Utopia Home Review
Our Verdict
Compare to Similar Products
This Product Utopia Home | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Awards | Best Overall Iron | ||||
Price | $18.00 List $16.99 at Amazon | $35 List $34.99 at Amazon | $34 List $28.56 at Amazon | $25 List $21.99 at Amazon | $25 List Check Price at Amazon |
Overall Score | |||||
Star Rating | |||||
Bottom Line | There isn't a whole lot to like about this iron, save for maybe its tiny size and low price | A little clunky, but an impressive iron overall, with strong steam performance | Good ironing performance and detailing work, but uneven heating keeps this iron from being even better | Portable for traveling, but lacks the punch needed for regular use | Lacking a lid over the water reservoir and with a mediocre ironing performance, this isn't a great iron |
Rating Categories | Utopia Home | Hamilton Beach Dura... | Black+Decker Profes... | Sunbeam Hot-2-Trot | Black+Decker Easy S... |
Ironing Performance (40%) | |||||
Steam Output (25%) | |||||
Heating (15%) | |||||
Detailing (10%) | |||||
Ease of Use (10%) | |||||
Specs | Utopia Home | Hamilton Beach Dura... | Black+Decker Profes... | Sunbeam Hot-2-Trot | Black+Decker Easy S... |
Measured Steam Output | 70 g | 196 g | 82 g | 12 g | 39 g |
Measured Average Temperature | 223 °F | 309 °F | 293 °F | 347 °F | 302 °F |
Number of Steam Holes | 23 | 192 | 18 | 7 | 21 |
Wattage | 1200W | 1500W | 1500W | 800W | 1200W |
Weight | 1.8 Ibs | 3.4 Ibs | 2.1 Ibs | 1.3 lbs | 1.6 lbs |
Cord Length | 7' | 8.1' | 9' | 8' | 7.8' |
Soleplate Material | Non-stick | Non-stick | Stainless Steel | Non-Stick | Stainless Steel |
Our Analysis and Test Results
The Utopia Home exhibited underwhelming performance across the majority of our tests, with its only real draw being extremely low cost and compact size, but we can't recommend it at all.
Performance Comparison
Ironing Performance
The Utopia Home did a lackluster job in our ironing tests, which account for 40 percent of each iron's overall score. Whether you use it on cotton, linen, silk, or polyester materials, you'll need to put in a little more time and elbow grease to get good results, whereas other models made quicker work of the same tasks, with much more impressive results.
Steam Output
In our steam output test, responsible for another 25 percent of the Utopi's overall score, the Utopia Home underwhelmed our test team again with dismal performance. We found in our tests that the amount of leaking from this model is significant and will leave wet spots all over garments. The actual volume of steam that this model produces was also significantly less than most others.
Heating
In our heating test metric, the Utopia Home continued its trend of poor performance. Across our five temperature sensors, over a period of five minutes, this iron exhibited some of the lowest temperatures we recorded in our testing. However, it also showed some of the largest extremes of temperature distribution across a sole plate, nearing 100-degree differences from the hottest to the coolest point on the sole plate.
Detailing
The Utopia Home left us unimpressed in this metric. The model lacks an accentuated nose, but worst of all, this model continued to hemorrhage 2-inch by 3-inch blotches of water in all the areas we tried to detail. Regardless of steam settings, this model continuously leaked.
The tiny size and light 1.8 pound mass of the Utopia Home did not help it in this performance metric. Instead, this iron feels and handles more like a toy than a useful tool. The only guarantee you'll get when trying to detail with this model is that your garment will be soaked.
Ease of Use
In our last test metric, the Utopia Home earned more underwhelming scores, yet again. The Utopia offers the shortest cord length of all the models our team tested. A smaller half-inch fill hole combined with a difficult-to-see max fill line also earned it a low score for ease of filling. An orange indicator light lets you know the unit is plugged in but turns off when the temperature is met, which we didn't find to be the most useful indicator.
Lastly, in our final submetric, water spray, the Utopia Home earned an average score. Spray and steam buttons both work, but this model produces more of a mist than a powerful jet of steam when using the steam button. Another major issue we had with this model was the extreme amount of leaking, which dragged down ease of use and steam performance.
Should You Buy the Utopia Home?
We cannot in good faith recommend the Utopia Home after it did so poorly in our testing. With so many other great options on the market, this is one model to pass on.
What Other Irons Should You Consider?
Although the incredibly low price of the Utopia Home may get your attention, the top-performing models in our testing weren't much more expensive. The PurSteam Scratch Resistant 1700W earned impressive scores across all of our test metrics, earning the praise of our entire test team, and is also one of the most affordable units we tested. It is not only a great buy from a performance perspective but also a great buy on a budget, as many other more expensive models failed to perform nearly as well.