dhlacey's Full Review: Krups FME4 12-Cup Coffee Maker
ORIGINAL REVIEW: We use our coffeemaker about 4 times a day during the week, and more often on weekends, and we are fussy about our coffee, and especially our coffeemaker. We went through two Brauns over the course of five or six years, and although we liked them, We hated the on/off switch location, which allowed a cup, or plate, or kitchen object nudged against the base to turn the machine on when moving things around on the countertop. So, I eventually went out and got a super deal on a Krups Pro Aroma 12 cup model. It had the switch up high, and out of the way. Now, five years later, and although it still worked well, I had an extra $99.00 burning a hole in my pocket, so it "became" time to get a new one. The old one will be saved as a second machine (decaf anyone?) for large gatherings, or to take on vacation.
It was pretty easy to choose another Krups, even though the stainless-wrapped Cuisinart Brew Central with its vintage look was very tempting. It seems to get good reviews, too, but the small water fill opening and needing to look down into that dark tank from the top rear for a water level were big negatives for us. At 6'2", even I had a hard time seeing the water level marks from counter top height. But, for those of you considering the Cuisinart, some reviewers have mentioned that the basket is not removable. Not so. In newer models, at least, the basket has a finger loop on it, and just a firm tug will get it out, but it's nowhere near as easy to do as the Krups.
We made side-by side comparisons of the FME4 and the Cuisinart in the store, but wound up with the Krups because even though it was $20.00 more, two things convinced us:
1: Its appearance is cleaner and less cluttered with knobs and buttons.
2: We were very happy with our old Krups Pro Aroma.
After cleaning out the machine per the instructions, we set the clock and made our standard "coffee for two" batch, which is two medium rounded tablespoons of coffee and two nine-ounce mugs of water, which sort of translates into the standard coffee formula of one tablespoon for each six ounces of water. (Two somewhat rounded measuring tablespoon spoonfuls equals about three levels.) We fill our mugs with water, and pour it into the machine. There is no measuring. Sticking with a the basic formula of one tablespoon for every six ounces of water, no matter how you do it, should yield a pretty nice cup of coffee. On the other hand, if you used an extra tablespoon or two in a pot, you'd hardly notice it. After all, The water can only absorb so much coffee in the short time it flows through the grinds. Many people use a tablespoon from the silverware drawer. I'd recommend keeping one of those stubby measuring tablespoons right in the coffee jar. Ok, enough on coffee formulas.
My observations on the FME4, are that it is somewhat quieter than our old Krups machine. It beeps politely when it's finished brewing, and the signal can be shut off, if desired. The no-drip basket, which uses the euro-type #4 cone filters, allows you to grab a cup while the machine is brewing. Out of filters? A skillfully folded paper towel can work in a pinch. The FME4 will even shut down if it's inadvertently started when there is no water in it, such as when setting the timer to make coffee and forgetting to put water in the tank. What is nice here is that the timer's cool blue LCD displays an empty tank icon that lets you know you goofed. The FME4 also electronically monitors heating element scale buildup and lets you know when it's time to do the white vinegar thing. (After only a dozen pots, we received the CALC warning, but we reset and it's been fine.) The timer/clock display is also larger and more readable than the Cuisinart's.
The basket door has a "soft" dampened release ("HAL, open the pod bay doors, please"...) that prevents it from slapping sideways when you open it. Nice Touch.. The basket, like those in many euro coffee machines, is readily removable to plop into the dishwasher or to empty the grinds into the trash if you have to traipse across the kitchen to the waste bin, like we do. No dripping filter mess left in the sink! And it's a better design than the top-basket of the Cuisinart, which I believe exposes the water tank to an accidental spill of coffee if you happen to have a shaky hand or not be too awake when you're adding coffee. Grinds in the water tank could be a problem.
The carafe of the FME4 is thinner and the lid seems to be flimsier than the old one, and personally, the old carafe just seems better-built, but time will tell. It pours very well, but the new lid doesn't fit as well as the old one, and it tends to allow a little steam to escape out the hinge side and sort of scald your pouring thumb a little unless you are careful. This is a quibble, not a problem. If you're rough on carafes, check out the Cuisinart, which has a better carafe. However, a plus over the Cuisinart is that although both machines have no-drip baskets, the FME4's is a slicker, less bulky design that lets the carafe slide in and out of the machine with ease, compared to the spring-loaded appendage hanging down in the carafe bay of the Cuisinart. Theirs, I thought, might prove more vulnerable to wear and tear.
Temperature-wise, two or three cup amounts of coffee tend to come out a little cooler (160 degrees, still hot enough) than a full batch, but the warming plate gets it back up to around 165-175. Some people may think it's not hot enough, as it tends to cool down faster. We find those temperatures fine for our tastes. At 160-170, the coffee will hold longer without degrading the flavor. The warming plate did a fine job overall. We also liked the ability to program the machine to shut it down after one to five hours, nice if you forget to shut it off when you leave for work. I don't know why anyone would want to keep coffee hot for more than an hour, though. By then, the goodness is just about gone.
The pot and water level markings were accurate, at least at the 12 cup point. Our 18 oz of water yielded slightly more than 3.5 cups in the sight glass, which means that CUPS in the the FME4 are nominally 5 oz, pretty standard. The FME4 has a good cord storage feature for countertop neatnicks. The timer is easy to program and other than the CALC false alarm described above, it worked without a hitch, although we don't use it very often. There's also a replaceable water filter element. The machine can be used without it if you choose.
The stainless top and basket door look better at home than in the store, and the machine doesn't draw attention to itself, at least with that bulbous space-ship styling seen lately. I'd have to call the styling practical and unobtrusive.
Finally, while a number of less expensive coffemakers are capable of producing a good cup of coffee, I believe that the FME4 with its nice set of operating features, sensible design and Krup's reputation for reliability, is worth the price.
IMPORTANT UPDATE 8/28/05....HOLD EVERYTHING: The warming plate coating has begun to come off of the third straight unit, which I've had about one week, after exchanging the first two for the same problem. I've e-mailed the company, with no response. It was disappointing in view of all the other positives. The coating on our old Krups held up for years. This coating doesn't appear to be the same thing. It seems that the heat from the plate softens the coating or primer and lets it scuff off when the carafe slides over it.
My apologies to those who purchased this machine and had the problem. Until this problem is fixed, I've changed my rating to BELOW AVERAGE....
8/29/05: I called Krups and they told me to send the unit to their Medford, MA facility to be looked at by engineers. Since I live but 15 minutes from there, they reluctantly allowed me to drop it off, (it is not a service facilty open to the public) and they are supposed to be sending me a new unit from a warehouse somewhere else. Thank goodness we still have our old, but still excellent ProAroma. We did not have the bubble problem described in the latest review, but it would seem that Krups is having some quality issues with this new unit. I'm waiting to see if the problem was production-batch related, or if it has affected the entire model run.
UPDATE 9/10/05: Well, we received a brand-new FME4 from a Krups warehouse a few days ago, as promised by a Krups rep who called to let us know they had acknowledged the problem and would be sending us a replacement. Unfortunately, the finish has started to come off its warming plate as well. I'm no longer sure how many units we've had the problem with, but it has to be at least three, if not four. The stuff will actually transfer to the bottom of the carafe under heat, and every time we remove the carafe, we're reminded that we spent a hundred bucks for something that looks like it came from a yard sale.
Too bad, because otherwise, we loved the FME4. My next step will be to pick up a Cuisinart Brew Central, our only other choice, and try it for a week, as we still have a week or two left to return the Krups.
UPDATE 9/22/05: The saga continues. I called Krups again, and this time, was ASSURED that the problem is a thing of the past. They sent me a shipping label, and I'm just waiting for the FIFTH FME 4 to arrive. As Arnold says, "I'll be back"!!!!
10/04/05 Well, I received the replacement today. Seems they have corrected the warming plate issue. This one is darker, almost black, and I could tell it was much better than the original ones. They also corrected another minor cosmetic thing: On earlier models, the stainless basket door is laquered, but the stainless on the top of the machine was not. It was a pain to clean. Almost impossible, in fact. Now, the top is laquered, too. Good move....
However, this unit had a defective clock. I blew my top, but I didn't want to give up, so I sent it back, received yet another replacement (#6?), and that worked fine for a couple of weeks until it started leaking water onto the hot plate during the brew process. Water would run down the back of the macine due to a failed seal or something. Rather than go through the factory replacement process again, I took it back to Linens and Things and got another one. On that one, the alarm failed. I just took it back today and got a refund. We've plugged in the old Krups Aromaster while we look for a new machine, and it will probably be the Braun KF590, which seems to be getting favorable reviews.
We went from store to store and checked at least a dozen FME-4's, and they still have the defective hot plates. Krups knew about the problem back in August, and has evidently done nothing.
I wouldn't go near another one..
I did purchase a Braun KF590, and although it does not have the capacity and feature set of the FME-4, It has no quality and build issues.
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