Philips GC9240 Iron Review

Philips GC9240 Steam Generator Iron

Introduction:

All my previous irons are from Philips. It’s just a personal preference that whenever I bought an iron, I wanted Philips. The oldest Philips iron I bought was 7 years ago, and it is still working fine. So naturally, when I’m looking for a new iron, Philips is the first thing that comes to mind. Here comes the GC9240

First Impression:

It is one expensive iron! I came across this thing during HOMEDEC 2012 Exhibition at KL Convex. I was impressed with all the bells and whistles that comes in it and decided to get it right away, but at different store or course :)

What I like:

1. My big turn on is the absence of temperature knob. Means that I don’t have to set different temperature for different fabric. I don’t know how it works but there is a chip in it that detects different kind of fabric. It’s no coincident that I have burned many shirts (together with ironing board) before this. So I guess this iron could solve all these problems.  I tried ironing my cotton shirt, linen shirt and polyester pant after one another and it just works! I also left the iron unattended for 10 mins with my old shirt (for experiment) and it did not burn at all. I’m lovin this!
2. I discovered that I can save time and electricity with  this iron. How? Take a long sleeve shirt for example. With regular iron, I need to iron on both sides of the sleeve. With this iron, I just iron one side of it, and the other side will come out perfect as well. Same goes with my wife’s baju kurung. I can do twice amount of clothes at any given time with this new iron compared with the old iron. There is a button under the handle where the pressured steam came out when you push it. For even higher pressure, push the button on the top handle. Philips says maximum steam pressure is 6 bar, but no way I can measure this.
3.  Just don’t put your hands under the ironing board. The pressured steam from the iron can pass through the board and burn your hands. Don’t let kids playing underneath it either.
4. Big water reservoir. It is 1.5 liter tank of water, good for almost 1 hour of ironing. So I don’t have to go to the kitchen for a refill as often. Means more ironing. Means less idle iron. Means more electricity savings
5. The lock switch. After I’m finished with ironing. I don’t have to worry my kids pulling the cable and tipping over the iron. Once it’s locked, it securely attached to its base. The kid needs to be very strong to lift the whole unit (~5 kg I guess) 
6. Philips throw away free ironing board. It’s not a cheap wood board, but an iron mesh with foam. It’s quite long too. I got to check the exact measurement
7. It comes with standard 2 years warranty. I purchased mine from Harvey Norman with add-on for extra 3 years warranty. So in total I’ve got 5 years warranty

What I don’t like:

Nothing I  don’t like but there are some minor things I need to adjust.

1. This iron is not meant to be portable. I have to have a dedicated space to put the base somewhere
2. The sound came from the pressured steam is much higher compared with traditional steam iron. Maybe it’s a new thing for me, but it is like a small laundry shop.

Conclusion:

Philips GC9240 Steam Generator Iron serves true to its promise. Although it  is on the pricey side (RRP RM1699, although some shops can give you some discount), but you’ll definitely save in the long run. Plus, the reliability of the brand makes me comfortable investing in this particular iron. My family doesn’t have a maid, so we are doing our own house chores. So I thought if we were to do it ourselves, better get something good. Ironing in particular, can be a tiring and time-consuming affair. But this iron definitely helps us a lot!