Hamilton Beach The Scoop Single Serve Coffee Maker & Fast Grounds Brewer, Brews in Minutes, 8-14oz. Cups, Stainless Steel

Great coffee, very quiet, super easy to use and clean!
I love this thing!I’m the only coffee drinker in the house, and my previous method of making coffee involved brewing half a pot on weekend mornings with a traditional 12-cup maker, then reheating it throughout the day. I’m not too picky about my coffee, but even I know that the first cup is always better than the reheated sludge that sits around in the pot all day.I never made coffee on weekday mornings before, because the gurgling slurping sound on the traditional brewer would wake up my husband, who leaves for work later than I do. Our kitchen is right next to our bedroom in our small apartment, and the noise was just too much.A single-serve brewer seemed like it would be a good idea for me, but I hated to pay the kinds of prices for the typical cup brewers (and the cups are expensive as well!). Then I saw The Scoop, and immediately got busy researching it and reading reviews at every website I could find. Overall it seemed to be regarded favorably, so I bought it. I have not been disappointed!After running the initial hot water cycle to clean it, I made a cup on the regular setting, filling the scoop about halfway with coffee. It was a perfectly good cup of coffee, but a little weak for my tastes. The second cup I made on the bold setting, and it was PERFECT. I haven’t even tried using the regular setting again.I played with it a little, and for me the perfect cup is filling the scoop to about where the metal meets the plastic, and packing it down just a little (I already had a regular scoop in my coffee canister, so this isn’t at all a difficult “extra” step), then brewing on bold.Coffee comes out plenty hot enough for me, but I’m not the type of person who likes things REALLY hot (do those people even have tastebuds anymore, or have they all been burnt off?), so I suppose I could see how some folks would think it too cool. I can usually sip at it carefully right after adding cream, but I can’t actually drink it until several minutes later when it’s cooled off.The bold setting takes a little longer to brew, but certainly not longer than making half a pot in a 12-cup drip brewer. The whole process takes maybe two minutes, and the water cycles through a little at a time, stopping and starting throughout the process, I assume to let the grounds stay wet longer and for each new burst of water to pull more coffee from them? Whatever the reason, it works.It CAN be a little tricky to pour the water into the back, but that isn’t at all a fault of the machine. ALL coffeemakers can be tricky to fill if you’re using a regular mug. I recommend finding a easy to pour cup that holds the same amount as a typical mug, and using that to fill the machine. I use my travel cup to pour the water even when I’m drinking out of a regular mug because it pours easier than a standard size mug. There’s an added bonus with this method of not having to clean out your mug if you want a second cup of coffee, since you won’t have to be pouring clean water from it.The scoop is easily cleaned by flicking the grounds into the garbage and rinsing it out. The smaller mesh filter underneath pops right out and can easily be rinsed. The third part underneath both filters that directs the water into a stream also pops right out and can be rinsed out, though you probably don’t need to do this every time. Cleanup is SO MUCH easier than dealing with dumping filters and rinsing brew baskets and washing out glass pots when they get stained brown. After I make a cup of coffee now, I always feel like I forgot to do something to clean up…I’m still not used to it being this simple.The machine shuts off automatically right after brewing, and since there’s no water tank to keep heated, no clock or lights, and no long-term heating element, there’s no extra energy used and no worry about leaving it plugged in (though I usually just unplug it anyway out of habit).I’ve had no issues with dripping or splashing (the drip tray comes out and flips over to raise a regular mug right under the coffee stream), and my travel mug fits perfectly. I’ve also had no issues with grounds in my coffee. There is a little bit of “sediment” in the bottom of the mug, but it’s so super fine (not at all gritty or bitter), and I usually swirl my coffee around as I drink it anyway, so I’ve not noticed any difference at all in taste quality. It’s similar to the “stuff” you get at the bottom of a mug of hot chocolate, only there is much, much less of it in the coffee.The machine is extremely quiet! The only sound you hear is the sound of the coffee dripping into the mug. I can make coffee in the morning now without waking up my husband, and if I get the scoop ready the night before, all I have to do is push the button a few minutes before I’m ready to leave, and the coffee is ready to go when I am.There really are not enough good things that I can say about this machine. My mom and brother tried it when they visited, and they both agreed that it makes a great cup of coffee. I have the freedom to use whatever flavor or brand of coffee I want without buying cups or pods, I get a fresh hot cup of coffee quickly whenever I want one, I don’t have to drink old coffee or waste whatever I don’t finish from a traditional coffeemaker, and at half the cost of the cheapest Keurig, there’s really nothing about this machine that doesn’t appeal to me.

I’m surprised that along with so many positive reviews, there were also many unreasonably negative reviews on Amazon.com.If you can sense a plastic smell like a dog’s nose would, or if you are that picky, go get yourself a $5,000 espresso maker, then you have a good reason to pick on them.For a $50 single serve, this one is perfect if:1. You like to make a single serve2. You like a beautiful and sturdy design3. You like it simple and easy4. You like to directly rinse and wipe down all parts that need cleaning, away from the machine in a sink5. You like it super hot and super quick6. You like a permanent filterLearning from other positive reviews, here are all the tricks to avoid those negative complaints:- Grind your own beans at fine setting (I use Capresso Conical Burr 560 ordered from Amazon)- Use filtered or bottled water- Press a bit on the grounds using the back of a spoonWhy so many complaints?- Using pre-ground coffee, too coarse for this machine- Using tap water- Never used a French Press, so cleaning this simple beauty becomes a choreA funny complaint was about making a mess around the counter area by using this machine. All filter parts are specifically designed as removable, that means you can put in coffee grounds or clean them away from the machine, in a sink, or over a cheap plastic tray, whatever. If you make a mess out of a tiny scoop, it is not fair to blame the machine.All in all, thanks to all the negative reviews, the price has been down quite a few notches, go get it before everyone realizes the truth: this is the best single-serve coffee maker on the market right now. Then it could be out of stock all of a sudden.

注文してから海外へ発送の手配をかけるらしく、手元に届くまでかなりの日数がかかりました。日本語説明は付いていませんが、なくても操作を間違うことはないと思います。商品は見た目も操作もとてもシンプルで、そのままコンセントを差し込み、カップ1杯分の水を入れてスイッチを押し、入れた水がなくなれば自動的に電源は切れます。(※2回ほど水だけで出してからコーヒーの粉をセットして飲んだ方が良いみたいです。)途中で止めたいときは、スイッチをもう一度押すだけ。カップを置く高さが変えられるので、高さ11.5cm/18.5cmまでのマグカップ/タンブラーなどが置くことができます。スイッチは縦に REGULAR/BOLD と表示されたものが付いています。何が違うのか？試して見ました。REGULAR：一般的なコーヒーメーカーと同じようにポコポコと音をたてて断続的にお湯が落ちコーヒーができます。BOLD：同じようにポコポコと音をたててお湯が落ち、しばらくすると止まります(蒸らし？なのでしょうか？)。そしてまたお湯が出てまた止まる。この繰り返し。当然BOLDの方が抽出時間がながくなります。特別な機能がついているわけではないので、値段を考えるとちょっと高いような気もするのですが、日本製では見た目がスッキリとシンプルで、置く高さが変えられ、ちょうど1杯分が抽出でき、ペーパーフィルターを使わない！メッシュフィルターのコーヒーメーカーがなかった(T ^ T)多少高くても気に入ったものが欲しかったので納得の買い物でした(^^)