Russell Hobbs RHCM3334 8-Cup Coffee Maker

Pros: Nice looking unit
Cons: But it can't hold the 8 cups I bargained for.

The Russel Hobbs RHCM3334 Coffeemaker is advertised as an 8 cup coffee maker.

But these are 4 ounce cups as defined in their manual: "A 4 oz. cup is the American industry standard and is used by most Coffee Maker manufacturers".

Coffee maker manufacturers are decreasing the volume of a "cup" of coffee. From 6 ounces, it has been drifting slowly lower, most are now 5. Russell Hobbs beats the competition with a 4 ounce cup.

The round, spring loaded valve in the carafe top is about marble size. The part in the coffee maker which opens this valve is rounded also. When the carafe is inserted, it is much like balancing one marble on top of another, where the force on the spring needed to open the valve is enough to make it tricky to get the carafe to stay centered.

Coffee makers, in general, suffer from requiring great care in inserting the carafe lest it be off center and cause a huge mess. This is the first design I've seen where it is obvious how the parts could easily be shaped to actually aid centering -- and Russell Hobbs failed to shape the parts appropriately.