Jura 64553 Clearyl Water Care Water-Filter Cartridge

The only deal on this cartridge I've found is to wait until it's on the 'buy 3 get the 4th free' deal with Amazon. In all the years I've been using these, I've never had a calcium or scale build-up in my coffee maker, which is the point I guess.

This water filter is used in my Capresso Z6 super automatic. It is the same one I used to buy for twice the price at William Sonoma or directly from Capresso.

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I have a Jura-Capresso E-8 coffee maker and this is the water filter that it calls for. We have never had any problems with the filters and they are pretty simple to change. We always keep one on hand so we can change it when the machine displays the message "replace filter". The only other place that we have found these is Williams-Sonoma.

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This is the only filter that fits in my Jura Capresso Impressa E8. That makes it perfect.

No build up that I have noticed.

Amazon has the lowest price I've seen and I did not know they sometimes were available in the 4 for 3 deals.

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Product description showed this was "Claris" filter as searched. This does NOT fit Impressa C5. Returning to Amazon but still can't find the correct Jura filter. Take a look a the top head of the filter to see that it matches the one that came with your machine. I'm sure this works for some but not C5

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Oggi Lustre Clarisa Carafe

In the picture on Amazon, this carafe looks very solid and well made. Upon arrival, you'll find that it's very cheaply put together, with a plastic lid, poor alignment of seams, very cheap plastic/metal combinations in other parts....overall not anywhere near the quality of a Bodum or other well-made kitchen brand. I returned mine immediately.

This is a product that I like and use every day. I really enjoy tea. I use the carafe so that I can brew a large batch, enjoy it over the next several hours, and have it remain hot.

For a serious tea drinker such as myself, this is a good product. First of all, has a nice, large capacity, which allows me to brew a lot of tea at once. Second, it does an excellent job of keeping hot liquids hot. I have not tested it for its ability to keep cold liquids cold. However, I regularly brew tea in the carafe before going to sleep, and then leave it overnight. When I wake up in the morning, I can enjoy the tea immediately and amazingly, it is still hot. I have even brewed tea in this product and left it for even longer 24 hours later, the tea is still warm.

The construction is sturdy. The wide base relative to the top ensures that it will not tip over. Even if filled and laid on its side, the liquid does not leak out unless the valve is opened. Unfortunately, as far as I can tell, there is no way to lock the valve (the red lever pictured above) so that it cannot open if the carafe should tip over and hit something. Overall, though, it is pretty leak-proof.

There are two small downsides to this product. First: I originally bought this because I wanted a stainless steel vessel for brewing tea. I had been using a polycarbonate Nalgene with an infuser attachment, but I was concerned about exposure to bisphenol A from drinking hot tea out of this bottle every day. The Nalgene also did not keep the tea hot for appreciable periods of time. This carafe solved the problem of the tea cooling too quickly, but I am still a bit concerned about BPA exposure. The body of the carafe is stainless steel, but the tea infuser and top piece are made of plastic. I am not sure if these parts are made with BPA. If you are buying this product with BPA exposure in mind, caveat emptor.

Second: After pouring some of the hot liquid out of the carafe, some room temperature air enters the inside of the vessel, cooling down the vapor that is left inside. This creates a vacuum inside and produces an annoying sucking sound as more air attempts to get through the seal. The sound is relieved by opening the valve, but it reappears within a few minutes.

Overall, a good product and worth the price if you enjoy brewing loose tea or being able to have hot coffee all day. An assurance that the plastic infuser is BPA-free would have bumped my rating up to 5 stars.

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This very same Oggi Thermal Carafe is being sold in at least two other links here on Amazon. This product is so poorly made, I felt it important to provide potential customers with that review here as well. I really wanted to like this because it looked so nice but fell way short of expectations. For the cost, I would expect quality materials and manufacturing. Sorry Oggi, this is a DUD! For the sake of your reputation, this would be a good item to discontinue.

I enjoy those restaurants that provide your table with a carafe of coffee. It is convenient for the patrons and the wait staff and I wish more restaurants would engage in this practice. For the reason of convenience I decided to purchase one for my personal use at home. I thought it would be perfect to keep in my office when I'm doing computer work or beside my favorite chair when I'm reading or studying.

I purchased this same product through a different vendor for a little lower price with a discount I was able to take advantage of. I was excited when it arrived and the first thing I noticed was how much nicer it looked than in the picture. Upon inspection however my excitement started to diminish. Right away I noticed that the spout, handle and dome lid was made of very cheap plastic. It is very thin and would likely not handle an accidental drop. The spout and top third of handle appears to be made from three different pieces of plastic fused together based on the visible seams and the seam on the handle is right where you grip it.

Later when I used it, other flaws became very obvious. First and probably most important is that is pours horribly. You have to depress the lever on the dome lid to raise the plunger and the beverage comes out at a very slow and messy trickle. The only way not to make a mess is to ensure that the spout is all the way down into my coffee cup. A deeper spout might have eliminated this issue. Also the opening in the lid might be too small because unless I completely tip the carafe upside down, it comes out in dribbles.

Also there are no finger grips on the lid so you have to use the plunger lever for leverage and with its cheap construction, it already has some side to side play and I just don't see it lasting much longer.

Lastly, the description states it can keep you beverage hot for up to eight hours. I have found that to be off by 6 hours! The only thing going for this is that it looks good. Due to its design flaws, cheap plastic material and poor manufacturing of the most important parts, this has become one of the worst products I have ever purchased.

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This item is pretty solid and does the job for the price I paid. It is true that the handle and dome is plastic and not metal but for the approximately $30 price it is still very good, and looks slick. The bulk of the charafe is the metal black portion which is intended to keep your drink at the temperature you want for up to 8 hours. I tested it and it did indeed last 7 or 8 hours, which is longer than a similar Charafe I bought online that was non-Oggi manufactured.

Overall, I still highly recommend. Of course if you want a super latest and greatest carafe the size of 54 ounces like this one, you'd easily be looking to pay three or at least two times more. This gets the job done for sure.

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I got this because it has an infuser and I could make tea and drink it all day.

Unfortunately the infuser is too small to allow tea leaves to expand, it's a piece of garbage plastic, and the holes are too big allowing tea leaves to escape.

After the first pot of tea using the built in infuser I had 2 issues.

1. tea tasted like plastic

2. i couldn't take the tea leaves out of the infuser since it's so small and narrow.

I'll have to use a different infuser. Hopefully the plastic taste is only from the infuser and I can use it as a regular pot.

EDIT (Dec 2009):

I was reading other reviews and someone recommended these bags to use (100 Finum Tea Filter, Large, Brown). I think this is the only way to use this carafe. I don't want it to be a waste of money... On the positive side, the carafe works ok and tea made with the paper tea bags tasted alright. So it's not a complete waste. It held tea warm for a long period and I like how the base is wide so it's tough to knock over.

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Brushed Stainless Appliances 15-Bar Espresso Maker

very nice machine, it heats up quickly and makes a great latte, coffee or what every type of drink you may want. I would buy it again. The only reason I didn't give it five stars is because I have a hard time getting a good froth on my milk, but my husband can get a great froth I just cant, so I must be doing something wrong. It looks good to.

I make latte one 4 shot in morning and one in the late afternoon. Have gone though 2 of these. Works real good, but not made to work or replace parts.

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This machine is easy to use and can make a great latte or cappacino once you get to know how much coffee to load in the hopper. It took me about a week to get my timing and measurements down but now that I have it I use it every morning.

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I've had one of these for several years at my home. I use the hot water wand for making tea mostly. But I make myself a latte about once a week. I'm honestly surprised that it works as well as it does, and that it has lasted this long considering the price. I just bought one for my office!

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Gaggia Unica

I bought this machine about six months ago on the basis of excellent reviews on other sites and my own positive experience with Gaggia products in the past. Unfortunately, I have been disappointed with the Unica.

My previous super-automatic was a Saeco purchased from Starbucks. It was quite good, but after 8 years of daily use, finally succumbed. The Unica seemed appealing as a smaller and less pricey replacement. In fact, it is not smaller at all, taking up loads of counter space. Yet despite identical footprint, it has a much smaller coffee hopper and water reservoir, both of which need to be refilled after just a few drinks. By contrast, my old Saeco could go about a week between refills. What's more irritating is that the Unica turns on the low water indicator light when it is still one-third full. That's enough water to make at least three espresso shots--but no, you have to add water.

In addition to being small, the hopper is covered with a plastic grille not designed to be removed in daily use. Coffee is supposed to fall through it to the grinder, but in practice it makes the hopper difficult and messy to fill while serving no discernible purpose whatsoever.

The espresso it brews is quite good, but the steamer wand is virtually useless; it's next to impossible to both heat the milk and build foam. Depending on technique, you get either foamy cold milk or foamless hot milk. After 8 years using a similar machine, I'd gotten pretty good at frothing, but now I bypass the wand entirely and use another method. So much for "automatic."

As you might expect from a cut-rate machine, the build is flimsy. I have to be even more careful than I usually am--and all I really do is make espresso. My suggestion is to shop around for a better option, even at a higher price.

Nesco BG-88 Professional 12-Cup Burr Grinder with 17 Grind Settings

The Preface: This is not a review just a quick note of warning to potential buyers.

1) Don't let the picture fool you. While the images may give you the impression this machine looks well designed and durable I can assure you it is not. I actually had the benefit of purchasing it locally and was able to hold the box in my hand. I wish I could have held the machine itself, though. The plastic bean holder and grounds holder are made of thin, brittle plastic. So thin and brittle that I handle it very slowly and carefully to avoid dropping it. I have the feeling that if the grounds holder slipped out of my hands and fell 6 inches to the table top, that would be enough to shatter it. Furthermore, the grounds holder and lid are not flat and have several 'directions' which make it clumsly and difficult to snap together.

2) The instructions actually advise you to clean the spout (where the grounds come out) after every use. They aren't kidding!!! In fact, on several occasions, while trying to grind less than half the capability of the timer, the grinder would stop grinding (even though the motor was still going) and I had to clean the spout. The real problem is that in order to fully clean the spout, the machine must be empty and spout tilted downward to help clear the passage. I've also noticed that gravity alone is not enough when tilting it you will need to pat the sides of the machine to help loosen the build up.

Overall, this machine feels and works like a cheap toy. I don't know the company and have no idea what their reputation might be. They utterly failed with this product, though. Furthermore, the philosophy of 'you get what you pay for' does not apply to this product. Even if it was less than $10.00 I would want to warn any potential buyers.

I have no emotional investment with this machine or company never heard of them. I'm not even angry I consider my experience just another lesson. I just feel that people should know what to expect if they are thinking of buying it.

Sorry Nesco, but my observations and opinion about this product are being posted to help other consumers. If you want a better review, please make a better product!

***UPDATE***

After a few more days I thought maybe changing the grind to a courser setting would help keep this 'professional' grinder from clogging. Nice try, but no...

I did a very extensive cleaning and set the grind at 9 the unit worked for a few seconds and clogged again. I cleaned it again, still no luck.

On average, it takes about 3 cleanings to get enough grounds to make 8 cups of coffee. Oh, and did I mention the mess it leaves on the counter? What puzzles me is how it can leave such an extensive layer of fine powder (in about a 2 foot radius) even though it's set to 9. (with 1 being fine and 9 being course).

Summary, by the time it takes to grind enough beans to make coffee I could drive to any number of drive-thru coffee places, and be back home before this thing has done its job.

NOTE: I plan to keep the machine because I have yet to find someone that hasn't fully enjoyed laughing at how cheap this thing is. Everyone's favorite part is when the motor turns off, but the timer still winds down it sounds overly cartoonish when it finished making noise. I'm very serious we just can't help laughing.

additional note: the actual unit I purchased was the more expensive model BG-88PR.

The only reason I gave this product four instead of five stars is that it's a bit difficult to get a good grip on the grounds holder to remove it from the machine. Otherwise, it's an excellent product for preparing fresh-ground coffee every morning. I've come home on several occasions to find the wonderful smell of coffee still hanging around the apartment. It's also not very loud. I have two birds who freak out at practically every sudden noise, and this machine hardly disturbed them. It was quieter than my blender and is relatively easy to clean with a pastry brush, and some all-plastic parts (the hopper lid and the grounds holder) can be completely removed and washed.

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I have had my Nesco Burr for about 2 weeks now and so far so good.

It will not make turkish but it may possibly do the job for espresso.

It would never pass the test for a connoisseur or Barista. If you are a beginner it may work out. I will let you know on this because I do plan to get an espresso machine soon probably a Starbucks Barista off eBay since thats the best quality for the money in my price range .

I bought this at the same time as a Mukka express Cappuccino maker which I returned (not a good product).

For now I am using it with a french press and it does the job well .

You do need some type of small long brush like you would use to baste your BBQ to clean out the old grounds so you do not have any stail coffee grounds in your next brew.

I am still playing around with it so I will come back and update soon.

My conclusion so far is it is a decent burr grinder for the money and people looking for a little more quality and uniform grind than you would get from a blade grinder but I would not expect the quality of a $100 burr from this.

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This product stopped working after having it for only 3 weeks...something failed with either the power switch or the motor of the unit. Very disappointing...

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I was hesitant to buy this grinder, since it's price was so much lower than other multi grind setting grinders. I'm glad I opted for the cheap option, because it works great! I use it to grind my beans into espresso, and it works really well at such a fine setting.

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Bialetti 9 Cup Moka Espresso Stovetop Coffee Maker

I purchased the 9 cup coffeemaker for my husband who is never happy with the drip coffeemakers I usually buy. He complains that the coffee is not strong enough. Well this coffee is STRONG. Originally this is an espresso maker. I put about 3 scoops of coffee beans into my grinder and then into this little guy, fill the water up to the line, cook on the stovetop for about 10 minutes and I get two smaller cups of coffee. Then I make another pot. I should have bought a bigger size so we could each have two big cups of coffee at a time, but it's hard to know how big these things are and how much they make since all the descriptions are for cups of espresso...very small cups. But it is simple to use and the coffee is strong and robust and my husband is happy. The only complaint I have is it a bit to small-I should have gotten a bigger size. Otherwise, it's awesome!