Then I pour hot coffee in the hot 9 cup and place on hot plate

Only warning is beware of the bottom of the mug after sitting on the warming plate a while, it could be very HOT and burn you

Not as bulky as a lot of other hot plates I've seen.

The heat doesn't pass through ceramic much at all and my drinks are always cold, even after a while on the hot plate

No hot plate is hot enough for me, so what I do is pour coffee in microwave cup

No hot plate is hot enough for me, so what I do is pour coffee in microwave cup

works as it says it will