Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

First off, we've been using a thermal coffee maker for years. It's the only way to go if you want your coffee to stay drinkable for awhile. The old Hamilton Beach died, so we needed a new one. I was hesitant about this one because of all the reviews complaining about weak coffee. But for the price, we decided to give it a try. I'm glad we did! Received this coffee maker 10 days ago. Ran two pots of plain water through. No leaks, no plastic smell, no problems. Made a pot of coffee... Uh oh, it tasted very weak - thin and watery. Second pot was no better. I was using the recommended amount of coffee. (We buy a standard brand pre-ground canned coffee.) I tried bumping it up by a third (from 7.5 Tblsp to 10 Tblsp.) Not as thin but not "good coffee". Then I noticed that the brand of coffee we've been using for years no longer says it's Colombian. So I bought a can of 100% Colombian coffee. MUCH better!!! You know that TV commercial about "going 'nose-blind'" to household odors? Maybe we had gone "taste-blind" to our morning coffee... Now we're using our grocery store's house brand 100% Colombian coffee, using the same amount we always have, and enjoying a good cup of coffee. So, if you're experiencing weak coffee, maybe just trying a different coffee will work for you too. By the way - we don't use the "water filtration disk", since we use filtered water from our fridge. Pros of this coffee maker: - Removable water reservoir means it can be kept MUCH cleaner, easily. Just rinse it out at the sink. - Gasket between the place the coffee drips from and the carafe lid, is an ingenious way to keep the heat in. I hope it holds up over time, because I think it's the key to keeping the coffee hot. - Depending on how much coffee is in the pot, it can stay hot several hours. I've actually poured a cup in mid-afternoon and it was still hot. Cons of this coffee maker: - It WILL produce significant steam when brewing. The steam comes from the vents on the right-hand (as you face the front) top rear corner. I tried it under my overhead cabinets and the bottom of the cabinet was very wet, as well as the front edge. I moved it to a place where it has no cabinet overhead. I just move it back under the cabinet after it finishes brewing. Note: my cabinets are 15-3/4" above the counter, and I would have had to pull it out anyway just to fill the water reservoir. - The water reservoir doesn't fit into the water dispenser in the door of my fridge (Samsung RF267), so I still have to fill a pitcher and then fill the reservoir from the pitcher. I was hoping to eliminate that step. - The carafe has a narrow neck, so you do need a brush to clean the inside easily.