I wanted a coffee bean grinder to use with my new coffee maker, and since the Braun KMM 30 was available at the same store, I purchased it at the same time. This is not a new product, having reviews that go back to 1999, but that says something to me about its value, since the same model is still selling in 2003. I am pleased with it, so I thought I would comment on it.

This a burr grinder. The precision milling system crushes the coffee beans instead of chopping them as is done with blade grinders. All reports I have read suggest that the coffee produced from milling tastes better than from chopping. This grinder has a coffee bean container that holds 1/2 pound of coffee, which produces 32 cups before refilling the whole bean container. This provides four days on one blend for me, since I like to make eight cups each day for my family.

This machine is simplicity itself! Just turn the dial to the number of seconds and it grinds that amount. I found that the seconds dial equates to two cups for each increment of "10" on the dial. So if I set it for "40", it grinds 8 cups of grounds. The Timer Off/On dial goes to a maximum setting of "60", so it grinds approximately 12 cups of coffee in one grind cycle.

You can remove the ground coffee from the ground coffee container one scoop at a time or remove the whole container to pour the ground coffee into the filter basket of your coffee maker. There is a little coffee dust when you remove the ground coffee container, but nothing to complain about. It is a very fine powder and tends to drop from the chute that connects the grinding mechanism to the ground coffee container. The fine powder falls onto the surface that supports the container when it is in place. When the container is returned to the grinder, the dust is out of sight. I just place the whole grinder unit on a paper towel once a week and brush this powder onto the towel with my hand or with a facial tissue, which keeps the powder off the counter. The ground coffee container has two notches at the bottom and slides easily away from and onto the main motor housing on two tracks. But be sure you have the top securely in place on the ground coffee container when you start the grind cycle, because the grounds will fly out onto the counter even with your hand over the top of the container. I forgot to replace the top once and it did require some major clean up.

The fineness settings are selected with a rotating ring below the coffee bean container. The settings range is from 1 to 15. Setting 1 through 9 are for the espresso and Turkish-style coffees. Ten through 15 are for drip coffee makers. I set mine for the mid-range for drip coffee makers (12-1/2) and it makes a great cup of coffee. I tried the coarsest setting to compare the size of the grind with ground coffee from a can of drip grind coffee and found it to be similar.

What would I like improved? The timer knob starts the grind motor as soon as you start moving it to the desired number of seconds. I think it would be nice to have a "Grind Start" button, so you could set the timer and then begin the grind cycle. The benefit would be a more exact yield, as the machine is grinding before you get to your desired setting. This is not a major problem. It is only my preference.

The unit comes only in white. It is designed more for functionality than style, so it’s lines from the side are squared off with an inverted cone at the top for the whole beans. But it looks fine on my counter.

I paid $50 for this grinder and know I could have saved if I had looked for discounts. I wanted to start enjoying ground coffee right away, so I purchased it at this price instead of waiting. But I am very pleased with the results with the very first pot of fresh coffee, so I believe it was a good decision for me.



Recommended: Yes