Keurig B-70 B70 Platinum Single-Cup Home Brewing System
by Keurig
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List Price: Our Price: $164.00 You Save: $65.99 (29%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $90.00 (click here) Category: Kitchen See more product details |
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Keurig B-70 B70 Platinum Single-Cup Home Brewing System
Customer Review: A TOTAL WASTE OF MONEY -- Worse than that, in fact!
Summary: 1 Stars
WOE BE UNTO YOU WHO CLICK 'ADD TO CART' or 'PURCHASE WITH ONE-CLICK' -- THERE IS ONLY PAIN AND AGONY HERE.....
I would say that this item is a total waste of money, but that really fails to capture the magnitude of the hatred I have for this device. We bought one of these after having a cup of coffee at our car dealer while waiting for service, and much to my surprise, we had found the coffee tasted pretty good. So with an eye toward more convenience, less prep time in the morning, and less clean-up over all, we bought one of these "things" through Amazon -- note that I refuse to call it a "coffee maker" since - despite the tags on this review - it is CERTAINLY not THAT.
For starters, the K-Cups are great, in terms of ease of use, but every cup of coffee our machine ever made from them tasted just like plastic. After several weeks of trying many different varieties and brands, we gave up, and bought the wire mesh K-cup filter and went back to grinding our own coffee by hand. (To add insult to injury, by the way, our old coffee maker, which made GREAT coffee, had had the grinder built in, so I had to go out and spend $[...] MORE bucks on a coffee grinder to go with this thing!) What they don't tell you, however, is that if you go that route, and sooner or later you will unless you like drinking molten plastic, then this thing is MORE TROUBLE and MORE MESS that the $[...] Mr. Coffee that's probably sitting on your counter right now.
So making our own "K-Cups" fixed the problem, right? Hardly! After months of fiddling with the thing, trying different coffees, different grind settings, washing it out with vinegar per the mfr instructions many, many times, and doing everything else we could think of, we gave up. The "clincher" was when the flow dropped off and we couldn't get it to come back even though we cleaned it several times. You had to run the unit TWICE to get ONE cup of coffee. We had had enough. Finally my wife said, "throw that thing away!"
Oh, how I had been waiting for those words.... Sentence pronounced, justice came swiftly for the K-Monster. I was the Executioner. What I did to that machine that morning cannot be spoken of, as I suspect it is probably illegal in several states. Suffice it to say that one of the happier moments of 2010 thus far was when I dumped what remained of the Keurig thing into the Herbie Curbie and walked away.
Ultimately, after many many MONTHS of owning the K-Monster, and investing HOURS in cleaning, adjusting and tweaking it, I never ever got ONE SINGLE CUP OF COFFEE out of the thing that I thought was worth drinking or that I would have been proud to serve to a guest in my home. I can only laugh when I see people write that this thing brews an "excellent" cup of coffee.
Save yourself a lot of time, a lot of trouble, (not to mention $[...] bucks or so after you buy a box of K-Cups), plus, and most importantly, a lot of grumpy mornings because - trust me - you'll be walking out of the house with a mug full of lukewarm coffee-tinged liquid that looks like pond water and which purports to pass itself of as as an "excellent cup of coffee", and you will be angry -- very angry! -- until you can swing through a Starbucks or Dunkin drive-thru to get a decent cup of real coffee...
There are many coffee makers out there for one-half, a third, a quarter the price of this thing, or even $[...] or less, that actually make real coffee -- and far superior to what you will get from the K-Monster thing. Save yourselves the agony. Run the other way!
Customer Review: A Wonderful Machine that Makes a Great Cup
Summary: 5 Stars
I had heard bad things about one-cup brewers; that the coffee tasted like instant, that they were undependable, etc. Recently I stayed at a luxury hotel that had a Keurig in the room. I was blown away by the taste!
Let me just say for the record; nothing beats freshly ground, recently roasted beans brewed in a french press, however, who wants to go through all of that every time you want some coffee? Then you might have some friends that want decaf or a flavored coffee. This machine takes care of that problem by allowing you to keep a wide selection of beverages available at a moments notice. Although the resulting cup is not quite as good as freshly ground, it's very close.
After reading the Amazon reviews I decided on the Keurig B70. Yes, it does make a loud noise and vibrates, but only when drawing water from the reservoir into the machine. I can live with that. It is a beautiful gadget that has found a place of honor on my counter.
The machine came with a variety of coffee pods packed-in with it. Plus, I bought several sample packs of k-cups (some from Amazon, some directly from Keurig) so that my guests would have a good choice of coffee, tea or hot cocoa (I store them on the Keurig Spinning Carousel). So far my favorites have been the Newman's Own Fair Trade Organic dark roast and Celestial Seasoning's Sleepy Time tea.
I have enjoyed owning this brewer so much that I purchased a B40 for work. I really recommend this item.
Keurig 5060 27-Cup-Capacity K-Cup Spinning Carousel, Chrome
Keurig B40 Elite Gourmet Single-Cup Home-Brewing System
Customer Review: A bargain--really
Summary: 5 Stars
When my wife needed to start drinking decaf, it was time to buy a single-cup brewer. The K-cup system seemed superior due to the wide variety of coffees offered and ease-of-use. We finally settled on the Keurig B-70 and have been happy with our purchase.
The Keurig system is technically an espresso maker since it pumps hot water through the grounds, rather than use gravity. Nevertheless, it is a low pressure system so it doesn't make true espresso. For regular coffee, its convenience, speed, and versatility are unbeatable
Styling: Sleek and modern. The blue LEDs illuminate the LCD screen and water tank, which is quite visible and easy to refill. Some might not like its asymmetry.
Functionality: Set up is simple, clean-up nonexistent. Programming is intuitive and simple; even the buttons flash to prompt you. It took far longer to try and understand the rather obtuse programming instructions in the booklet than it did to simply program it. Useful features include settable on and off times and programmable auto shut-off. I don't know if the programmed off time or auto off feature takes precedence if a conflict exists. The on-off switch is located in the rear since it is assumed that you will rather use the programmed on-off feature.
Noise: I have read some who object to the noise. The Keurig will make a buzz for a few seconds when the tank refills. It is about as noisy as a small, good-quality electric espresso maker, and far quieter than a coffee grinder.
Taste: The taste of any coffee is dependent on the beans, roast, grind, water temperature, freshness, and water/coffee. With freshness a given, ideal temperature, and full extraction, these variables are optimized. I would experiment until you find the coffee that you like. Many websites have detailed reviews of each variety. Also important is the volume of water used. The B-70 has 4 volume settings that should suit any taste. For those who want a large mug of strong coffee, it might be necessary to use 2 K-cups. The permanent filter is also an option for those who want to use their own coffee, although it does entail some clean-up.
Green features: Avoiding waste is a desirable feature, since you only brew the amount of coffee that you will drink. Commonly, with pot style makers, there is left over coffee that spoils. The K-cups themselves can be recycled by ripping off the foil lid, dumping the grounds, and tearing out the filter. This is a bit messy but if you compost the grounds and filter will produce less waste than buying coffee in typical airtight laminate plastic bags.
Competition: The Breville 600 appears to have identical features and functionality as the B-70. It has a well-designed recess for the permanent filter (which is included) and a scoop, and its plastic body is cased in a thin layer of stainless. It also has a carbon filter. I'm sure it works fine but I don't know if it worth the extra $85 unless you have an all-stainless kitchen.
Economy: K-cups cost 40¢ each at Amazon, and have no tax or shipping. A typical pound of premium coffee is $10, which is good for 30-40 cups. Although the cost/cup is higher with the Keurig, it comes out about the same since you waste less. If you go to Stabucks every day, you will save much more, although you cannot get your half-soy 136 degree 1.5 pump no sugar caramel half-caf lattiato.
Conclusion: The Keurig B-70, a bit pricy at $199 (20% less at BB&B) is unbeatable for functionality, speed, convenience, and variety. It is on the high-end for conventional coffee makers (my grandfather boiled the grounds and strained them through an old sock) but it is worth the price.
Customer Review: A breakfast-time robotic companion
Summary: 5 Stars
I don't drink a lot of coffee, but when I do, I like the experience as much as the coffee itself. For instance, when I need a coffee and I go into the gas station to buy a cup, I enjoy listening to conversations between landscapers in Spanish. I equally enjoy holding the door for the mother of an infant who is talking loudly on her cellphone.
Out around town, I like to take in the outdoors while drinking my coffee, watching the cars try to parallel park or watching the birds chase a squirrel. You know, I enjoy the little things.
So, what do I do when my wife tells me she wants to buy a coffee maker which brews only one cup at a time and the cups can cost nearly $1 each? I look for the experience. You see, this isn't a coffee maker, it is a beverage creation station from the future. It lights up in a science fiction-esque blue glow. A quick flick of the handle reveals a brew cup holding station which is home to two very sharp teeth. The machine emits a number of wonderous whirs and gurgles when it starts up. Technology has advanced to such a degree that you can even choose the temperature of your beverage down to the single degree.
If the Jetsons were alive today, they would be impressed by our single cup beverage machine from the future. With five choices of beverage sizes, the only thing it is missing is a robotic smile to greet me each morning. Some day we will have our coffee delivered to us by robotic butlers or cybernetic genetically controlled monkeys, but until then, I welcome this robotic glowing single cup brewer into my household.
Customer Review: A fabulous way to make coffee
Summary: 5 Stars
Let me start by saying that I am not a big coffee drinker. I drink more now that I own a B70 - a Christmas gift from my coffee-holic parents. I used to drink about 2 cups a day, it is now more than that. I have had the brewer for about a couple of months now, and have found it to be wonderful.
The good: It brews a cup of coffee outrageously fast. I also use it without a k-cup in it to make hot water and add a tea bag. Given the opportunity to sample numerous coffees, I have discovered some new brands that I wouldn't have ventured to try previously. I have had no problems with malfunctioning, and have just made my first cup of coffee with the My K-Cup which allows me to use my own ground coffee in the machine, allowing for use of brands not available in the K-Cup line, and saving me significant cash. I like a big cup of medium bodied coffee and I like the largest setting on this machine - larger than that found on the other machines in the series. I will admit that I am cheap.
The bad: K-Cups are not cheap. If you are drinking this coffee in lieu of stopping at the shop for cup, then you will save cash. If you are drinking it in lieu of the old fashioned home-brewed cup, expect it to ring in around 50 cents a cup. Also, unless you order on the internet, the k-cups can be difficult to find. Macy's and Target have a limited selection on hand and I have often driven to several stores to find Caribou, which is my absolute favorite. It is somewhat noisy when the water is being pumped into the chamber from the reservoir. Less so when the water reservoir is full. The largest cup size will use up the water in the reservoir at a fairly fast rate, requiring frequent refills. The K-Cup works well, but does not make as strong a cup of joe as my french press, but then the coffee is not percolating, is it?
Overall, I am extremely satisfied with this machine, and am hopeful that in experimenting with new coffees and grinds, I will find one that makes a good, flavorful cup of joe using the My K-Cup attachment.