I am very fussy about my coffee maker. If the appliance is too expensive, too bulky, too complicated, too messy to clean up, etc., it doesn''t stand a chance in my three cup a day kitchen. We got this little beauty day before Thanksgiving, just in time for the holiday dessert table. I can''t say enough about it! There are three ways to make your favorite coffee: 1. regular ground coffee goes into the basket (no filter needed) or 2. you can use a coffee pod or finally, for those who like variety, 3. K-Cups are easily inserted into the removeable slide-in tray. To allow for two sizes of coffee cups, the lower portion of the unit lets you place either a large travel mug on top, or flip it over for a higher ledge to place a smaller mug. Water in the back, press the button, and within minutes you''re drinking a hot cup of joe! Realizing it''s only a single cup machine, we don''t expect to use this when we have more than a small handful of guests. But for the daily cups there is nothing better. We love how quickly you clean up, a simple rinse of the grinds from the basket and you''re set for the next cup. Instructions say to run a solution of 1/2 cup white vinegar and 1/2 cup water through the unit every month or so to clean it out. This makes more sense than the more costly machines that require descaling and fancy solutions in order to keep the coffee tasting great. It''s a tall and thin machine, so you easily slide it beside other kitchen appliances without taking up much counter space. Black and stainless steel finish go with everything. I have other Hamilton Beach kitchen apppliances and honestly have not been disappointed yet. This coffee maker is a keeper!
It''s super easy to use.
It makes good coffee.
You can use any of the K-Cups, and you can also use your own ground coffee beans. I like this option.
It turns itself off so you won''t leave it on by accident.
It looks very slick and fits in nicely with our kitchen with black and stainless steel. It doesn''t take up a lot of space.
It''s very easy to clean.
What else could you want!
Buy Hamilton Beach 49995 FlexBrew Single Serve Coffeemaker Now
I never considered buying a Keurig Coffee Brewer due to the high cost for the maker, the cost per cup of coffee, and the mixed reviews on flavor. When I received my " ", I wasn''t expecting too much, but was pleasantly surprised and impressed. I went out and found my favorite "Eight O''Clock" brand coffee available in K-Cups and on sale at my local supermarket. Setting up and using the Hamilton Beach FlexBrew was simple and fast. My first cup of K-Cup coffee came out perfect. I was impressed. Despite maxing out the water capacity at around 10-12oz, the coffee was not weak or odd tasting. It was a perfect cup of coffee. Next, I tried brewing a regular cup of coffee using standard coffee grounds. The results were good, but not as good as my old $14 Black and Decker 1 cup "Brew N Go" coffee maker. The coffee was good, but tasted a little "off". I tried a couple of other cups adjusting the amount of coffee, but the results were the same. It was by no means bad, but I just like the taste of my old maker, and the K-Cup coffee better. Brew time was fast. It takes a little longer to start brewing, but once it starts, it flows faster than my old machine. Total time is about the same. About 3-4 minutes. One thing that is much better than my old machine is that the FlexBrew''s coffee is hotter. All in all, the Hamilton Beach FlexBrew Single-Serve Coffeemaker is an impressive machine, at a very good price. As long as you''re not looking to make a large cup of coffee, I recommend it.Pros:
Very good tasting coffee.
Less than 1/2 the price of an average Keurig machine.
Compatible with coffee grounds, K-Cup packs, or soft pods.
Easy to use and convenient.
Well built with stainless steel and dishwasher safe removable plastic parts.
Cons:
K-Cup packs cost per cup.
Maximum 10-oz brewing capacity.
Travel mug not included.
Results using regular coffee grounds are good, not great.
Update 02/2013:
I left my original review up to show that I was at one time happy with this machine. Unfortunately, 2 months later that is no longer the case. I''m experiencing the same "water shooting all over the place" that others reported. The problem are that the nozzle that punctures the K-Cup is either no longer sharp enough to puncture the K-Cup fully, it gets clogged with coffee, or it has shifted to the point it is no longer puncturing it correctly. Either way, these are serious flaws that seems to pop up over time, or in the cases of some other reviewers, affects the coffeemaker right out of the box. Another issue is that sometimes it punctures the cup correctly, but water pressure builds up shooting water all over my kitchen after brewing a partial cup of coffee. I definitely can no longer recommend the Hamilton Beach FlexBrew Single-Serve Coffeemaker.
Update 03/11/13:
I received a replacement unit from Hamilton Beach. The first thing I noticed is that the new coffee maker comes with another basket for using coffee grounds. This extra basket was not included with the first coffee maker. I''ve used the coffee maker several times using grounds and K-Cups. So far it works perfectly. I''m skeptical though since my first one worked perfectly too when I first used it. Has the design been improved, and the bugs worked out? Only time will tell, but it is only fair to report that Hamilton Beach seemed concerned about the problems being reported, and they did send me a working machine.
Final Update 03/14/13: Well, it didn''t take long for my replacement coffee maker to show its true colors. After brewing about 10 or so K-Cup cups of coffee without incident, the new HB 49995 coffee maker decided to spray hot water all over my kitchen. It brewed about 1/2 the cup normally as it should, but apparently as some others have pointed out, the HB 49995 just isn''t strong enough to force the water through the K-Cups all the time, resulting in pressure buildup until the water has no place else to go but out the top of the K-Cup holder and all over your kitchen. This is 2 coffee makers now that exhibit the same exact problems using the K-Cups recommended by Hamilton Beach. I''m done messing with this thing, and highly recommend you look elsewhere.
Read Best Reviews of Hamilton Beach 49995 FlexBrew Single Serve Coffeemaker Here
My wife was all excited when I showed her this coffee maker and told her it can use ground coffee or K-Cups. We currently have a Black and Decker 1 cup coffee maker and although it makes a great cup of coffee, it isn''t the prettiest coffee maker to leave on the counter, it only lasts about a year before you have to toss it and buy a new one and doesn''t fit her taller Christmas mugs. On to the Hamilton Beach...I put both coffee makers side by side and the Hamilton beach is a lot bigger but it has a very attractive brushed metal finish and it will handle both small cups and tall mugs by just flipping the base. Cool!
I used the quick start guid to make our first cup of coffee on the new coffee maker. I was using ground coffee (Dunkin Donuts) to make the first cup so I removed the K-Cup holder and spooned in 2 Tablespoons of coffee using a regular (not measuring) tablespoon. I noted there is a max fill marker in the basket and I had filled it too much so I removed some coffee and shook the basket gently side to side to ensure it was below the max fill marker. It now was. Next, I filled the water reservoir to just below the max fill marker in the reservoir. You must pour slowly because the water travels down through a funnel like opening. I put my wife''s tall holiday mug underneath. It fits! Hooray!!! I press the start button and walk away to make an omelet. I look over and about a minute had passed and no coffee was dripping yet but it sounded like it was about to start. I was excited. I went about making my omelet. After a few minutes, my wife comes running over telling me the coffee maker is leaking all over the counter. I look and there are coffee grounds all over the cup (inside and out) and water has dripped all over the coffee maker, counter and even into the power switch on the front. All this despite the cup not being even half full! I quickly unplug it.
After I am done eating breakfast and the coffee maker has cooled, I decide to give it another try. Maybe I put in too much coffee or water? So I proceed to round two...
This time, I read the whole manual not just the quick start guide. It says not to use more than 10 oz. of water or 2T of coffee or the coffee pot may overflow. Okay, I did not measure accurately last time so but I did keep the levels below the max lines. Also, what is the point of a coffee maker that can hold such a huge cup if you can only use 10 oz. of water? I know from experience that some of the water stays absorbed in the grounds so 10 oz. of water equates to about 8 oz. of coffee. Okay, 8 oz. equals 1 cup and this IS advertised as a single serve coffee maker so I really can''t complain.
So using a measuring cup, I measure exactly 10 oz. of water and pour it into the reservoir. Next, I add exactly 2 level Tablespoons of coffee using a measuring spoon. I press the start button again. I also put the coffee maker next to the sink this time just in case. Again, this coffee maker is pretty slow. It takes a full minute before it even starts making any coffee, whereas my cheapo B&D starts in about 15 sec. The cup is about half full and no mess so far. I think I am in good shape when I start hearing weird gurgling noises and it starts spraying coffee grinds into the cup again. It only did it for about 15 seconds this time and then shut off. No water on the counter but still wet coffee grinds in and outside of the cup and on the power switch. I''m not sure if the power switch is water proof (I doubt it) but this is just unacceptable and likely unsafe.
Again, the coffee mug is less than half full. I waited about a minute to remove the cup and after I did, water continued to drip out of the coffeemaker onto the drip pan. I did not try a K-Cup but in my opinion, this coffee maker is a piece of garbage!
I''ll post some pictures of the mess and of the 2 coffee makers side by side on the main product page.
UPDATE: I don''t know why but I hate giving 1 star reviews so I tried another batch of coffee using only 4 tsp of coffee and 10 oz. water (all measured accurately). That''s about the weakest coffee I could stand. It still made a mess and spewed coffee grounds all over the cup and front of the machine. This time I smelled the burning smell that another reviewer mentioned as well. Amazing for only 3 cups of coffee with at least an hour cool down between cups!
I can''t tell you if this makes a decent cup of coffee because I have not been successful at it so far. I''m tempted to try a K-Cup but I don''t have any and I am not inclined to buy some just to test this coffee maker. If you want one of these for free, come check my trash barrel. ;-)
-Joe
Update: I bumped this up to 2 stars because I tried it with a K-Cup and it didn''t dump coffee grounds in my coffee or make a mess out of my counter this time. The coffee was good using 8 oz. of water but you only get 2/3rd a cup of coffee. With 10 oz. of water, you get a full cup but it is a bit weak. After it seemed to stop brewing and the light went out, I removed the cup. A few seconds later, more coffee dripped out. The tray caught it but this coffee maker is definitely lacking. Not recommended.
Joe
Want Hamilton Beach 49995 FlexBrew Single Serve Coffeemaker Discount?
Length:: 0:52 MinsBACKGROUND: I am a fan of single-serve coffee machines. Why? Because it just makes sense. Most people in America do not live in multigenerational households so it is not necessary to brew 4+ cups of coffee at once. In my situation, it''s just my husband and me. I have owned the traditional Black & Decker 12-cup coffee maker (donated), Keurig Special Edition B60 Single-Serve Coffee Maker (returned), Senseo 7810 Single-Serve Coffee Maker (donated), Hamilton Beach Personal One-Cup Pod Brewer for Senseo Pods (still own for the office, but not too satisfied), Hamilton Beach Single Serve Scoop Coffee Maker (still own), and Aeropress Coffee and Express Maker (still own).
I have been looking for a well-built single-serve coffee maker for my husband''s office, since the one he has there is the Hamilton Beach Personal Cup One Cup Pod Brewer, which is a GREAT and inexpensive coffee maker, but the insert basket is fitted for Senseo style pods only and they are discontinued. So to get around this, I taught him to create makeshift pods by folding regular filters. This method works fine, except that it requires a few extra steps and my husband is not the type to want to perform those extra steps. Needless to say, he rarely uses the coffee machine because of "those extra steps." Well, I guess Keurig seems to be the only option left in terms of convenience, freshness, and taste.
REVIEW:
PROS:
+ Accepts K-Cups, ground coffee, and pods
+ Flexible cup size (can hold a tall travel mug or a smaller 10 oz. mug)
+ Great tasting, hot coffee without using a lot of coffee grounds
+ Beautiful black/stainless-steel exterior
+ Easy to operate in 4-steps (Pour in water, put in coffee (cup/grounds/pod), push lever down, press "on")
+ Easy to clean (all you need to do is dump the coffee grounds and rinse), separate parts are washable
+ More affordable than any Keurig coffee machine
CONS:
Hot steam comes out from "Push Down" lever opening
Spits coffee grinds everywhere if the amount of coffee grounds in filter exceeds maximum limit (2 Tbsp)
I am writing this review after testing it for almost two weeks. Using K-cups, the coffee MAY drip slower (it takes about 1.5-2 minutes on average to brew a cup) than a Keurig machine, but it does come out hot and tasty. On the other hand, using just the mesh filter and coffee grinds require a bit of a learning curve. The directions note that you can only use a MAXIMUM of 2 TABLESPOONS of ground coffee. While this is true, I would recommend a MAXIMUM of 2-3 TEASPOONS. Any more and the machine will "spit" coffee grinds into your cup in the last 10 seconds of brewing (VIDEO INCLUDED). I have also learned that I have had more luck with a courser grind, closer to french press than drip. Another thing that may cause some concern is the steam that comes out of the "Push Down" lever is hot, but fortunately, not burning hot. For me, I don''t mind it since I usually walk away after pressing the "on" button anyway.
In comparison between the Hamilton Beach Single Serve Scoop Coffee Maker and this FlexBrew, I would strongly recommend the FlexBrew for its versatility, convenience, and best of all, it makes great tasting coffee with very little coffee grounds. It''s ironic because for the Scoop, the more coffee you put in, the stronger/better your coffee tastes. Even 2 Tbsp may not be enough for the Scoop whereas 2 Tbsp is too much for the FlexBrew. With that said, I will be replacing my Hamilton Beach Scoop with this one.
Bottom line, if you are looking for a single-serve machine that can brew K-Cups, coffee grinds, and pods, look no further but keep in mind that this machine requires a very small amount of coffee grinds or it will start spitting all over the place (as you can see in the video).
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