Well, I’ve decided it’s time to put my 10 dollar “brew-and-brew-alone” coffee maker to sleep, and pick up something a little more functional. The choices out there are fairly staggering, and now with the new breed of pod coffee makers, I’m stymied. First, the pod makers.
There’s the Senseo by Phillip, Melitta One, Black & Decker Home Cafe. All serve the same basic premise - insert a prefilled “pod” of coffee, dispense freshly brewed hot coffee one cup at a time, instantly. This would probably fit me perfectly: I drink coffee frequently throughout the day, but if I make a pot, it might be hours before I go for the next cup. I can do the carafe thing, yes, but, well I do like this idea. My concerns are 1) actually taste quality and 2) likelihood of the products being around for a while. Anyone have one of these, or tried the coffee that they produce? Is this good coffee? Or is this the same as those “instant coffee in a pouch” things that some people thought were so clever in the early 90s? As for 2: what are the chances that a year (or less!) down the line, I’ll suddenly find out that apparently, I’m the only person to have bought them, and won’t be able to find the “pods” anymore, thereby stuck with a useless (albeit cool looking) coffee maker?
If I skip the pod route, and go with something a little more conventional, then I’m really stuck, because, well, I’m really irrationally picky about coffeemakers. I want something that looks nice on the counter, does everything I want it to, but costs less than $100.00. So, what do I want it to do/have?
Must. Be. Programmable.
An adjustable “auto-off” would be nice as well - I hate having to run into the kitchen every 2 hours to zap the thing back on again. (Yes, I know, a carafe would fix this. But I hate carafes. They’re a pain in the ass to clean. The good ones are too expensive and too easy for my clumsy ass to break. Enough with the carafe suggestions, already! 
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Adjustable warmer plate settings.
Adjustable brew strenth settings.
Removable water basket.
Drip-proof carafe would be nice. OK, if it COMES with a thermal carafe that it dispenses into, I’ll give in on the carafe deal.
An in-maker grinder would be nice, but I really can’t find one that I like that has all the other features, and I have a grinder anyway, so it’s not really necessary.
There ya have it. I have found plenty of coffee makers in my price range that have all but one or two of the options I’m looking for; I’ve found none at all that have ALL the options that I’m looking for. I had a B&D that I loved - had everything except the permanent filter - but I gave that to my last roommate as an apology for having to leave sooner than planned.
So, weigh in. Will the pods last long enough to be worth a 60 dollar investment? (I’m not at all encouraged by the fact that Senseo’s US-based site - www.senseo.com/us - only works some of the time) Does the coffee taste good enough to warrant the cost? And if not, what coffeemaker do YOU like?
I do dearly love my French Press.