THERM...Price is high and you will need peaberries and/or only making 8 cups for really strong coffee...but nothing can do what this thing does...period.
Positive Product Points
This review is for the THERM model....... Only maker that can do what it does. It grinds, transfers, & brews on a timer...couldn't be easier Fantastic taste 200 degree brewing Very easy to program Looks great Coffee stays very hot for 2 hours after brewing.
Can make coffee plenty strong (but there is a downside to this)
Negative Product Points
Expensive. Strong coffee can only be prepared by decreasing the amount of coffee made below the max 10 cups and/or using peaberries.
Detailed Commentary
I read a large number of reviews on this product before purchasing and found that the biggest gripe was the weakness of the brew. I went ahead and purchased it anyway for my office because it was just too attractive to have a hot, freshly ground cup waiting for me when I got there in the morning. After using it a good bit, I have found that it is a fantastic product with one important flaw: the strength control only allows a moderately strong, 10 cup pot to be prepared with normal beans. However, there are 2 easy ways around this problem. The first, is to only add 8 cups of water and set the maker to brew 10 cups (grind for 10 cups). IMHO that makes a pretty darn strong cup of coffee as long as you aren't using the wrong beans (you would know this if you want your coffee that strong). Using peaberries (which you can get these days for about $16 a pound + shipping for really high quality beans) makes even stronger coffee. If $16 a pound is too high for you, you probably won't be spending 300 bucks for a coffee maker. But if you are willing to spend the cash, nothing out there exists that can do what this thing does.
With all this said, shame on you Capresso for making a $300 machine that makes weak coffee with ordinary beans...fix this in the next model!
