Very dissapointing. Brew temperature is way too low and the brew mechanism is too finicky sometimes resulting in a mess.
Positive Product Points
Attractive, clock, timer to let you know time since coffee was brewed, programmable, charcoal water filter.
Negative Product Points
The 1100 Watt heating element does not get the coffee up to temperature--not even close. If you are not really careful when making a fresh pot, when the carafe is empty it is too light to hold the arm that opens the filter holder to let coffee flow into the carafe resulting in coffee overflowing the filter holder making a big mess. Coffee is weak and lacks full flavor compared to a machine that actually brews at the correct temperature (200 deg. F)
Detailed Commentary
I purchased this machine to replace my, very disappointing, Cuisinart Brew Central. The performance of the two machines is nearly identical. Like the Cuisinart the KitchenAid rarely hits 180 deg. F measured at the shower head with a digital thermal probe. In fact, it takes a very long time during the brew cycle to get there (averaging 165 - 170 deg. F). Although this may be better than other less expensive machines, it is quite inadequate to make a respectable pot of coffee.
For example, brewing a 4 day old Cafe Doma Ethiopian Yirgacheff roasted city+ the low brew temperature killed any of the positive character notes of the coffee--what a waste of good coffee. There were very little fruity/dark berry or chocolate notes. Low temp is the great equalizer between low and high quality coffees as well as between the distinctions between coffee origins. They all end up tasting almost the same. The coffee ends up dull and weak.
None of this will really matter for anyone availing themselves of the programming option since they would clearly not care about the freshness of the grind let alone the beans. However, anyone looking for a decent cup of coffee should look elsewhere.
You need to be very careful and make sure the carafe is pushed back far enough to hold the arm at the back of the carafe chamber in place. The empty carafe is not quite heavy enough to be confident that it is being held in place. The arm opens and closes the hole in the coffee filter holder that allows coffee to flow from the filter holder to the carafe during the brew cycle.
Bottom line. This coffee pot is all hype based upon brand name recognition. I would not buy again nor would I recommend it. If fact, I gave mine away to a friend that is not very particular about his coffee--just the market this machine is suited for. He just cannot tell the difference.
You would be much better off spending less money on a coffee brewing device that actually hits brew temperature such as a vacuum pot, Chemex, or pour over; or upgrading to a more expensive pot such as aTechnivorm.
