I didn't realize that buying a thermal coffee maker would be such a dramatic ordeal after reading all the reviews. I thought buying a machine would be straightforward... Alas, I finally ended up with this one.Pros:
Krups brand
Simple to program
Solid carafe easy to pour (even with the weird lip and almost having to turn upside down it pours nicer than my glass carafe on my Capresso)
Keeps coffee hot and brews hot
Nice clean look
Water filter (and neat little change reminder on it)
No floaty ball thingy to clog up and force coffee all over
Water indicator easy to read and pretty cool
Quiet and no stupid beeps
Not so pros:
Filling with water does require a separate vessel. Not the end of the world, but it would be easier to just grab the carafe.
Carafe does not seal air tight so if you want coffee 5 hours later well, probably gonna leak out the heat (although after 4 hrs it was still pretty warm/borderline hot)
Had plasticy smell in first two brews seems to have gone away now
Pouring out the last bit of coffee does require holding it weird, but not a horrible disaster or anything
Overall, I'm quite happy. I looked at tons of reviews and different pots and this seemed to be most solid, simplest and best fitting to me. I've been paranoid about overflows that everyone talks about with the thermal pots and hope that is not the case with the Krups. So far so good, I'm happy.
I gave it 4 stars because it is better than 3. I'd call it 7 out of 10.
My old machine was just that old. Perhaps 7-8 years old. I liked that it had the water fill line one the side and that the program/on/off buttons were manual rather than digital. This way I could leave it on timer all the time.
This machine has a very small water fill line/indicator. It only indicated 2 cups at a time. I used to like to brew 3 cups because that filled my favorite mug. Can't do that here unless you just guess.
The carafe is weird because when the top is locked on, it is in pour mode. To take it out of pour mode and presumably lock in the heat better, the top is not locked on so it could fall off or whatever. Not like it is on there tipsy, but I would think it is better to have it locked tight to hold in heat. This hasn't been a huge issue, but I find it curious.
The two timers are awesome if you don't have a consistent schedule every day. It has a wacky screen connected to the filter bucket that you pour the water through. Not sure the purpose of that.
I noticed one review after I bought it the carafe is not meant to pour in the water. You need to use a pitcher or something else. We have always used a pitcher to pill it up so this would never be an issue for us.
You can't go wrong with Krups. Probably on the expensive side, but it makes great coffee. When you are paying 12 or more per pound, you want a good machine to brew it.
It isn't perfect, but pretty darn good.I almost drove myself crazy trying to find a new coffee machine after my original Hamilton Beach Brewstation started leaking after 7 years of daily use. The reviews on coffee machines are generally horrible and I chose this one simply because of the brand and the fact that it had NO reviews to psyche me out about buying it.
I have owned this machine for about 2 weeks now. It is an ok machine, with a few minor flaws.
The Good:
One problem I was having when finding a new machine: cord length. I returned 2 Cuisinart machines because the cord was too short to reach the outlet from where I needed it on the counter. This machine has a long enough cord, with length to spare.
It is a very nice looking machine and does not take up a lot of room on my counter.
It does not have a hot plate, which is comforting for me (no risk of fire).
The carafe keeps the coffee warm for quite awhile. I left ½ a pot in the carafe one morning, it was still pretty warm (not hot) when I arrived home from work around 5pm. This was WITHOUT pre-warming the carafe.
It brews FAST.
Love the dual timers, and the clock is very bright. Not crucial, but convenient.
The coffee is alright, not great, defiantly not bad.
The Bad:
As mentioned by other reviewers, the carafe/lid is just strange. The carafe has a round hole right in the middle of the top, there is no spout to pour. You can never get all of the water/coffee out without turning the carafe completely upside-down and shaking the carafe.
The water port is in an odd spot. I have to turn the machine to fill it, and you can't use the carafe to fill if you want a full pot, because of the carafe-spout issue. I usually use bottled water anyway, so I just pour straight from the gallon.
The Aroma mode makes HORRIBLE coffee, even with a small pot.
There is a SLIGHT amount of leakage at the hole in the carafe top when brewing, I think from when it first starts brewing and is pushing the steam through with high pressure. It has not been an issue and is very slight, and HAS NOT gotten worse, which is the case with most other machines I read reviews on.
It is over $100, which I do not understand. Reading coffee machine reviews made me realize that there are serious issues with all brands and price points. If I buy $100 shoes, they usually would be better quality than $25 shoes. I guess coffee machines are not like that :)
All and all, this is a good machine. Not great, but good. And considering I read every review of hundreds of coffee machines and they were AWFUL, this one seems to be alright. I loved my old Hamilton Beach Brewstation (which also gets horrible reviews), but this will be an adequate replacement.Looks good on the counter, makes coffee quickly, and it tastes O.K., but apparently the designers never have used it. The water fill port is located under the popup lid near the right rear, and it is impossible to fill the tank using the carafe without spilling water on the counter. The proximity of the fill port to the open lid also makes it impossible to empty the last bit of water from the carafe because it hits the open lid. The only way I can fill the tank without spilling is to use a funnel. For the price of this machine, you would think that they would have thought of this.......but you be wrong.Looks sharp. Makes great coffee. I'm able to hold the carafe and pour with one hand rather than have to fiddle with the lid and have to use two hands. That's great when I'm lying in bed reading the morning newspaper. The only drawback is the need to use a separate pitcher rather than the carafe to fill the water reservoir. It would be perfect if either the reservoir was removable or the opening to fill the reservoir would accommodate the use of the carafe to fill. I would rate it 5 stars instead of 4 if that was the case. Overall, I recommend this coffee maker.
Save 33% Off
No comments:
Post a Comment