toolg's Full Review: Krups FME4 12-Cup Coffee Maker
Krups must have thought of everything when they came up with this easy-to-use coffeemaker! They've done everything to make your coffee brewing easy and convenient. To simply brew a pot of coffee: load the basket, fill the machine with water and press on. Once the coffee is done an alarm beeps to let you know it has finished; no more running back-and-forth into the kitchen to check on the pot! You can turn this feature off if the beeps annoy you. If you can't wait for the coffee to finish, there is a stopper on the basket that works well enough. (However I have always preferred to wait until the pot is completely done.) If you're brewing a small batch, there is a 1-3 cup setting that helps brew the most flavor out of your coffee. I use this setting on most mornings since I'm brewing just a cup for myself; the coffee tastes just as good as the Black and Decker single-serving coffeemaker I had used before. The Programmable feature is easy enough to use (no need to explain the process here, the instructions are in the manual). Once the start time is set you only have to press one button to start the process again the next day. Every electronic feature is accessible within a few button presses: the finish beep, the Programmable functions, auto-off can be set between 1 and 5 hours, etc. If you try to start the coffee maker without water, the machine will automatically shut down and put a signal on the display. And when it is time to de-scale the machine, it will tell you.
With all of these features there are some quirks. The basket latch usually does not open automatically; you have to unlatch with one hand and pull it open with the other. The water-level indicator will sometimes bubble-up with small amounts so I cannot accurately read it. It seems to work better the more I fill the machine. When you pick up the coffee pot it doesn't feel very strong in your hand, but it seems durable-enough (I've had mine for a few months now, no chips or breaks) and it pours well. The only time it drips is when the pot is full and you try to pour it out fast (I haven't come across a coffee pot that doesn't drip when you try to over-pour a full pot!) I found that the duo-filter that comes with the machine is worthless; my coffee tastes the same with or without it. It's supposed to filter chlorine out of the water, so I guess you may notice if you have lots of chlorine in your water or ir you are really sensitive to the chlorine taste in your coffee. You don't have to use the duo-filter either, the machine works the same.
I looked at this model along with the FME1 and FME2 in the store; I chose this one and paid the extra $10 because the "stainless-steel" finish (1) makes the machine seem sturdier, and (2) better matches my kitchen-decor. (Be aware that the "steel" used on the machine isn't the best quality stuff by far.) I would assume the lesser models work pretty much the same.
All-in-all this is a nice coffeemaker that I am really happy with. Krups makes one good-tasting cup of coffee! (I almost forgot to mention how good the coffee ends up!) I'm sure there are nicer ones out there, but it will cost you. For the price of this one, you won't beat the value and the features the FME4 comes with.
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