Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I did a lot of research before buying this mug, and here is my review: Packaging: It came without a box, simply wrapped in bubble tape. OK, kids had fun popping it, but overall I would expect a little better for a relatively pricey product. If you are planning on giving it as a gift, definitely plan on creating packaging for it. First impression: From the first moment, it feels like a high-quality product. Nothing appears to be flimsy, all mechanisms, rubber stoppers, and seal-rings seem very elastic, durable, and give a sense of confidence in their longevity. Even the tea mesh seems to be made of pretty strong plastic. The stainless steel mug itself has nice thick walls, and the overall design is simple, but very elegant. Heat / Cold retention: In this area, it does it's job almost too well. 6 hours after filling it with hot water, it was still blazing hot. It's almost like the time stands still inside this mug. After 12 hours, water is still hot enough to enjoy tea/coffee. Even long after 12 hours, the mug keeps water certainly warm. If you really need the mug to keep your tea/coffee hot for hours, you can't do better than this mug. Cap: The cup is pretty comfortable to drink from. The lip on the lid feels natural, and its control of flowing liquid is great, especially for how hot my tea was coming out of it. I really like the fact that the lid locks itself when open, and does not try to close on you while drinking. The few small issues are: the lid is directly opposite the area you are drinking from. If you are driving, the lid may obscure your vision, so be careful. I didn't feel this a huge issue and I simply tilted the mug a little to the side, but this is something to be considered. Also, there is a plastic flap attached to the hinge outside of the mug... what is it for? It does not seem strong enough to hang the mug off the back-pack by it... just seems like a half-thought. Tea strainer: This is probably the biggest complaint that people had/will have with this product. Yes, it's pretty small (though more than enough for 1 teaspoon of loose tea). No, it does not retract by itself to stop the brewing process. Yes, if you drink black tea and you leave the mug full of hot water with the infuser filled with tea for hours, it will make the tea too strong and not enjoyable. However, here I have to defend the design of this mug: 1. If you don't want to over-steep your tea, after 3-5 minutes simply open the lid and take the strainer out. It's not permanently attached and is very easily removed. 2. If you are concerned about tea not having enough room to "open up", you have a small point. However, I did not notice any difference between tea made with this infuser vs. with a separate, larger infuser that I use for tea pots. However, I really don't want it to be any bigger... see #3 3. If you are driving and can't take out the strainer, you can fill the mug just enough water so that it's not touching the tea strainer when the mug is upright. When you are ready to seep your tea, flip the mug upside down; the top is pretty flat and it should stand like this on a desk or in the car without any problems. Once 3-5 minutes are up, simply flip it upright again... problem solved. Overall, I am very happy with the purchase. While the mug certainly has a few design draw-backs, I find them insignificant when compared to the heat retention, built-in tea strainer / filter, and the overall design of the lid and it being perfectly leak-proof. UPDATE: OK, now that I've used it for a little while longer, thought I would provide an update. Still love it. Great (almost too good) heat retention, comfortable to hold, easy to clean, and overall the best mug I've ever owned. The ONLY thing that I wish I could change is if the lid hinge would not be directly opposite of the drinking spout. When it's open, it can block your view if you are driving, especially if you have a small head. Overall, I figured out a way of tilting it to the side when drinking, but this is definitely something I found myself struggling with more than once. In terms of leaks, the only time I noticed a few drops (and I mean a few drops) was when I poured boiling hot water into it and closed it, which no doubt resulted from extreme steam pressure from me shaking it. During ordinary use, I never see any leaks.