Product Description

2400 watts. 110g/min steam output. 170g/min shot of steam. 1600ml water tank capacity. Anti-scale. 1.9m power cord. Weight 5.5kg. Steamglide ceramic soleplate. 5 bar pressure. Pre-set programs. Temperature control light. Uses tap water. Water level indicator. Dry tank alert. Water tank is detachable. Water spray feature. Variable steam facility. Vertical steam. Steam tip. Steam ready indicator. Steam trigger lock. 2 minutes heat up time. Continuous fill. Cord storage. Heat cover for soleplate. S

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8230 in Kitchen & Housewares
• Brand: Philips DAP (UK Kitchen and Home Supplier)
• Released on: 2009-07-31

Features

• 2400 watts.
• 110g/min steam output.
• 170g/min shot of steam.
• 1600ml water tank capacity.
• Anti-scale.

Manufacturer's Description

No compromise with Philips GC8460 pressurised ironing system. It is a powerful yet surprisingly convenient steam iron, this ironing system produces continuous steam with high pressure. The large detachable watertank you can refill at any time and anywhere, making ironing fast and easy. Fast and powerful ironing Combining maximum steam output with high pressure, the steam penetrates deep into fabrics, giving exceptionally fast results, even on difficult fabrics. Iron temperature ready light The steam-ready light indicator shows when right steam level is reached. While the variable steam settings to suit every garment. The water tank empty light indicator shows when water tank needs refilling. Longer lifetime Philips GC8460 steam iron has Calc-Clean function, simply rinse the boiler every 10 ironing sessions. Inox boiler with external heating element, it also has anti-corrosion steam chamber Easily removes creases Philips GC8460 steam iron offers a variety of steaming functions; with continuous vertical steam you can iron the hanging fabrics. With optimal vent pattern the best steaming results can be obtained; Philips GC8460 steam iron has the the best steam distribution pattern. Reaches into tricky areas Philips GC8460 steam iron is very convenient iron; button groove speeds up ironing along buttons and seams. The steam tip lets you iron right into hard-to-reach areas. Simpler ironing Philips GC8460 is a very simple ironing system with easy control, one switch to operate all variable steam settings easily. Fast and powerful ironing Philips GC8460 has the continuous steam feature with up to 110 g/min for fast crease removal, steam pressure for up to 5 bars of steam pressure for fast ironing and Steamboost up to 170 g/min to remove stubborn creases easily. The SteamGlide soleplate for powerful steam and superb gliding Comfortable ironing The detachable watertank is quick and easy to fill and with 1.6L watertank capacity it required less refilling. To improve comfort during ironing you can place the iron on this mat to rest. As you do not need to put the iron on its heel you decrease any straining of the wrist. Of course the resting mat is highly heat resistant, even when a soleplate heated to 250 °C is placed on it. Easy set up and storage With quick start feature Philips GC8460 is ready to use in 2 minutes. Carrying your steam system has never been so easy. Lock your iron to the base using the lock-lever at the back and carry the entire system with a single hand. This enables you to carry and store your system immediately and safely, anytime you want. Thanks to the automatic lead winder, you can just press the button to automatically retract the power lead.

Box Contains

• 1 x Philips GC8460/02 Pressurised Steam Generator
  
• 1 x Warranty Card
  
• 1 x Heat resistant iron resting mat
  
• 1 x Large detachable water tank for easy refilling
  
• 1 x User manual

Customer Reviews

Love's Labour's Lost
The transition from using an ordinary steam iron to one of these dedicated steam generator machines is like going from tinder & flint to matches, i.e. both will do the job you ask of them, but one is a lot more effective and easier.

For the initial leap I used the superb Philips GC7330 Iron 4.5 Bar Steam System With Variable Steam and found it a worthy successor to my old hand held steam iron, but can there really be much of a difference between the GC7330 and the GC8460? Well to start with there's a price difference of about £60 so there must be something to justify the difference....

The footprint of the GC8460 is a little shorter than that of the 7330, but it also sits a good 4" higher and weighs an extra 1.3kg! This means that when filled to its maximum capacity of 1.6l this will add another 1.6kg to its weight, making a total of 7.1kg(15.7lbs), so make sure that your ironing board support stand is strong enough to take this weight, or you'll have to use a separate table to rest it on. I use a heavy-duty Vileda board, but even the support stand on this struggles, hence why I mention it.

The next point is purely one of preference and habit, as I like to stand the iron on its heel end, in between moving the clothes on the board, but some people like to lay the iron down flat. This is where there is a difference between the 7330 and 8460, with the former designed to be stood on its heel, whereas the latter comes with a separate heat resistant plate to rest on. Not much of a hassle perhaps, but you'd be surprised at how long the habit takes to break and it means that you have to find the extra space on your ironing board for the resting plate to rest.

The 'ergonomic design' of the 8460 is no gimmick and it really does improve the comfort of what I fondly (?) call the Sunday Slalom or 'long distance' ironing. Hey there's a thought, perhaps I should lobby the Olympic committee to include it in the 2012 Olympics as an event that I could compete in, and win gold for Blighty?! Essentially the handle is angled upwards as opposed to the usual horizontal, which means that your shoulder is in less internal rotation and hence a more comfortable position. I also prefer the 8460's handle trigger for steam generation, compared to the 7330 (which has a lockable top button for this function) although oddly there is no lock or waterspray function present despite being the higher end model.

Another feature that the 8460 benefits from is the iron 'lock-in' system, which allows you to carry the iron one handed if you're strong enough, or at least secures it in place when storing/moving it around. It's just a shame that there is nowhere to store the additional resting plate on the base unit, which might be a consideration for future designs? NB this plate gets very hot so remember this before you pick it up at the end of your session!!

Both irons have an impressive steam generation capacity of 110g, but where the 8460 really comes into its own, is with the HUGE steam boost of 170g, which will literally have your wallpaper coming off the walls if you're trigger-happy! Suffice to say that this makes short work of any heavy weight clothes/soft furnishings items that you may tackle, as I whizzed through a pair of heavyweight curtains last night- and no I'm not a stage dancer before you ask ;o)

The start up time from cold is still approximately 2 minutes, but the 8460 is noticeably a lot quieter when filling the steam tank, as my husband will no doubt testify due to there being far less cursing during MOTD last night than previously. The power cord rewind feature is a nice touch, but I remain sceptical on how long such a feature will last after past experiences with my Dyson vacuum cleaner, and only time will tell. The removable tank is simple to remove/fill/fit and more importantly does not leak, which was my biggest concern.

My overall impression of the 8460 is that it is a better machine than the 7330, but only because of its superb steam boost feature and slightly more comfortable handle design. Does this justify the price difference? It's hard to say to be honest, as I would never normally have considered spending £100 on an iron let alone twice this amount, but once tried there's no going back. Perhaps the GC8420 is the better compromise in the range, both in terms of function and price as it only differs from the GC8460 by lacking 10g of steam power and a retractable cord mechanism.

To return to the original analogy, moving from the 7330 to the 8460 is like going from matches to a lighter, but I wouldn't mind either if I needed to light a fire.

The mother of all irons . .
This is the mother of all irons that does a boring job exceptionally well. Not having used an "steam generator" before, I was quite looking forward to this and once used to it, more than impressed. Out of the box, it is pretty large but quite attractive in a white and burgundy finish. Due to it's size, a sturdy and fairly large ironing board is definitely needed as it weighs several kilos when full of water (capacity 1.6 litres). The tank detaches for easy filling and you're unlikely to need to top it up often.

From power on, it is quick to heat up to and within two minutes you're away. As the actual iron itself does not hold water, it is slightly lighter than others I have used which could be a good thing for those with weaker wrists. Results are excellent, on duvets covers, shirts and jeans (on medium setting) - it really does reduce ironing time as it "steams through" your pile. It has three settings (dial on the base unit) but I've rarely gone higher than 1 to be honest. The Steamglide soleplate has not stuck once in several uses. It does generate lot of steam so it's best to do your ironing with the window open or in the kitchen if possible. Once finished the cable retracts into the base unit and the iron locks on top for easy moving and storage but note the whole unit does take up a fair amount of room.

Overall, this is a top quality if costly item that is difficult to find fault with. Ideal if you have a large family or even do ironing for a living.

ADVANTAGES
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Excellent performance - best iron I've ever used
Tank holds a lot of water

DISADVANTAGES
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Quite large for storing
Expensive

Really excellent iron!
I know ironing isn't the most interesting past time, but this iron will at least make it less of a chore!

You can tell that Philips have really paid attention to detail in how they have designed this iron. It is really comfortable to hold and glides across clothes really nicely. It has a single trigger to activate the pressurised steam which is really easy to use and it also has a button on the top which provides a boost of steam for stubborn creases.

It performs really well. It makes light work of the ironing blasting through creases with ease. The pressurised steam (of which there are 3 settings) is really powerful, so much more effective than a 'traditional' steam iron.

The mains flex has a retractable mechanism, so at the touch of a button the cord flies back into the unit. The iron can be placed on top of the unit and locked into place so that the whole thing can be carried by the iron handle which is really useful. It tidies away nicely and there is no need to wind loads of flex up, although the whole thing is pretty large. It's worth noting that this iron does not 'stand up' on the ironing board. It comes with a 'plate' that you rest the iron on flat when you're not using it. This can take a bit of getting used to as I've always used irons that you stand up when not using them.

I'm impressed with this iron, it really does reduce the time it takes to iron clothes, it looks lovely and tidies away easily, what more could you want from an iron?