Flowers and chocolates are expected for Valentine’s Day, but not always what a girl (or guy) really wants. We’ve reached an age where we prefer practicality in our gifts, and to put our hard-earned money to the best use. So if you’re asking what we’re hoping to get from our other halves this V-Day, believe it or not, it’s a damn good coffee machine and an even better air purifier. And these two models are the ones that have us sold:
Philips 3200 Series LatteGo
If your partner loves coffee, they will love you even more for getting this for the home. It’s a fully automated coffee machine that produces five popular coffee drinks at the touch of a button. These include Espresso, Americano, Cappuccino, Latte, and of course, a regular cup of coffee.
Above: The Philips 3200 series lattego, $1,399.
What this machine is really good for is being easy to use and clean, and it’s the whole deal; fresh coffee beans go in at the top, and ceramic grinders which can be adjusted in 12 steps turn them into the level of ground powder that you want. These ceramic grinders are extremely hard and durable, and will grind your beans for at least 20,000 cups (which will be more than you can drink for the next 20 years…). There’s an intuitive touch-screen interface that allows you to adjust the strength and volume of the coffee, and an intelligent “Aroma Extract system” that regulates the water temperature for the perfect extraction depending on your drink settings.
For milk-based coffee drinks like Cappucinos and Lattes, this machine has what they call “LatteGo”, which is a system that includes a connected milk jug where air is added at high speed to the frothing chamber, and then creamy layers of milk froth are added to the drink.
Above: The lattego milk frothing system is splash-free and super easy to clean with no tubes.
What’s special is that there are no tubes like other milk frothing systems, which makes this very easy to clean; just detach, rinse out, then fit it back onto the machine. In fact, it’s this LatteGo system that makes the Philips machine stand out from its competitors and worth buying.
And with any kitchen appliance, maintenance is very important, and this is another reason why your other half will love this machine; there’s an easy-to-change filter that produces 5,000 cups without the need to descale. Your drinks will always have clear and purified water. Also, the back door of the machine opens up to a removable brew group (where freshly ground coffee is processed and the brewing takes place) that just needs to be rinsed under the tap. There are no fixed screws or obscure parts to handle.
Above: the sleek design of the machine looks gorgeous on any table top.
It also doesn’t hurt that this espresso machine in a polished silver and black will look sexy on the counter. It’s designed in Italy and is not too large a system to fit into smaller homes and spaces. Imagine the joy on your partner’s face when they unwrap this box.
Philips 3200 series LatteGo is priced at $1,399. available online at LAZADA.
Philips Air Purifier 3000i Series
Allergies are far more common than we care to admit, and they tend to act up at night in the bedroom. Nothing is less romantic than symptoms like sneezing, red itchy eyes and skin rash, and these can be caused by our living environment — dust, animal dander, pollen, smoke and bacteria in the air. So while an air purifier makes an unlikely gift for Valentine’s Day, it’s probably the most apt and will undoubtedly be the most appreciated.
There are tons of air purifiers on the market to choose from and in all sizes and price points; but for Valentine’s Day, if you’re going to clear the air, do it right with one that gets the job done well. We recommend the 3000i Air Purifier from Philips. It’s a robust model that cleans in minutes and tackles larger rooms up to 135 m² (1,453 sq ft) in size.
Above: Philips Air Purifier 3000i series, $799.
Its cylindrical shape allows it to take in air at all angles, and with three layers of filtration — including a NanoProtect HEPA active carbon filter, this air purifier can capture 99.97% of ultra-fine particles as small as 0.003 microns. Germs in the air including coronaviruses will also get sucked into this thing and up to 99.9% of these viruses and aerosols will be removed.
Above: the Philips Air Purifier 3000i series has a discreet design that blends well into any room.
We also like that this air purifier is intelligent and efficient; it has sensors that scan the air 1000x a second and reports the air quality in real time on the in-built display at the top of the unit. And while it is powerful, the device runs at 55W, which is equivalent to one standard light bulb.
Above: The display at the top of the unit shows the air quality in real time.
You can keep this on throughout the night; there’s a Sleep mode where the display lights are dimmed, and the unit operates really quietly. If someone is smoking in the room, turn this on to Turbo mode and watch it clean the air in the room within minutes.
Philips Air Purifier 3000i series is priced at $799. available online at LAZADA.
All products listed here are also available at the Philips e-store and at all Philips-authorised retailers. For more information, visit philips.com.sg.
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