Im going to state first that im in a very hard water area. Long and short of it is that its a kettle that works. It boils a pint (2 cups) of water in just over 1 minute. As for the quiet element of it, i will agree that it is a quieter kettle than my current one. The base has a decent length wire to it and the ability to have super short, medium length or long which is handy if you're tight on space. As with any appliance, the proof is in how long it lasts without problem.