Customer Reviews

Hamilton Beach 4 Cup Brewer w/ Stainless Steel Carafe (Free Coffee Samples)

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

My old 4-cup Mr. Coffee was a decent little coffeemaker and it lasted for about three years before it started to give me trouble. Technically it still works but the coffee it brews is only warm, not hot. So I decided it was time for a new machine.

I did a lot of research, and the fact of the matter is that there just aren't many good quality 4-cup coffeemakers on the market. I researched the models from Mr. Coffee, Cuisinart, and Black & Decker, and none of them got particularly good reviews. I went to local stores and played with the display models and all of them felt very light, flimsy, and cheap. Even the $40 Cuisinart was featherweight and felt like it would fall apart at any moment.

I've always had good luck with Hamilton Beach products, so when I found this one online, I had a good feeling about it. I did some more research and found that this particular model is used in hotels all over the country. That seemed like a good sign. Commercial grade products are usually built to a higher standard than consumer grade stuff.

So I ordered it, and sure enough, it's a major step above the 4-cup machines made by the other manufacturers. Even though it's made mostly of plastic, it is heavy and stable and definitely won't tip over easily. The power cord is heavy grade and has a 3-prong plug. The on/off switch has a nice spring action and seems durable.

Due to the fact that these are made for hotel rooms, there are picture-based instructions in white ink on top of the coffeemaker. If you are very concerned about appearances, this might bother you. It doesn't bother me. The #1 thing I'm concerned about is how the coffee tastes... and with that in mind...

It tastes great! It's very hot, much hotter than my old Mr. Coffee. But the water isn't TOO hot, so you don't need to worry about it making the coffee bitter and over-extracted.

I only have two complaints, and they are relatively minor: when you're finished brewing coffee and you open the basket holder to remove the grounds and filter, a small amount of water falls out and splashes onto the warming plate and onto the counter. It's not a huge amount of water -- maybe a teaspoon -- but it does do this every time I brew coffee. Just something to be aware of; have a paper towel handy and it's not a problem. My other complaint is that there is no way of knowing how much water is in the reservoir. Usually they have a little window or some other indicator, but this unit doesn't have either. Mildly annoying, but not a huge issue and obviously doesn't affect the coffee itself.

All in all, I'm very pleased with this coffeemaker and would recommend it to anyone who is searching for a good quality 4-cup machine.

At last a machine that makes HOT coffee. Every other machine I've owned I would have to put the cup in the microwave to heat it, coffee was warm at best.
This machine is GREAT!! The best coffee maker I've ever owned, and I've had many. And you don't have to worry about the pot breaking because it's not glass.
This little powerhouse gets the job done!

Very conveniently a 16 oz Aquafina water is perfect to fill the pot. It brews great very hot strong coffee and I like that the stainless is more durable than glass. It's easy to clean and it has the 1 hr auto shutoff feature my work requires. It also has a heavy duty power cord and is just made very well.

The good things about this machine are:
1. It's small and makes 2 perfect 8 oz. cups of coffee
2. Coffee is hot
3. The stainless steel carafe is easy to take care of because you don't have to worry about it breaking.
4. The filter and components are easy to use and clean


Things that need improving:
1. You can't see the water level.
2. It's not digital so you can't program it.
3. The hotplate is really too hot so if I leave it on after the coffee is made it burns it pretty quickly. This is a hassle because I always have to listen for when the coffee is finished brewing so I can turn the machine off.
4. It is a little difficult to take the pot in and out because of the filter apparatus. I was used to having the pot in place then putting in the coffee in the filter and closing it. It's not possible to do that with this machine. You have to close the filter before putting the pot in place.
5. The filter drips water when you open it to empty it.

I chose this machine because it had such high ratings but I think if I had to do it over again I'd choose the Mr. Coffee one. I only went with this because of the stainless steel carafe and because it claimed to make hot coffee but now I have to watch the machine so not good if I need to have the coffee sit there for a little bit. Can't really comment about the quality of coffee though because I think that has more to do with the bean than the machine.

Hamilton Beach Commercial 4 Cup Coffeemaker Model # HDC700S (Type A-18) with Stainless Carafe

http://www.amazon.com/Hamilton-Beach-Commercial-Coffee-Maker/dp/B0008ISVXM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1252934079&sr=1-2

What drove me in getting this make ? frustration, that is in getting yet another 4 Cup Brewer that can't produce a Hot cup of coffee, so far was a Black & Decker and Cuisinart 4-Cup makers, both only made coffee at 163 degs believe me not hot enough, I used to drink it black with sugar now I am back to extra half / half, add that from the refrig one can lose 20 degs, in heat so starting off with a weak heating coffee maker then add cream one is at approx 140 degs ! now it's a re-heat in a microwave that is a extra dirty cup, I use double wall SS 15oz travel cup.

At last I didn't think I would find any coffee maker that made a higher temperature since my favorite Braun 4 Cup Coffee Maker # KF-12, 179 degs, add cold cream no problem out the door.

The stats
This model is very well made, it doesn't slide when pushing the on or off switch, it has no programmable controls, no problem at all with me, ever since I heard of a employee I worked with left his coffee brewer plug-in and his kitchen burnt down, I pull the plug ! it comes with the latest feature to get an advance cup or pause 'n serve cup, a feature I detest, since IMO only a ignorant person would do that because he/she can't wait a few extra mins, till it's all done, this person gets the "extra strong" cup and the rest is diluted left over, I was just reminded (she dose that : ) she likes the pause 'n serve because it's a safety feature she seen what happens at work to a lot of people getting coffee for customers when some one pulls the coffee pot out early and gets a hot splash, ok, ok that's different than some one who just can't wait, ok it's a safety feature : )

I ordered it with a stainless steel carafe, I am personally not a big fan of SS carafes, I like to see what is going on : - )) could only get a "fits all" replacement S.S. for my Braun (brews,179 degs) but with this one I now have a battle ready carafe as a spare when needed, yes I have ordered a HB glass carafe, but speaking about this S.S. carafe this is no doubt the best pouring carafe I ever used, bar-none, it is an issue with most 4 cup carafes believe me, even with my blessed Braun you have to be just right (read level and slow) in pouring, this carafe never leaked a drop of coffee out after pouring many times (start an stopping) in testing fast or slow and all of the coffee but the smallest drop came out of the carafe in the end, I just hope the glass one I ordered will work half as well, hopefully will update.

As for the taste ? I read reviews on this non-commercial model (here) and some stated it brews a little weaker no doubt because of the round filter design instead of the V shape which does make sense, well I am drawn a bit by this, to me it seems that its only a tiniest bit true, but by very little, I make my coffee 6 oz standard coffee cup with one level teaspoon (measuring spoon) for a 4 cup, I use 3 level tablespoons and 1 half tablespoon, I am use to my Braun maker taste, using the HB I have to guess it was a tad lighter tasting but the jury is still out on this, no big deal I will try using 4 level tablespoons if I decide it is a little weaker. One too two "level" measuring tablespoons is the standard for a standard 6 oz cup of coffee. BTW- this S.S. carafe makes / holds 20 oz as dose my Braun or one good travel mug, I don't believe there are any true 6 oz (4) cup, 24 oz makers out there, will see how much difference if any, the glass carafe will hold.

Ok the first brew after the first just water brew run, the temperature was an amazing 184 degs !! finally a maker who makes a cup of hot coffee the right temperature, instead of the typical coffee makers whos legal staff are running the design department.

As for the power draw:
Start-up or brewing cycle time 7 mins
570 Watts, 4.66 Amps
After brewing with warmer only on (one hour auto shut-off)
02 Watts, .06 Amps

Pros

A great hot cup of (184 degs) coffee with an automatic shut off, one hour instead of the typical 20 mins ones out there, the timer works and the temperature was 181 degs just before the time of shut off so the warmer keeps up with the brewer temp, over all height is 11", standard store brought 4 cup round filters work perfectly and a nice blue indicating on light, you know when this unit is done brewing by the littlest burst of final steam out the top sides, a little less than 7 minutes. .

Cons (To some)

Round filter basket design, not the V shape # 2 filter type, yes a small amount of liquid drops when after brewing swinging out the basket, either wait longer to open or have a paper towel ready.
Some people will not like the "how too" graphics on the top lid, remember this review is on the "Commercial" product made for motels / hotels, read heavy duty, the cord is a 3 prong 47" long to the end not the typical 18 inches or less cord, these both things are not a problem with me.

The only reason I ordered this unit was, I wanted one that would at least last as long as my Braun (still does work) first one '89 to 2003 (glass carafe broke) second one new 2003 to present (but with a fits-all S.S. carafe) can not get an original glass carafe for this unit, this new unit goes up to my girl friends place.

In the end I could have brought this model's in the non-commercial version the page your reading now (from Amazon)

http://www.amazon.com/Hamilton-Beach-Brewer-Stainless-Samples/dp/B000OOQWFY/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1253275448&sr=1-2

Just like this one and it has really great reviews like the "Hot coffee" but I was thinking how long will this unit last, that was my driving force so I'll live with the graphs and longer cord, in thinking now yes the difference is most likely just the length of cord and it's 3-prong, (only time will tell ) if you need a longer cord for a coffee maker and don't want to use an (10 amp rated min) extension cord, this model is for you, I have no regrets with this unit and just love buying form Amazon, 9 out of 10 times dose have the best price and shipping, I think their service is great if I ever do find a tiny price difference, I will, way it out, who is doing the selling at the other end ?, is it worth taking a chance ?, in the end it's, no.

UPDATE:
On the H.B. replacement 4 cup glass carafe #88085
It pours just like the S.S. carafe great and it holds 4 oz more
(24 oz total) that brings it up to a true 4 cup (6oz) carafe, price
approx $8


Good luck and hope this helps a little.

I bought this coffee pot several months ago, and for the most part, I think it's excellent. It is definitely better than the Cuisinart coffee maker I had previously. This coffee maker produces very good coffee--and I'm fussy about coffee. The carafe is easy to clean. If you remove the carafe to snitch some coffee while it's still brewing, the mechanism shuts off and the coffee doesn't drip onto the warming plate. The only reservation I have is that you really must turn it off after you pour the first cup, because the warming plate will scorch any coffee left in the pot.

This 4 cup coffeemaker by Hamilton Beach has really come in handy here in my hotel room! I am on vacation; but yesterday I started to come down with a bug and today I used this to make myself several piping hot cups of herbal tea. It couldn't be any easier to use--the visual instructions on the top of the reservoir are very, very easy to understand although as one reviewer notes the instructions do give the coffeemaker that "hotel look" which may turn some people off.

If I want to make myself some coffee instead of tea, this little machine doss the job every bit as well. Fill the carafe up to the amount of hot water you want (there are markings on the carafe to indicate how many cups you'll get from filling it up to different levels) and just pour the water into the reservoir. Add the coffee filter and ground coffee into the basket in the middle of the coffeemaker; and you're ready to go. After you're finished you can remove the coffee filter and any remaining grounds by simply sliding the basket to one side and that's that! Although another reviewer writes that some water comes out when they do this, I haven't experienced any water spilling onto the counter when I use this. In addition, the auto-turn off feature is quite good. It should prevent this from being a fire hazard.

All in all, this is a fine little coffeemaker that lets you prepare a great cup of tea as well. I highly recommend it.

I love this coffee pot because it is one of the few that makes really hot coffee.

I first used the Hamilton Beach 4-cup model in a hotel room. It was small, simple, fast, and made piping hot and delicious coffee. For years, I have used a French press for my coffee at home, because I am the only coffee drinker in my house. Even with a double-walled French press, the coffee is cold before I am finshed. (I have a full-size drip machine with a thermal carafe for parties, but it is too big one person.)

So, I decided I would buy something like this for myself, and was delighted to find the exact model from my hotel room, because I already knew I would like it. I am very pleased with this machine. One commenter mentioned a drip when swinging out the basket to remove the grounds. Yes, this happens, but I am usually cleaning up when I do that and have a dish cloth with me anyway.

If you order this machine, you may also want to order the junior (4-cup) coffee filters, because that size isn't commonly stocked in supermarkets.

I had this machine four about oh.. 3 years i would say.
still purking !
Just a simple well built machine - no bells or whistles here.
I bought it from sams club- it think it was less than $20 back then.
since this is a review I feel obligated to point out a negative -My biggest complaint would have to be the on/off toggle switch -because the machine is such a light weight -you have to physically hold down the machine to toggle the switch- otherwise you end up pushing the entire machine across the counter and the switch will still not budge. so be prepared to use two hands every time you want to turn off or turn on the machine. other than that- not a bad machine for the price.
I would agree with some of the other posts about the swing filter holder being a bitch to put back on. definetly needs a little manipulation to put back on. but..it will last you forever.