Well, for one thing, you wouldn’t normally microwave coffee that is already at the correct temperature, so the reheat concept is entirely different than maintaining heat.
This simply maintains a constant temperature, much like the Burnout. The process may be more complicated, but the concept isn’t.
Sorry but the physics disagree with you. The
Ember is a relatively poorly insulated mug that allows the coffee to lose heat fairly quickly and
then adds heat using electrical energy; quite uncomplicated. Just like a microwave, the
Ember simply reheats coffee after it has fallen below a desired temperature.
Small heat element(s) and tight thermostat range may mean the
Ember provides slow heating in a small range, but it is still adding heat, which my past experience says wrecks coffee flavor. You say that heat added so
"gently" means flavor is not wrecked, and I have not taste-tested to suggest otherwise.
A phase-change cup like the
Burnout does not add any heat; zero. It starts with a well-insulated cup containing a material that phase-changes its heat of fusion in the desired drinking temp range. Only the original heat of the coffee enters the cup, and when the heat is all gone the coffee is at room ambient temp.
We agree that either approach maintains coffee within a small temperature range. But in both cases it is a range, not
constant. And one approach requires adding electrical energy, cannot go in a dishwasher and costs ~$200. The other approach is passive, dishwasher-safe and costs less than $100.
