It sucks. I made the mistake and bought it on an impulse because it was on sale for $19 at Wal-Mart. Even though many of the prices I saw online were for $50-$70, $19 on crap is $19 on crap. I could have gotten a V-8. And a bag of bread flour. And some cream cheese. Or a copy of The Exorcism of Emily Rose. But I have been coveting these pod coffee makes since they came out. I drink on average one cup of coffee a day. If I make a pot, I drink more, but not because I want more, but because I make a pot. I also (like evryone else) love cappuccinoeyesque coffee beverages, so I was very excited.
The darn thing does not work right. The water resovoir does not empty everytimie, the coffee is not so great. And the frsutrating thing about impulse buying is after the fact I started reading reviews and everyone has the same thing to say. To add insult to injury, I cannot find the receipt to return the darn thing. So I will just wait for it to explode like everyone else's.
I think in a couple of years this will be the butt of the segments "2005" VH-1 show "I Love 2005".
Take it from me, learning to make espresso is worth every minute invested in it. I finally bought a pump machine (a very low end Krupps) for about $100, but before that I managed on a steam machine (found at yard sales super cheap, or almost as super cheap retail, sometimes around $25). And when I am camping I use a Moka Express (usually $15, but you need a heat source - a stove works well). Then with the $10 that you can get a cheap grinder, half way decent beans (I can make a good espresso even with Starbucks beans, although I have been getting better and much cheaper beans from Italy for $8 a kilo) and some practice (holler if you want me to post my espresso brewing lessons on the blog) you will be enjoying outstanding coffee every day. If espresso is too strong, you dilute it with an equal part hot water, and you will still have a superior cup of coffee.
Pods are all convenience and nothing else. If I wanted convenience and caffeine, I would munch NoDoz. I prefer good coffee.
Yes Erik, I would love your coffee maing instructions! Please make them step by step easy. I love espresso as well. I just don't want to break the bank for a decent cup of coffee, I don't mind paying a little bit of money for something that does what it is supposed to do, because if all I get is bad coffee at home, I end putting out a couple of bucks here and there for Starbucks as a treat once in a while.
No, I am not intimidated by stove machines. I have my grandmothers coffee pot, and I used a French press for years, but since they are glass, people keep dropping them which which was why I bought the Black and Decker.
Where do you get your beans?
Never, never, never, never buy a Black & Decker product from Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart put the squeeze on B&D, so B&D has the products made as cheaply as possible. They are not quality tested, they rarely work, they do not last with regular usage, and some of them are even dangerous. My parents gave us a B&D toaster oven as a gift, and we used it, not knowing it had been purchased at Wal-Mart. IT SPONTANEOUSLY CAUGHT ON FIRE and could have burned our kitchen (or our house down) had I not happened to walk into the kitchen just as the flames were only an inch high. I was actually able to blow them out one at a time (there were 5 or 6 of them inside the unit), but seriously in a few minutes, the whole thing could have been engulfed.
Of course we had no receipt and no recourse.
*kicks self* I had a tiny steam Braun espresso maker (yard sale special) that I just sent to the Goodwill because I couldn't figure out how to work it. Yes, please write your step-by-step instructions.
So Sparki,
Let's get this straight. It's not Black and Decker alone that's crappy, Black and Decker that you purchase from Wal-Mart is crappier?
I am not a big Wal-Mart fan, but that is all there is around these parts...
Tonight I will be writing up my guidelines for the home espresso brewer. In order to do so, I will have to have espresso running copiously through my system, and we are at my parents' house, where the espresso machine finally died (and it was a twenty year old steam machine that did not seem worth fixing, especially with a boiler leak). This means that I will go out for coffee once the rest of the family goes to bed, and on Fridays it means I will go to Infusion, where the only person I have ever met who is as much of a coffee nut as I works. So, not only will you get my coffee instructions, but Peter's input as well.
It is a good day to ask me for that!
Walmart will let you return 3 things a year without a receipt if that helps.
Yes, Pansy, B&D products from Wal-Mart are crappier than B&D products from Ace Hardware or somewhere like that. Two different quality standards. Units may look the same, but if you were to compare them side-by-side, you'd see differences in material, craftsmanship, etc.
I know you don't have much else out your way, but try a farm store for better quality and similar prices. And remember, eBay is your friend!