml of water, just the right amount to fill the irons water tank, I only used the mini jug once and it is now languishing in the bottom of the box with the over large instruction sheet. To fill the iron is simple you need to unclip the cover over the water inlet and slowly pour water into the iron till it reaches the full marker and then clip the cover closed.

The iron comes with long 3m cord, which I find really good as it allows me freedom to roam over the whole of my ironing board rather than just one end, the cord is covered in fabric, hopefully this will keep me safe from electrocution. The cord also swivels where it goes into the iron, this also allows for ease of movement.

The water tank on the iron is very clearly marked and I can see when I am running low on water, I can usually iron for about 40 minutes on a full tank with the temperature set on three and the steam set on two.

The iron gives out 35g of continuous steam; I am not sure what that means. All I can say is I am comfortable with the amount of steam produced by the iron; I don't disappear in a cloud of steam but there is enough to remove wrinkles without leaving clothes damp.

The iron has a 100g steam boost, this is achieved by pressing the button on top of the iron with the steam symbol on it. I don't feel the need to use this but when I tested it, it gave out a good steady jet of steam. This jet of steam can also be used vertically for removing the creases from curtains.

The soleplate of the iron has been designed to help the iron glide over fabric smoothly; so far I have had nothing stick to the iron and can say it glides beautifully over all types of fabric providing you have the temperature set right and avoid ironing the printed parts on t-shirts.

The iron has a pointed tip; this is great for navigating my way around buttons and into the tight areas on shirts and trousers.

The iron has something called a Double Active Calc System that actively prevents scale from blocking the steam vents. The iron needs cleaning once very two weeks and instructions for that are on the instruction sheet. I have had the iron for over a month now and have to admit I have not cleaned it once yet. Shame on me as I am sure regular cleaning will help prolong its life and hopefully prevent spontaneous combustion.

I have rambled on about the features of this iron enough now and want to discuss my ironing experience. The iron is really light weight. Even when the water tank is full it puts no strain on my wimpy arms, I find the iron glides smoothly over all types of fabric and creases fade away. The amount of steam produced is ample, when I fill the tank I get about 40 minutes of ironing done before needing to refill. The box claims to make ironing three times easier, I partly agree with this statement, the ironing does seem to be a bit easier and does not take me as long to do, the only way ironing could be three times easier is if there were three other people ironing for me.

In conclusion I think this is an excellent iron for the price paid, £40, but I would not pay more for it than that and until I can afford to farm my ironing out each week it will have to do.

Thank you for reading.