Awesome coffee 1st 3 months & when fresh. If you drink the whole pot quickly, not a bad machine; move on if you don't. Disappointed that this machine goes down hill the longer you own it.
Positive Product Points
As with other pots that use the #4 filter, this one brews a decent cup of coffee. The thermal pot was nice and in the beginning kept the coffee pretty fresh / hot. Pot opening large enough for a female hand, not most men though. Looks good. Beeps to let you know coffee is done - which is a positive for me. I can hear it in another room Split top - dislike makers that have one opening for the grinds & water. We like swing out baskets, which seem to be getting harder to find.
Negative Product Points
Hard to measure water when not making a full pot as the water reservoir guide (on front) is not accurate and always had air bubbles in it. Coffee does not stay fresh tasting after having it for a few months. At 1st it was fine, but with most inexpensive pots, the coffee starts taking on a nasty flavor the longer it sits. It also does not stay as hot as it did when it was new. Water leaks all over the counter.. we can't figure out why, but most days there is a puddle on the counter. Carafe sounds like it has water stuck in it. Rubber feet come off when pushing the machine under the cabinet. If I lift it to move it back, they are fine. Pot is a bit heavy.
Detailed Commentary
I waited until we've owned it longer then 3 months as this is when we usually have issues with coffee makers. Had I written the review in the 1st 3 months, the review would be different. We've had it about 9 months, not sure if we will buy another or move on.
We were hesitant to buy a coffee maker for this price as we do not have luck with coffee makers. Seems like we need a new machine after 6 months. After looking at others like it, we decided on this model for our 1st thermal carafe because the others had such a narrow opening, we couldn't get our hand in it to clean the pot. I can fit my hand in it while hubby can't.
Making a full pot once we figured out how much coffee to use (we like 4 scoops) was pretty easy. Coffee taste great. Problem is that we make partial pots.. hubby gets up 1st.. then I get up. We've found that in order to do so, we use a large mug to measure water as our water reservoir guide is not accurate and always has air bubbles in it.
We wanted a thermal pot because we were having problems with other coffee makers burning the coffee after the 3 month period. We figured if we spent a little more on the thermal pot, the coffee would stay fresher longer, but as with any maker we've bought, this one too let us down after a few months. We've had it over 6 months & if the coffee is in the pot longer then 30 / 45 minutes it gets dumped because it's horrible and the coffee is too cool, especially if you use a shot of milk.
Buying Experience
Bought from Lowes. We had issues with the 1st machine and had to return it. The swing out locking basket was opening up during brewing.. what a mess. Lowes was great with exchanging.
Three Month Followup
Well, it's almost been a year that we've had this and it's really getting to the point that we need to replace it. There is a leak in the pot, however small, but there is liquid between the carafe and liner although it won't come out. It seems the longer we have it, the more I'm not liking it. Most days there is water on the counter, from what I can tell it is from the carafe lid although I am not sure if the water drips too fast into the pot, the pot not able to handle it or it's the steam dripping off, then down the side of the carafe.
One Year Followup
Coffee maker is dead and has been dead about 3 months. There was no warning, one morning it just stopped working. We ended up with a Black & Decker that is worst, looking to replace that asap.
