I actually bought this machine right before it was seen on "Survivor". It was one of the items that the tribe who won the reward challenge was presented with. So I thought great if they are advertising this on show that has such great ratings it must be pretty good.

Well, it is easy to use and the coffee isn't bad. I am not a huge coffee drinker anyway and I don't like my coffee super strong so me and my machine are compatible as far as that goes. This machine does not make STRONG coffee. The other thing that it doesn't do well is make real hot coffee if you used bottled water that is very cold. So after realizing that the best thing to do is use room temperature water I now can have coffee that is hot enough to be pleasant.

My first machine lasted approximately six months, now I don't drink coffee everyday and sometimes it wasn't used for a week or so at a time. The day it decided to stop working, I got it already and pushed the button to brew a cup of joe and NOTHING, NADA, ZIP. I tried several times, I moved the machine to a different electrical outlet, nope, dumped the water and removed the pod and started over unh uh. So I got my little manual out looked it over and called the number inside for help.

The customer service person was quite nice, I told her the problem she gave me a customer number and told me to cut off the plug and mail it back with $5.95 and I would get a new machine in approximately 3 months. Okay, so what I don't make coffee for three months while I wait patiently at my door for a new coffee maker.

I went to the department store that night and bought another one, this was about a year ago and it is still working. By the way, I never did get the replacement. So I would have been waiting a pretty long time.

The machine overall is cheaply made. I actually bought one for my summer home and that one is even worse as far as quality goes. The parts are easy to clean and they do need to be cleaned regularly. The drip plate and the well underneath especially. The base of the machine gets splattered by the coffee as it starts out in spurts and sprays that surface. I descale the machine every couple of months.

The machine is quite noisy and sometimes I just cancel it as it is coming to a finish just to so I don't have to listen to it. If you had a light sleeper in the house chances are they would wake up from the noise.

The coffee pods are pricey for the quantity. I use the three that fit the machine, Maxwell house the Hazelnut is good, the Folgers French vanilla is okay and the columbian is alright. Some of my friends like the coffee from this machine and others absolutely do not. But again, everyone has different tastes as far as coffee goes.

Would I buy this machine again if it breaks down the answer is absolutely not. I wouldn't buy something that obviously has a design defect. The company did not replace my first machine even though they said they would so that wasn't very professional on their part.


Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 59.99