KRUPS: Simply Electric Plastic and Stainless Steel Egg Cooker 6 Eggs 400 Watts Hard, Medium, and Soft Boiled, Poached, Scrambled, Omelets, Rapid Cook Black

Poached eggs have never been easier to make! It is an awesome machine. I am experimenting now with hard boiled eggs! Easy, quick, delicious! It is a perfect size for cabinet or storing.

I was initially hesitant to buy this special-purpose appliance, since I have been boiling eggs in a pot for decades without any issues (I thought). However, my experience with a rice cooker--another specialized appliance--convinced me that they can be very useful things. After losing yet another egg that cracked open in a pot of boiling water, I decided to give egg cookers a try.First, let me outline the problems that I experienced with boiling eggs in a pot, over the years:- You have to keep an eye on the heat. If the water starts boiling too rapidly, the eggs start to bounce around and can crack- A good deal of water is required in order to boil a half dozen eggs- Since I almost always made hard-boiled eggs, I always had to look up how long to boil for soft-boiled or medium-boiled eggs, simply because I would forget the timingNow, here are the Pros of egg cookers in general, to counter those points:- The heating level is preprogrammed in the cooker. You need not watch it at all. EDIT: THERE IS NO AUTO-SHUTOFF.- There is very little water in it at all. The eggs don't move at all; they are essentially steam-cooked, and come out perfect every time.- Little water is needed, and it's the same amount every time.- The amount of water that you use is what makes an egg soft boiled or hard boiled, not the heating level. When all the water is boiled away, the steaming of the eggs (and hence their cooking) stops.Here are the Pros of this particular egg cooker:- There's an included measuring cup, with a small needle on the base for pricking the big end of the egg (in order to release internal pressure)- Markings are set for 1 to 7 eggs either soft, medium, or hardboilded. The markings show where to fill the cup with water, for your selection.- The appliance itself is small, so it stores away easily- Cleanup is a breeze: just let it cool down, then wipe the heating plate clean.- Construction of the appliance seems to be very good. Like most things these days, it's got a lot of plastic, but it doesn't feel flimsy or cheap.A couple of Cons of this cooker:- The markings on the measuring cup are clear, raised plastic. They can be hard to read/see. You could probably use nail polish or something to highlight them, but I wish that Krup had taken just a little more effort and marked them clearly themselves.- The "done" sound is a garish screech. I could see this waking someone up if they were sleeping nearby.

Simple and small; classy contemporary appearance (typical Krups). Works well ... but not perfectly or quite as advertised at high altitude (which is almost always an issue when cooking, and something I was anticipating).Written after my first use:Counter-intuitively, you use less water to boil more eggs in this device, which was a surprise. OTOH, this is a welcome "feature" because—at 7000 feet above sea level—water boils at a lower temperature. This means that, if I use the "correct" amount of water (according to the measuring cup) for hard-boiled eggs, I actually get medium eggs. Still experimenting with water levels to ensure that I get the hard yolk I prefer. The good news is that, since you use less water for more eggs, this leaves room in the measuring cup to add more water to get the longer boiling time required at high altitudes. (Unless, of course, you are only boiling one egg ... but who does that?) I will update this post once I have figured out how much more it will take.Another high altitude issue is that some of the egg actually boils out of the tiny hole [that it is recommended you make] in the top of each egg. (Some only very little of the white, but some a LOT of white and yolk!) Messy!! I will have to try doing this without making the holes, and hope everything still works properly (since the venting eggs will no longer add to the steam volume in the unit) ... and that the eggs don't explode.Major upside: Boiled eggs peel **much** more easily when cooked this way! This was an unexpected bonus.Minor downside: The unit doesn't actually shut itself off when done, no matter that the water is very nearly gone and the [rather raucous] timer is buzzing.Summing up: Very likely perfect if you live at lower elevations where water actually boils at closer to the designed/engineered-for 212ºF (100ºC).