This mug keeps my coffee seriously PIPING hot for hours. Plus, no spill, no batteries, and it only costs $35.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Ember Launches Larger Capacity 14oz Ceramic Mug, Available from Apple
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
This mug keeps my coffee seriously PIPING hot for hours. Plus, no spill, no batteries, and it only costs $35.
My original mug had the ceramic coating peel off after a year. I suppose that’s technically cracking. I contacted customer service who assured me the coating was FDA approved non-toxic, the stainless was the highest quality, and they immediately replaced it overnight by only sending a picture and serial number to them. My understanding is that in the original mugs, this was not an uncommon issue.
Likewise the charging saucer failed about 10 months in, and they replaced it just as quickly.
But I’ve never had any issues with the battery. The reality is this mug has been on the market for at least two years, and I’ve yet to hear of any dangerous issues with the batteries for customers who almost certainly use this mug on a daily basis.
Do you take the lid off so you inhale the aroma as you sip? Personally speaking, I’m not interested in drinking beverages out of a sippy cup lid, or plastic tops of any kind. Spills aren’t really a major problem around the office or home. I also don’t want to have to screw and unscrew a lid every time I take a drink, which is the only way to keep the beverage piping hot, and inhale the aroma while drinking. This also doesn’t protect against the beverage being too hot, and doesn’t do anything to maintain the temperature as cool air enters the mug as hot coffee and air leaves, and convection does its magic. I’ve often gotten to the bottom of such a insulated mug, only to have cold coffee which I had to transfer to another cup to reheat in the microwave. Also, I assume this is stainless lined? I can’t make out the brand, have you confirmed where it’s made, and that it is guaranteed free of lead and impurities? Many products made in China say this, but testing reveals otherwise. My experience is that the best stainless products tend to be more expensive than that.
The Zojirushi travel mug certainly isn’t going to be for every use case. However, it works for me and my schedule. In the morning, I typically brew several cups and drink the first from a standard ceramic mug. Then, I pour another 2 cups into my travel mug to take to work without worry of spills. I’m able to drink it quite hot (all the way to the bottom) all morning as I teach. (I’m now (at 10:30) drinking coffee from it that was brewed at 5:30 this morning, and it’s still hot enough that I have to sip.)
It works quite well for my situation, and it’s a much more economical solution. 18/8 stainless steel interior and Made in Thailand.
Coffee is more acidic than water but hardly high. Out of almost 1000 reviews on Amazon it ends up at 3.7. Many people had issues with battery keeping it hot. I’m not the only one. There are issues with this device and legitimate design faults Ember compromised on. The charging saucer that can’t get wet is one. As I said, the larger one will only be worse.
Coffee is notably acidic, some grinds particularly so. Filtered water used in most coffee machines is not notably so.
You're still looking at people complaining who have an axe to grind vs. those who have no problems and no motivation to review, and without knowing how many people actually bought it, on a website with notoriously false reviews. Do you know how many are verified purchases out of those complaining? I know many people using these who have no issues at all. I have had issues with both the cup and saucer, unrelated to the battery, which customer service took care of immediately. So if I'm not having issues, and you are (as well as all of those other people complaining on Amazon), then ask Ember to address it. They have been the most helpful and responsive customer service team I have ever dealt with. This is a startup company, there are going to be stumbles. But it's your fault if you blame them, and do nothing about it.
Since I am not having a single issue with battery life, nor have others I know, then your rebuttle is specious at best. The larger one is not necessarily going to have worse problems than the smaller one, since I and others are not having any problems, and ember has likely learned from their mistakes to the extent there is an endemic problem as you allege.
I don't disagree there are some legitimate complaints -- In fact in my Amazon review I complained both about the saucer not being waterproofed (mine has been replaced due to an unrelated defect), and I complained about the cup size and thickness. Since then, the ceramic material peeled off the bottom and it was immediately replaced by ember. But it does not make this a bad product. It could be better, but I have zero actual complaints about the way the product works as is. And that's the key here -- you're disparaging the reputation of the product based on your personal experience and those of a few hundred people out of perhaps millions of mugs sold -- and worse yet, you are attaching those problems to this new product without any evidence whatsoever. You're entitled to your opinion, but it's unreasonable to state it as fact as you have done.
Last edited:
My opinion is no more unreasonable than yours. Why do people have to have an axe to grind that had a bad experience with the mug? I own the product and everything I said is true with my experience with it. Explain how a larger mug with with the same size battery could could give a better result. Did Ember address the saucer issues in the larger mug design? If you feel those are notorious false reviews on Amazon then the majority of favorable reviews must be questionable also. Pick any site you wish that has a bunch of reviews of the mug and post some links. A quick google and it appears most site show about 3.7 rating so Amazon is in the ballpark. Here’s a YouTube video of a review that I feel is pretty accurate even though my experience wasn’t as positive. People can make up their own minds.
Maybe the way you use the mug is closer to the lower threshold of what it's capable of and my use is closer to the upper limits. Who knows? I won’t recommend it and you will. I would rate it less than 3.7, you would give it a higher rating, which is why the majority of the ratings on multiple sites end up averaging about 3.7.
I saw a display at the local Worst Try, and the bottom of the mug has two concentric rings of copper, so it's just dropped on the pad, and starts charging. So this corrects my statement upstream.
What was interesting was they had a spot for the 10oz mug, with none in sight, and dust in the reserved slot. Do buyers have a choice? Apparently not.
If I didn't care about money, I'd probably have a dozen, but I don't have that luxury. (And the travel mug looks kinda ridiculous)
The 'copper mug' looks sexy, but 10oz at the 14oz price? Pass...
What was interesting was they had a spot for the 10oz mug, with none in sight, and dust in the reserved slot. Do buyers have a choice? Apparently not.
If I didn't care about money, I'd probably have a dozen, but I don't have that luxury. (And the travel mug looks kinda ridiculous)
The 'copper mug' looks sexy, but 10oz at the 14oz price? Pass...
Well, I’ve now had two ember mugs, the original which the ceramic coating flaked off of the bottom, and the replacement. Both have had super reliable battery life. I drink 3-5 cups of coffee at my office during the day. From the time I take my mug off the saucer charger I consistently get over an hour of charge time, keeping my coffee at my desired temperature. And it usually takes an hour to drink a cup. I also pour cold cups of Starbucks coffee I may have picked up at a breakfast meeting or early commute into the cup which quickly heats it to my desired temperature. This will shorten the battery life somewhat, but I still clock between 45min to an hour, which is generally plenty of time to drink 10oz of coffee. I almost never run out of battery before I drink my coffee, unless I’ve set my mug down and been called away to a meeting without it, or otherwise get distracted.
So again, your point now seems to be about the overall review, while your first post was specifically about the battery life, and then in subsequent posts you stated that because you were experiencing poor battery life the new model would be even worse.
My overall review on Amazon is not 5.0, despite what you might think. I reviewed the mug in whole and think I gave it a 4.0, addressing some of the other engineering decisions we’ve discussed with which I agree. But not once do I mention the battery, because it hasn’t been a problem for me. There’s a big difference in a 3.7 rating overall, and subscribing battery problems as the primary reason for those low reviews.
You never said, have you contacted customer service to address your battery issues? And what was their solution?
Hmm, I'm just learning, but I suppose this would solve the problems, or at least some of the hassle of pour-over and temperatures. I make a single cup and have to make extra water to pre-heat the cup (and measuring cup... maybe I'll just wing it once I get used to it) and such, and the end result isn't as hot as I'd like it to be.
But, I also don't think I'd pay this much for something to solve that problem, that just isn't enough of a big deal to me at this point.
Heh, no doubt. Maybe one of those automated turrets they have in the video games.
Well, to each their own, I guess. A lot of people think it's crazy to spend $800 on a 'blender' otherwise known as a Vita-Mix too... that is, until they've actually used one. (Or, $thousands on 'just a computer'?)
I'm not sure there is quite as much differentiation here, but like many things, you're not just paying for the materials, but the design and such. I have no idea if this thing really is that stand-out... but I also don't know much about it or the competition. If it is high quality and something you use daily that solves a problem, $130 is peanuts in the big picture for most 'Western' folk.
One thing I've learned over the years, is not to cheap-out on stuff. I typically just don't get something until I can afford to get a high-quality thing. I just have a lot less things. (Again, not saying this thing is worth it... but in general.)
Yeah, I think I fall more into that camp... maybe I just don't savor it quite enough, but it's gone before I have too much trouble (if I could get it to the right temp to begin with... which I guess this would solve). I only drink 8oz of high-quality coffee in a day anyway, so it doesn't take that long.
Well, that's the thing. (IMO) Starbucks coffee sucks... and how many cups of my own coffee would I need to brew and serve in this thing before I'd have saved the money most of the people here (complaining) probably spend at Starbucks in a month or two, anyway? A dozen or two trips and this thing is paid for. (Not that I intend to get one, but just saying...)
Heh, or worse, they hack it to heat the coffee to 205°F or something like that and you burn the heck out of your mouth (when you take that big gulp, anticipating it to be the perfect temp).
Another excellent example of how this mug improves my daily regimen.
So I went down the hall to the coffee station, where we have insulated stainless carafes of coffee brewed in the kitchen which is in another part of the building. I poured a cup of coffee out of the almost empty carafe (which loses heat with every pour), and sipped it, only to find it cold. So I sat my Ember mug down, went to the bathroom, then walked back to my office, at which point the cup had brought the coffee up to the perfect 140 degree drinking temp. Because of the mug, I wasted no time walking across the building to the kitchen to use the microwave to heat up, or chance getting a cup from another carafe, or having to wait for a single serve pod to brew a fresh cup.
So I went down the hall to the coffee station, where we have insulated stainless carafes of coffee brewed in the kitchen which is in another part of the building. I poured a cup of coffee out of the almost empty carafe (which loses heat with every pour), and sipped it, only to find it cold. So I sat my Ember mug down, went to the bathroom, then walked back to my office, at which point the cup had brought the coffee up to the perfect 140 degree drinking temp. Because of the mug, I wasted no time walking across the building to the kitchen to use the microwave to heat up, or chance getting a cup from another carafe, or having to wait for a single serve pod to brew a fresh cup.
The six-year-old Keurig machine I was using for that first cuppa java in the morning just croaked today and I'm not going to replace it. Although I'm about to settle back into routine of a 1st cup made with a Melitta pour-over and then for any later coffees use a French press, I've been roaming around in here this afternoon looking at people's comments on electric kettles and coffee filters, carafes, brewers and such.. and bumped into this Ember mug write-up as well. It sounds nice and the 14oz size definitely sounds like an improvement. But, I probably wouldn't get my money's worth of it, the way I drink coffee. That first cup goes down fairly fast and after that it's a tossup whether I even make another cup in mid-afternoon.
So that's a big "maybe not" for me on the Ember mug, I think.
So that's a big "maybe not" for me on the Ember mug, I think.
A little late on this, but I have the original ember ceramic coffee mug since the start of the year. I use it every day and it is amazing.