Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I bought this coffee maker for myself for Christmas because I wanted a single serve maker, but I didn't want to pay the money for a Keurig. Imagine my surprise when I got a Keurig from my husband for Christmas....but I also got this. So we set up the Keurig and I put this away. Shortly after Christmas my grandfather who lives with me entered his final journey with cancer. I moved into his apartment to care for him 24/7, and I opened the Hamilton Beach so I could make a quick cup of coffee during the night while sitting up with him. I was shocked to discover that this little $20 coffee pot makes just as good coffee as my $150 Keurig. 1. It doesn't brew as fast as a Keurig that is "ready to go"...but it takes the same amount of time to brew a cup of coffee as a Keurig that has been "off" over night and you have to wait for the water to heat up. In my opinion, it is still faster than brewing a "traditional" pot of coffee. 2. I don't like really strong coffee, so if I'm using a smaller mug I can get away with using 1 pod of medium roast coffee. I've read some reviews of people who think 1 pod is too weak...I think that is a taste preference, and also depends on if you are using more water for a larger mug or not. Just my opinion and not a criticism of people who like really strong coffee. If you like coffee really strong, then 2 pods of medium roast might not work for you. Hard to say. :) 3. The pods are cheaper than a Keurig. We use this coffee maker along side our Keurig, and it helps us to save a little money by alternating machines. Both make good coffee, but each machine's coffee tastes different...this tastes more traditionally brewed than our Keurig. I know that might sound odd, but that is the only way I can describe it (and if someone else knows that I'm talking about and knows the answer to this mystery, I'd love to hear it!) Because of the taste difference, I prefer flavored coffees on this machine rather than the Keurig for some reason. Again..not sure why, but I do. All in all, this holds it's own against a coffee maker 5 times the price. For someone who is looking for a single serve without the single serve price, this is a really good coffee maker!