Cuisinart PerfecTemp Coffee Maker

I was skeptical, but I like my coffee hot, so I decided to give the DCC2900 a try. It won me over the first time I used it. It makes terrific coffee, but what I really love about it is that it makes really hot coffee and keeps the coffee really hot and fresh for hours. My husband gets up 3-4 hours earlier than I do. He sets the coffee maker to brew when he wakes up. It is still really hot and tastes great when I get up. Also, it could not be easier to program. I have had Krups thermal carafe coffee makers for the past 15 years, but this Cuisinart out-performs the Krups on every scale, especially keeping the coffee hot. I like that it is short enough to sit on my counter under my upper cabinets. The only drawback is that the squat carafe is shaped in such a way that you have to turn the pot over to pour the last two cups. I assume it was designed that way to keep the coffee hot and to keep the unit short enough to park in an appliance "garage." I got used to the shape of the carafe and don't consider it a big deal.

I was drawn in by the promise of really hot coffee. The temperature is about the same as my last Cuisinart (the DTC-975DKN) OK, not stellar.

I am extremely disappointed with the terrible engineering of the carafe. Did no one at Cuisinart actually test this thing and notice how difficult it is to get the last 1/2 cup of coffee out of the carafe? The top is flat which does not allow the coffee to freely flow to the spout. It also does not seem to keep the coffee as hot as our previous carafe.

The coffee grounds are loaded into the top of the machine. I prefer a swing out basket as it is too easy, with top loaders, to drop grounds into the water tank and clog the machine.

The water level indicator is difficult to read because it is located at the right rear of the machine.

Disappointing purchase. This will be returned.

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We have had this unit for a few days now, This was a replacement for an older Cuisinart Thermal Carafe Coffeemaker. While the display and functions are greatly improved, The process of putting in water is incredibly more difficult. There used to be a water level gauge inside the water compartment for you to see the level as you pour, now you have to stop pouring and look at a water gauge window on the back outside corner of the unit. The Carafe has a longer spout which projects the water when pouring out a bit further making it very difficult to pour in the small openings of the water compartment. ( you invariably hit a bridge that supports the coffee filter which divides the water compartment into 2 small halves, splashing water all over the place). Getting the last bit of water out of the thermal carafe is again extremely difficult you need to tilt it way past the vertical , the lid to the water compartment only opens 90 degree and you can't do this without making a mess pouring the last couple of ozs out.

The low down, pretty much you are wiping up a good deal of water in the coffee prep phase

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After one week of use, I report good news.

I measured the temperature of the water as it was coming down the coffee basket and I was able to get a 195 degree reading. Recommended temperature: 195-205.

The dials are much improvement over the previous model I owned (Cuisinart DTC-975BKN). Also, the dials are on top which reduces the chance of any spillage getting into them. It is very easy to program.

The carafe has also seen improvement over the previous model. The lid is foolproof and fits on tight. The opening is bigger than previous model and makes it much easier to wash with a brush.

All in all, I give this machine a five star.

Update: 6/11/2012

After one month of use I decided to give this coffee machine a 1 star due to the seriousness of the defects involved.

Reason:

(1) I discovered a puddle of coffee under the machine this morning.

(2) The carafe sprinkles some of the coffee away from the mug which lands on the counter, a defect in the pouring mechanism.

(3) After I brewed a pot this morning using the bold setting, the exterior of the pot was so hot which is not supposed to happen in thermal carafes. Even the bottom plate was hot. I can't explain how that happened.

(4) Pouring water in the reservoir is a challenge.

(5) Opening the top access lid is tricky. Basically you have to push the carafe up while pressing on the top latch.

June 21, 2012

I have just discovered something weird about this coffee maker: It has a hot plate that stays on during the duration of the brewing process. The reason for that is to get the chill out of the thermal carafe. My comment is: thermal carafes don't need to be heated from the outside. Doing so indicates that the carafe is not insulated well. And if it is insulated well, heat can't possibly go inward. So the engineer who came up with this idea is obviously on crack.

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THE CARAFE IS MADE OF DOUBLE WALLED STAINLESS. THE PROBLEM IS THAT THE TOP IS SOME TYPE OF PLASTIC THAT IS FITTED TO THE S/S WITH A RUBBER SEAL BETWEEN THE TWO PIECES. TO GET THE LAST CUP OF COFFEE OUT OF THIS POT YOU MUST TURN IT ALMOST UPSIDE DOWN. THE RUBBER SEAL IS NOT WATERTIGHT AND THE COFFEE GETS IN THE POT BETWEEN THE DOUBLE WALLS. YOU CAN'T GET INSIDE TO CLEAN IT AND OVER TIME IT COULD BECOME A REAL CESSPOOL, AND THEN THIS MESS COULD LEAK OUT WHEN YOU GETTING YOUR LAST CUP OF COFFEE!

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