The VUE is a totally different unit than current K-Cup Keurigs. I'm comparing it to the OfficePro that we use at work. The VUE is newer, sleeker, has more choices for brewing, and it's very attractive in design (if a bit larger.) It is definitely versatile. However, there are a number of differences between the VUE and the older Keurig models and these are SO SIGNIFICANT, you should read up before you decide which model you want. For one thing, VUE cups are NOT K cups. That's right. This coffee maker uses a different type of single-serve unit.
I will say, this is a beautifully-designed unit--very high end in appearance. The touch screen is incredibly easy to use and allows you to customize your brew more than on the standard K cup models. The temperature IS hotter, perfect for drinking. The brew is a bit better--I was able to make a "donut shop" brew at 6 oz and strong, which tastes terrific. The unit apparently pre-wets the grounds (which is why it grunts like a guy lifting 100 pound Olympic plates) and why it takes longer to brew.
**Another update--Jan 2013: I'm finding that the variety and availability of the Vue cups (which are NOT K-cups) is still limited and they are often sold out at big box stores. The price continues higher than for K cups. Solofill now has a Vue refillable cup available at Kohls. Consider that as you read this review.
FINDINGS:
1. First and FOREMOST: The VUE does not take standard K-CUPS. Oh yes, that's right. You need a totally different sized single pack to use this machine. So if you buy your own supplies for home AND office, it would be best if you have the same models at both locales. ( There is at present, no refillable VUE cup, but I assume someone will craft one sooner or later.
I ran test brews using
Barista Cappuccino variety, a 2-part cup system that makes cappuccino with milky froth, not a clone of International Coffees instant in a single-pack as in the current K-cups. I also ran a test of "Donut Shop", "Gloria Jean's Hazelnut", Celestial Seasoning's Southern Iced Tea, and Green Mountain Nantucket Blend Iced (brewing both over ice as directed.)
2. You have to be able to buy VUE cups where you buy coffee. Our grocery store has no VUE cups. The selection, from what I can tell surfing around, is not as diverse as for K-cups.
3. READ THIS>>>>>>> The unit is billed as being capable of filling insulated tall travel mugs. BUT...I have several travel mugs, mostly tall steel insulated models. NOT ONE of them fits under the unit EVEN WITH THE BASE REMOVED (you pull the entire black and silver plastic base forward, It comes off easily) . The tallest mug I could get under the unit was a fatter mug that holds 18 oz. If you have a collection of those stainless steel mugs that are often business gifts or sold at coffee stores, yours might not fit under the Vue. So to fill your fave travel mug, you need to measure it under the Vue without the platform to see if it will fit. NOT ALL MUGS WILL FIT. MANY DO. MANY DO NOT.
4. Says "brews hotter." Have not observed any hotter than 184 degrees, a good brewing and drinking temperature but by no means the hottest. Anyway, you can't expect boiling water to issue forth from such a device. My pump hot water dispenser delivers hotter water, but it simply pumps boiled water out of a steel boiler, it doesn't have to push it through a filter and past a lot of plumbing and plastic.
5. VUE cups may be hard to find at the moment at your stores, and they are not as inexpensive as the K-cups have become.
6. The drain platform is a bit clunky. You have to make sure you push your mug all the way back as far as you can, or it drips behind the mug. The mug rest, a black plastic insert that fits inside the mug platform, has a slight lip around it and if you are not paying attention, you can miss pushing the mug far enough back. To use a travel mug, assuming it will fit, the entire bottom has to come off. (Pull it off.) Most of my steel insulated mugs still didn't fit, however. 18 oz seems to be tops. If the mug is tall to make a slimmer part to fit your automobile drink holder, it may not fit, 18 or 20 oz. You have to test it out. Buying the VUE? Take your fave mug along to test out at the store.
7. It takes about twice as long to brew and it's noisier than the OfficePro model (similar to a B60 model.) Maybe that results in better coffee (more time to hit the grounds) but you won't be grabbing a cup and running. Took me about 2 minutes.
8. There is some good news: one of the criticisms of the wildly popular Keurig is that it makes more landfill waste. This is true. K-cups are the least ecological of all the single-serve coffee methods, yet K-cups took over the market by storm. This is because the coffee was better (Green Mountain) and because the sealed cup is delightful to use (not messy on the hands) and seals in the fresh taste. No wonder it took the number one spot. But the K-cups apparently can not easily be made recyclable, so I am assuming that Keurig developed the VUE to make a more "green" disposable.
But to recycle the VUE cup, you need to pull out the papery insert filled with wet coffee and throw it and the foil away separately from the recyclable plastic cup. So, back to messy tasks and this is not as easy as a toss into the trash. You need two trash containers (garbage and recycle) and you have to do some peeling away --which I find a fiddly task indeed. How many people are actually going to bother to do this recycling?
9. The touch screen is beautiful, it is my favorite thing on the unit, though I find the icons very small. Still, it's easy to use and I love its looks and it says "ENJOY!" at the end of the brew cycle. Very slick.
10. The operation is fine, though I think it is a heck of a lot noisier and slower than my OfficePro.
ISSUES and CONSIDERATIONS
1. What will happen to K-Cups? Do we have a dual "razor blade" world with two types of cups for sale on the shelves?
2. What were the designers drinking when they made too little clearance under the brewing spout to hold standard travel mugs?
3. If the new K-cups are designed to be recyclable, then must they have to have an insert for the coffee, and why then extra step is involved to recycle used cups? I presume, this is the best the designers could do....or....is it that K-cups are going off patent this year. Is the consumer going to embrace this? And will there be a self-filling VUE cup? Because many of use like those for home use.
4. This unit is billed as being deluxe, high-end, a "better" Keurig. But...is it really THAT much better, aside from recyclable cups, which I admit is good thing, despite the fiddliness of the procedure. But because this is not an inexpensive unit, and it uses new cups less widely available and with a smaller selection of coffees, is this really high-end or is it just high-price?
5. Predictable, after the Keurig took first place in the single-shot coffee world, landfills reported a deluge of the little white cups. It's well that Keurig made a "greener" cup but the way you recycle it is not simple and I fear that many people will just toss these in the trash rather than pull apart a used coffee pod, so will it really result in fewer cups in the landfill?
5. One more small issue: you may have trouble seeing tiny icons and numbers--even with reading glasses. The touch screen display displays very small print and is a tad annoying (but I am tall and wear bifocals, so you see the issue. I'm looking down from my 6 foot height onto the counter. You may not have any trouble seeing the display.)
CONCLUSIONS:
PROS:
YES, HOTTER COFFEE, IF YOU WANT, AT JUST THE RIGHT DRINKING TEMP.
A MUCH BETTER BREW, GROUNDS ARE PRE-WETTED
CAN ADJUST FROM 4-18 OZ AND CHOOSE STRENGTH
TEMPERATURE CHOICES
TOUCH SCREEN IS SLICK AND EASY TO USE
GORGEOUS UNIT--VERY HIGH END APPEARANCE
CAN DO TRAVEL MUGS IF YOU TAKE OUT ALL THE BASE PART AND ONLY GO UP TO 18 OZ (TEST YOUR MUG)
CONS:
NOISIER
SLOWER
MORE EXPENSIVE, CUPS ARE MORE EXPENSIVE TOO
LIMITED SELECTION OF COFFEE (FOR NOW)
LIMITED AVAILABILITY CUPS, DIFFERENT CUP than STANDARD
NO SELF-FILL CUP AVAILABLE
NEED TO FIDDLE WITH VUE CUP TO RECYCLE IT
DOESN'T HOLD SOME TRAVEL MUGS (despite saying it does) YOURS MAY NOT FIT
*UPDATE: After a full weekend of putting this beast through its paces, I have to say, it's fantastic. I did all kinds of brewing, comparing it to my office Keurig and it is undeniably slick, fun to use and flexible. I love the lighted reservoir that lets you know that the tank needs filling (this happens at 1/4 full) and I love the touch screen and the ability to customize volume, strength and temperature for brewing. Only the cost of the cups has me concerned, and the lack of a self-fill cup.
*UPDATE 2: When you purchase Vue Cups, BE CAREFUL. Some of the cocoa, teas, coffee-milk drinks have both sugar AND artificial sweeteners. If you avoid sucralose or other artificial sweeteners, then you have to read the entire ingredients of the Vue Cup very carefully. Some have stevia, which I don't mind as much, but I do not like a mix of sugar and non-sugar. I think it's deceptive. You may think "sugar" ok, no artificial sweetener, but it CAN be in there as well, to add more sweetness with lower volume of powder in the cup. OR to reduce the overall calorie count of a single serving to look less fattening. Be careful!