I bought this product a week ago to replace an aging "M.C" which had given good service over the years but which would not support further cleaning and was perennially slow. My wife selected it, and I couldn''t find any other product I preferred either.
A first note is that this is a later model than the recalled unit anything on the shelves now will be, so perspective buyers shouldn''t need to worry about that.
The machine does exactly what it should: it brews a regular pot of standard strength coffee in eight minutes, as it promises. I also tried the gourmet mode. I thought at first that it would be a gimmick, but it actually makes a different cup of coffee. The regular brew cycle makes your "general drinking, keep it coming, restaurant style" coffee, while the gourmet mode (which uses more grounds and less water, brews at higher power, and therefore is faster to brew) makes the connoisseur style, stronger coffee for after dinner or for the morning after a good party the style of coffee for which you would buy premium beans. I do use premium beans, and I was extremely happy with its performance in that mode too.
A note about strength: if you''re replacing a older, slower machine, you might notice your first pot being weak, and that you need slightly more coffee grounds than you did with the slower machine. That makes sense, because it brews faster, like it should. The advantage is that you''ll get a "cleaner" cup less bitter so it''ll be worth it. I quickly adjusted by the second pot. I use an electric grinder with a timer, so it was easier to lengthen the time slightly issue resolved.
A note about the nylon filter might be helpful. A nylon mesh cannot be as fine as a paper filter, so you will get a little silt in the carafe (in both modes). Like many coffee lovers, I actually like a little sediment in my coffee it makes it more complex and wholesome in my opinion but if you don''t, simply allow it to settle for a couple of minutes before serving, pour gently as as not to stir up the sediment, and don''t pour right to the bottom of the carafe. Alternatively, use paper filters. I would not use regular paper filters with the gourmet mode, as the higher flow rate may overwhelm the finer filter. I understand "B" (the folks who make pour-over type brewers) make a paper filter for fast brew machines like theirs that should work well in this product, though I haven''t tried them yet. I also wouldn''t advocate the use of paper filters with the nylon filter you might slow the water flow and overflow the machine.
The handy splash shield that pops up when you open the water reservoir lid does what it should helps the water go where it should (and not down the back of the unit) if access to the top of the your unit is limited by cupboard space, etc.
The carafe has a comfortable handle, and does not drip under normal use. Any adult of coffee drinking age ought to have sufficiently developed motor skills to pour from a lip-spouted vessel. If you do spill, it''s not the fault of the carafe. Hold the carafe such that you pour out of the center-line of the spout and not the side, and it will do exactly what it''s supposed to do.
The black finish of the product is not the hard, shiny plastic we''re used to, so some might call it cheap. On the other hand it has a nice non-slip quality to it, so the machine is easy to move around safely, for example while washing the outside.
The display is back-lit an exuberant blue subtlety is not a word that comes to mind here but the color is pleasant, and the brightness is uniform so it doesn''t glare. You certainly won''t need another nightlight in your kitchen, though! The buttons on the panel light up blue when active, and some of the blue light from the display bleeds across to the on/off and auto buttons on either side of it when they are off (this confused my wife briefly), but you soon figure it out, and it''s not a problem in any sense: in fact the spill-over actually helps you locate those buttons in dim light, so I consider it a feature!
The basket assembly comes out for easy cleaning no problems there.
The unit does not blow steam any more than any other coffee maker (it''s going to vent a little it boils water, so it''s bound to), so it won''t damage the underside of face of your cabinets.
The unit gives a happy little "beep-beep" when coffee is ready. It has auto shut-off which you can set for 30, 60, 90, and 120 minutes, which I find very handy: if you live in shame as a "closet coffee reheater" like we do, it''s handy to set the time to 30 minutes so you don''t stew the coffee. Then you can "nuke" a cup in the early afternoon and not be disappointed. Lesser machines have a standard 2 hour timeout which, if they keep coffee hot enough to drink for that long, will stew it too. The "TSB" ("time since brew") button tells you how long your coffee has been sitting on the hot plate, in case you didn''t use the timer to start it. Oh, and the timer? You set it for the time you want the coffee to be ready, not the time it should turn on, so you don''t have to do complex arithmetic at bedtime!
A note for the guys: I know we don''t normally do this, but do read the instructions the features will make it worth it.
Only negative? I''d have liked a nicer finish and slightly heavier, more robust plastic parts, but it''s in line with what the market offers these days at this price range, and I have no regrets.
As a final comment, after returning home after a business trip this week, my wife commented unsolicited "I''m glad we bought this coffee maker". I guess we''re keeping it, then :-)
Bought at Walmart for 19.95 or close to that. Have made twenty or more half full pots of coffee. Not the slowest brewer of this type that I have ever used, but not very fast. Good tasting coffee. I thought the little charcoal filters were a good idea and probably helped the taste compared to our previous brewer. However, the only place I could find the replacement filters was through Amazon and their cost (with shipping) was higher than an angry cat''s back. After about two weeks, one of the little tangs that hold the flapping lid in the carafe slot broke for no apparent reason. So now the lid comes off easily. Poor design or quality control on that lid in my opinion. If you can find something with better recommendations for same price or only $10 more I suggest you buy the something else.
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purchased at store. ran water through as recommended when new, then ran coffee through. very smooth tasting, nice and hot. 4 cups/4 small scoops. (using the included large/small scoop) Nice features. Not slow like other say. Sounds like a coffee maker when brewing, never heard a quiet one. only issue I have had is some very tiny coffee grounds got through the filter (preground coffee), I typically grind my own and use the coarse setting, if I use preground coffee I will use a paper filter.
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This Coffee maker is the best product I have used in years. Very quick and fast with great taste. Its compact enough and the filter is seated below in the back inside the water. A must have. It also has a matching toaster.
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I bought this coffee maker because of the automatic shut off feature as well because it does not require filters. It worked good for the first few months but I did notice a large amount of steam and I had to move it almost to the edge of my counter so it would not warp my cabinets. Then I noticed it started leaking a little when I took the pot out from under the drip. When I went to wipe the coffee off some of the coating came off of the warming plate. Then it started shutting off during the brew. I looked up the error and it said I needed to run a cleaning cycle. Now, since the cleaning cycle, it turns off after only brewing for 30 seconds, then I''ll turn it back on and it will brew very slowly until there is 2 cups left in the reservoir. This whole process takes about 20 minutes for me to get 1 cup of coffee that takes awful. I am throwing this out and hopefully getting something else tomorrow.
This is a great item to have for your pond or even swimming pool. Although a little slow to pick up large items such as leaves from last fall it works great on cleaning the normal dirt and sludge from the bottom of a fish pond. I wish I hadn''t waited so long to get one. The difference in the appearance of my pond is amazing. The cost value was great when compared to local shops in my area.
