Keurig Mini B31 Plus Red Coffee Maker

The brewer makes excellent coffee.

I am giving it only 3 stars because there is a maintenance procedure you need to do that is NOT in the user manual.

If the brewer does not drip out all the water you put in, there are TWO needles that need to be unclogged using a paper clip. The user manual describes how to do the lower one, the "exit needle". You also need to clean out THREE holes in the UPPER needle, the "entrance needle".

The procedure is shown in a Keurig-produced Youtube video called "How to Clean the Needles and K-Cup® Portion Pack Holder", steps 5 and 6. The video contains a slight error in that it mentions two holes, when there are actually three. A Keurig customer service rep told me specifically to look for three holes.

I think Keurig should put this procedure in its manual because I think every machine sold will eventually clog up, either under warranty or afterwards.

I''ve had this Keurig for a week now and for the most part I like it and it''s worked well. There are a few drawbacks, which I''ll discuss below, but so far it''s done exactly what I purchased it for make me a single cup of coffee, quick, easy and with no fuss.

Pros:

* easy to use. Streamlined is the word for this little machine. It isn''t fancy: there''s no timer, no complicated display it''s fill up the water and hit the On button. That''s it. But if I had wanted more options, I''d have bought the larger Keurig, or a regular coffee maker.

* easy to clean. Simply by the design of a Keurig, there''s not much clean up. The overflow tray that the cup sits on isn''t attached, so you can pull it out and give it a quick rinse if you need to.

*fits into small spaces. the diminutive size of this keurig means that it can fit onto an already cramped kitchen cabinet, or under low cabinets where a taller machine wouldn''t fit.

*so far it''s made good coffee. I read other reviews where they had problems with the needle clogging, etc. Cross my fingers, but I haven''t had any mechanical problems.

*amount of water is intuitive. Like other people I find the plastic water level guides pretty much useless and a little cheap looking. But, do you really need them anyway? It won''t make more than a cup, so just fill your cup 3/4 of the way full (leaving room for milk) and dump it in. If you can''t figure that out, you need to put the K-cup down and back away slowly from the machine.

*automatic shut off. after a certain interval, the machine shuts itself off. Which is good for those of us who like to make their coffee and walk away.

Cons:

* when they say a CUP of coffee, they really mean a cup. You can''t fit most mugs under the spout without removing the overflow tray first. And even with the overflow tray out of the way, those people who like to carry around X-tall mugs are going to be out of luck.

*plastic parts. From the overflow tray (which looks metallic but isn''t), to the plastic water guides, there are just things about this model that make it seem like a cheap knockoff. I guess Keurig was thinking "you get what you pay for", but hey, the mini Keurig retails for $99.00! That''s not cheap! And it''s sort of disappointing that Keurig didn''t put more quality into this machine.

*You have to follow an exact order of steps when making coffee. 1) turn power on 2) add water 2)open keurig and add K-cup 4) shut Keurig and press the Brew button. Ok, now I''m nit picking, and yes, I realize that I''M the one who can''t follow directions. Don''t know why but I always pour in the water, insert the K-cup, THEN hit the power button. And if you do that, the machine forces you to re-open and re-close the top of the keurig before it will make the Brew button available. Nitpicky? Yes. But it still annoys me every time.

Conclusion:

The Keurig Mini lacks the better construction of the larger models. And the fact that it won''t work with larger mugs is going to be a real drawback for some people. But if you know what you''re getting, and, like me, you just wanted a quick way to make a single cup of coffee, with the convenience of a machine that takes up very little space on the counter, then this may be the model for you.

Addendum: I am adding an addendum to my review. After using it for a month, I have noted one other problem with this unit. As mentioned above, unless you remove the overflow tray, you can''t fit even a normal sized mug under the spout. But when you do remove the overflow tray, there is a lot of leakage and water runs out of the unit and onto the counter. I don''t know where the water comes from, don''t know if it''s from the water tank or the K cup area. I''ve started folding a paper towel up and laying it down where the overflow tray would normally go, and this soaks up the water. Sometimes there''s less water, sometimes there''s quite a lot. Obviously, if you had the overflow tray in place, as the designers intended, this wouldn''t be a problem. However, if you want to use a mug (and not a short cup), you have no choice but to remove the tray. It''s just a bad design.

I thought of taking away another star...but decided to leave it at 3 stars because even though there are some annoyances with this unit, it still suits my needs better than the full sized Kuerig. The company needs to go back and make the spout just a little higher to accommodate taller mugs WITH the overflow tray in place release a Mini Kuerig 2.0 version, and then they''d really have something.

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Got the mini brewer. Worked like a champ for 3 weeks, then stopped dispensing. Called the support, had me do the whole "paper-clip" thing. Worked once more, then the next day stopped working again....same problem. Told me to pre-puncture the K-cups, especially if they are puffing on the top. Did this, makes no difference. Apparently the top needle cannot be wet at all, or the grounds plug it up (how can you brew more than one cup every couple hours then?) Tech support on the second call, after I told them I did the whole "paper-clip" thing, said they would replace it. The replacement unit arrived, and it did not dispense either, right out of the box! I am not going to blow-dry the nozzle, or paper-clip the nozzle every morning for a cup of coffee. The coffee is delicious, but this design is ABSOLUTE JUNK. Maybe the more expensive systems are better? Mini-Brewer is not worth $9 let alone $99

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When my wife decided to stop drinking coffee, I am now the only coffee drinker in the house.

I like a French Press, but for one to two cups, it is a bother, messy, and hard to get the strength just right.

Like many, I have seen Keurig in businesses, and liked their product. Shopping about, I selected this model as ideal for my use. Shopping around, and combining Kohl''s discounts, I got this for 65 dollars, plus tax.

I absolutely love this maker. Fast, easy, no big clean up. A perfect cup of coffee in 2 minutes or so, what is not to like? Plus, if you shop around, you can get K-cups as low as 50 cents each (like I did today though a sale on Amazon).

I like the elegant simplicity, no gimmick approach with this unit.

I highly recommended!

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I bought the B30 brewer on 12/11/10. Since I mostly drink coffee on the weekends, I had only used it for a total of two weekends before it decided to stop working. 10 ounces of fresh water would only produce 2 ounces of coffee. I tried to make one cup of coffee and finally gave up after using 6 K-cups. For some reason the water stopped going through the top drain and through the brew needle. I took it back today for a refund. Now I''m stuck with a lot of unused K-cups, and from what I''ve read in other postings, the water problem is a big concern. I''m thinking long and hard before I buy a new one.