With the fairly low budget price I was not sure if this was something you'd have to wait a long while to get hot enough to use but I was surprised at how fast it got hot. Having said that do be very careful to place it in a safe stable area while it cools off after using and maybe try holding it towards the middle of the handle and not near where the tip starts. I do like that this is portable so if you have something you need to solder away from any power outlets this comes in handy, even in your house if you have some quick soldering to do and simply prefer to not have a wire limiting your mobility this works for that too. I do appreciate that to turn it on you have to press the button for 5 seconds, that should help avoid it being turned on accidently by an unintended quick push on the button.

For cord free operation this is really nice. And I really like the 3 temperature modes. There are however a few issues. The handle itself, the plastic white piece gets extremely hot near where the metal tip starts. And it’s a shame because that’s where your fingers go. So you have to move your bad down a little. Next is it only comes with one tip. So what happens if it’s damaged? And last is that when it rests on the little stand the metal hits and melts the plastic no matter what side you put it on. So in short this is good but needs some improvements. To be great.

- Product arrived in a well cushioned and secure box with no in-transit damage. - Soldering iron heats up quickly as expected and one simple hold-to-turn-on button works well. - Iron tip is removable and replacements are readily available since it is a standard threading size. - Solder charges quickly through USB C but does not have an indicator light. - Included instructions were simple but self explanatory. Travel sized and easy to use, this soldering iron is great for very occasional but necessary work that doesn't require the full on solder experience. Perfect pen-sized iron for quick away-from-outlet jobs - five stars *****

It works as well as I was expecting. It's small, and extremely convenient. I will be keeping it in my toolbox for repairing small wires and electronics. It's only 8W. That's very low power. For small electronics, that'll be great. Soldering large wires will be frustrating - a 60W Pinecil will do better at big wires, but it'll cost you more money. If you want to solder really large connectors, nothing beats Metcal. I can solder to a BNC connector within a second of touching the iron to the connector. It's amazing what a $700 soldering iron can do!