BLACK+DECKER Allure Professional Steam Iron for Clothes

My Black & Decker iron, a ProFinish 720, died recently after nearly 25 years of perfect service (the power button wouldn't stay on :( ). Given this positive experience, I knew I wanted another Black & Decker with a stainless steel soleplate (they are more heavy duty and easier to keep clean) -- but didn't know which one. I selected the Allure Pro and used it today for the first time. It's an impressive iron and the price point is SPOT ON!The steam is no joke! It has 23 steam ports and they all mean business. It is lightweight and is very smooth. It heats up quickly. I love the pointier tip on the soleplate, which is a first for me -- this allowed me to get into tighter spots on the fabric. The cord swivels perfectly. The setting dial is easy to understand and the base of the iron has the fabric settings by number for quick reference. The ONLY thing that I would mention that is a challenge is not being able to see the water level in the water tank -- you have to angle it just right in the light to see it.Lastly, I recommend dumping out the water in your water tank after every use and pressing the steam blast a few times to clean out any water in the port holes. I did this religiously on my ProFinish 720 and I strongly believe that contributed to its longevity. I hope this Allure model gives me the same length of service as the Profinish -- heck, even it it lasts half as long, I'll be happy!

I have been using Rowenta "pro" irons for 15 or 20 years. During that time I've had four of them. Because the Rowentas have a poorly designed water tank. Every one of them would develop a leak while the thing was standing on the board, on the heel. The tanks split because the adhesive fails. Because I'm an engineer, I fixed them several times - I found replacement tanks, and then found better adhesive for the tank that failed. I paid as much for a tank as I did for this Black and Decker iron. So I tried this iron instead.Those Rowenta were three times the price of this Black and Decker. The features of this iron are very competitive with my recently-failed Rowenta Pro - identical sole plate size, stainless steel, adjustable steam, nice heft (I prefer a heavier iron), good water capacity, well designed cord strain relief. The Rowenta was 1700 watts. This one is 1600 watts. I just got through my first Shirt Ironing Marathon and the B&D did a super job. Smooth glide, good steam (even on the low setting). The Rowenta has hundreds of steam holes and this has relatively few, but even so this did a great job on my shirts.So now we'll have to see how this one lasts. My last Rowenta is now 5 years old, use it about twice a month, for 12 or 15 shirts at a time. So basically one person.Update Aug 2021This B&D iron is still going strong. No leaks. Works GREAT. Uh Buh Uh Bye Rowenta...I would suggest running through the 'cleaning blast' process occasionally. I have somewhat hard water. I use a filtration / softener gadget to help with that. But still, I have found on two or maybe three occasions over the last 4 years that it would spit white minerals (aka 'scale'). As soon as you see that, it's time to get an old towel, crank the iron to high, and press the button to blast additional water to the sole plate. Iron the towel mercilessly, blasting away with the steam. This will help release the gunk. I was AMAZED at how much gunk came out the last time, and more amazed that more of that gunk didn't end up on my shirts.So Kudos to Black and Decker for a great product at a great price.Update Sept 2022It died this morning. :( . The sole plate does not heat. There are no replacement parts for these, and they used special screws to keep the curious out. But.... HAH! I took it apart anyway. Confirmed that the heater coil is toast.Oh well... I got five good years out of it. Far longer than any of the Rowentas I'd owned. Just ordered another one.

When my 15+yo B&D iron died, I decided that I would splash out for something really good. But after reading so many negative reviews of high-end irons (leaking, longevity, confusing), I decided to buy the next generation of the one I had, with its excellent reviews. It works great and does everything I want it to. The pointed front end for getting behind buttons and into small areas is a GREAT new feature. It heats up quickly, has a big water tank, and produces copious amounts of steam. It has a nice heft to it, which is essential to me since I work with thick fabrics, multiple layers and I exclusively wear linen (however the weight might be a problem for some people). I really wanted the 30 minute shut-off that some of the specialized sewing irons have, but despite this one's 8 min shut-off, it wakes with the slightest movement and heats so quickly it doesn't matter. I like this iron a lot and will keep it despite some irritating design features, some of which are regularly mentioned in other reviews. First, thanks to the unnecessarily enormous steam buttons on the handle, there is not much room for actual hands. My hands are small so I do not suffer the discomfort others have mentioned with the cord rubbing their wrists, but even my hands come in contact with the very poorly placed temperature button and I keep accidentally turning the iron off while I am working. Who's idea was that? What was wrong with leaving it where it used to be - above the steam buttons and below the temperature read-out? The second problem is the size of the iron. It is so big and oddly shaped that it does not fit into a standard sized, wall mounted holder. Most new irons are this size and shape, so I don't really want to look for an old school iron just because it fits my storage apparatus, but finding a new storage solution is not as easy as it should be. Most hangers do not specify the dimensions of the irons they can hold, or they mention only width, when thickness (Baseplate to top of handle) is just as problematic. Third, yes, it is difficult to read the water level. Most of the complaints about this are from people who bought the blue/black model. For this reason I paid the extra couple of dollars for the black/silver model and while it is still more difficult to read the water level than it should be, it can be done. Overall this is an excellent iron, and for the most part, the design flaws do not, for me at least, significantly affect my use of the iron. But the design changes do feel a bit cynical, as though they were suggested by a room full of business school interns who had never ironed a thing in their lives but expected to score points in the corporation by adding price inflating features (Great big steam buttons! Tinted windows on the water gauge! Monster truck silhouette!!!) while shaving a few cents off of production costs.

My expensive old Rowenta finally gave up the ghost, and this Black & Decker is the perfect replacement! I’m amazed at how inexpensive it was and impressed with the build. It works just as well, if not better. It has the perfect heft and has completely changed my mind. I think Black & Decker has come a long way. This iron is well worth the money.

This is a terrible iron and I will discuss why.First off, I received a used iron without any wrapping or packaging to keep it secure. Just cardboard, the iron, and the manual. I paid full price for this iron, so why did I receive a used one?This would be better priced around $25.Cons:1. Quality (materials, VOCs)The entire iron is made of plastic, only the plate is metal.The metallic paint was chipping off in my first use.I smelled burning plastic and mildew while ironing and steaming.2. Performance (overpriced, lacking)This iron could not take out deep wrinkles from 1000TC 100% organic cotton sheets, but is advertised as a "professional steam iron". No matter what surface I ironed on, or how I tried to manipulate the fabric, the deep wrinkles would not come out.The plate is poorly and inconsistently heated; the nose was not taking out simple wrinkles near seams and material was not hot after ironing details with nose.3. Design (not intuitive)The writing for settings is in the same shade of gray as the twistable knob, just metallic. This temperature knob is located under the handle with no easy way to see what setting is on, except with a flashlight at a specific angle.There is no temperature change, just numbers 1-5. No material selections listed, but the numbers 1-5 correlate to materials listed in the user manual (why not just list the materials on the iron?) 4 is for cotton, but couldn't even get wrinkles out of my 100% cotton sheets so I'm not sure what the temperature actually is.4. SafetyTo add water to the reservoir, you have to use a narrow funnel or tip it upside down, which is unsafe while in use.I left this iron turned on and monitored it for 45 minutes. I did not touch it or change settings. It did not turn off or change temperature, just stayed hot.Pros:Weight is manageablePlate glides smoothlySpray button sounds satisfying and mists evenly.TLDR;Worth $25Received used iron :/Cons:Smells like plastic when ironing because the entire body is plastic. Metallic paints chip off within first use, won't age well.Temperature is inconsistent and settings are listed in user manual that correlate to numbers on the iron. These settings are in the same color as the background and in difficult to read areas.Did not take out deep wrinkles with recommended settings, no way to gauge temperature.Refilling water for steam function requires you to put the icon upside-down.Does not turn off by itself.Pros:Weight is manageable.Plate glides smoothly.Spray button sounds satisfying and mists evenly.

Love this iron. It serves the purpose of good old fashioned ironing.

I am really pleased with new B& D Allure steam iron! My past three Rowenta irons all leaked badly or just stopped warming up all together. The Rowenta irons' steam function worked well but at times, it was just too powerful and if I was too close to the ironing board, the steam would scald me. Between this, the leaking or not warming up,I needed a different brand. I looked over all of the B&D Allure reviews and decided to give it a try even though a few reviews were negative! First complaint by some were that you couldn't see the water fill reserve too well because of the color of the plastic! I am 82 years old with limited eyesight and I'm able to see how much water is going into the iron! No problem! Another review said that they were only able to iron one shirt and then needed to refill the iron! This is not so----I have been able to do a bunch of shirts etc. on one fill. It requires less fills than any Rowenta I have had. The steam is not as powerful as the Rowentas', but it is more than adequate. Plus I'm not getting scalded!!! I iron all of my cotton sheets etc. and have no trouble getting out the wrinkles. The best part about this iron is that it is far less expensive than what I paid for my past Rowenta irons. I'm so glad I gave this iron a try...I have used it 3 times since I received it and am really pleased with it's performance. Another feature I like is the stainless steel soleplate.. I have tried irons with ceramic plates and these don't glide over fabrics like stainless steel does.

Works well, nice and heavy, high wattage. But the power switch can be tapped VERY easily. I bump it every time I use it, and since I use the highest setting, it turns off. An analog swithch would be better. Might be OK if you have smaller hands.

Si estás entre una más barata y esta, definitivamente compra esta. Esta es una plancha de verdad, que si logra planchar lino y algodón con efecto profesional. Tiene una punta que deja los rincones de las camisas perfectos. En toda mi vida no había adquirido una plancha que dejara estos terminados tan fácil y por fin pude planchar sin almidón una camisa que me costaba horas dejar masomenos con una plancha más barata de la misma marca.

The wife was happy with the iron. She said it's the best she has ever had !

Fiz um excelente investimento.Comprem essa ferramenta p sua passadeira, dará mais produtividade e sem esforço.Com apenas uma passada elimina amassados da roupa de linho, um espetáculo!

Great iron, it has a nice long cord. The settings are easy to figure out, it holds well in the hand.Heating up takes no time at all.Very easy to add liquid to.I use it a few times a week, very simple to work with and it does a great job the point makes it easy to get into tight areas.

Lovely iron but flipping useless with a 2 pin US plug! Not safe with an adapter as no earth pin!