Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

This urn is supremely functional, with no bells and whistles. It advertises brewing times of 45 seconds per cup, but I've found that it's closer to the minute per cup advertised by other models: you'll buy back very little setup time with this model (heating 2 gallons of water took 35 minutes for example). Plus, like all other coffee urns, this one sings its moany little song while brewing, so if there's a chance it might be a distraction, you'll need to plug it in ahead of time so it's done brewing by the time the main event occurs, or you'll need to brew in another room and move it to the buffet table once it's hot. The one-handed dispensing works fine if the cup being dispensed into is solid, like a coffee mug, but common sense is confirmed that paper cups are not sturdy enough to depress the button without collapsing. In order to dispense one-handed with a paper cup, you have to push the button with your knuckles, which puts your fingers in the path of potentially hot liquids. Finally, and this is something that there's no way to know before reading the owner's manual, there's a little strainer right above where the liquid comes out. The owner's manual warns not to tip the urn while dispensing in order to prevent clogging of this strainer with coffee grounds. That's all well and good, except that due to the placement of the dispensing nozzle, the coffee becomes inaccessible when the level goes below about 10 cups--that's 1/4 of the total brew for a full pot!! It's this waste factor that resulted in the 4 stars instead of 5. For its price, it's a tidy little machine--the nozzle is particularly good at preventing drips. However, I'd rather clean up dribble from a lower-placed nozzle than have to find a way to decant 10 cups of coffee.