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Which coffee maker? tassimo or senseo or...?

U

uspcommuter

macrumors regular
Original poster
Aug 23, 2004
133
0
Hey y'all?

I think I am falling to the darkside of buying a brewing machine. I looked around and kinda like the idea of a one time brewer like senseo or tassimo. Anyone have any advice on which one to purchase? or have a third option in mind?
 
uspcommuter said:
Hey y'all?

I think I am falling to the darkside of buying a brewing machine. I looked around and kinda like the idea of a one time brewer like senseo or tassimo. Anyone have any advice on which one to purchase? or have a third option in mind?
Click to expand...

It sort of depends on how much money you want to spend. The best "brewing" machines are the Jura coffee makers which allow you to put your choice of coffee beans and in the top, and then grinds and pours you a fantastic cup of coffee. However here in europe they cost anywhere between 800 and 2000 euros.
I've never heard of tassimo before, however from a quick google I can deduce that its a similar concept to Nespresso. Nespresso might be an option for you, but as the name already suggests its focused more on Espresso. It does, however, make coffee aswell (just adds more water). Once again, an expensive option though.
My personal favorite is the Senseo. The coffee is excellent and the price is superb. Its a hugely succesful machine with more than 75% of households here in Holland owning one. That already says enough about the quality. I have one aswell and love the different flavours of coffee pads available and the fact that its just as affordable as a regular coffee machine.
 
I know someone who just bought a Senseo and is very disappointed with the results.
They said the coffee was nothing special - and the price of the "Pods" were outrageous.
And I saw the coffee that was coming out - that 'frothy layer' they boast about was practically non-existent.
 
EricNau said:
I know someone who just bought a Senseo and is very disappointed with the results.
They said the coffee was nothing special - and the price of the "Pods" were outrageous.
And I saw the coffee that was coming out - that 'frothy layer' they boast about was practically non-existent.
Click to expand...

The coffee is not spectacularly special, no. But its good coffee. The foam layer is fine as well. You're probably expecting a cappucino style layer, well that it ain't :rolleyes: Its quite nice though, without being over the top.

I'm not sure quite how much you're paying for the coffee, but here in holland you get a bag of 18 pods for something like 1.60 euros. Which is pretty decent. I guess in the states you pay a lot more.
 
mfacey said:
The coffee is not spectacularly special, no. But its good coffee. The foam layer is fine as well. You're probably expecting a cappucino style layer, well that it ain't :rolleyes: Its quite nice though, without being over the top.

I'm not sure quite how much you're paying for the coffee, but here in holland you get a bag of 18 pods for something like 1.60 euros. Which is pretty decent. I guess in the states you pay a lot more.
Click to expand...

They said the coffee was good, just not for the price, and it seems coffee is cheaper over there.
At the Senseo website, for us it is $18.99 for an 18-pod-pack :eek:
That's over $2 for an 8oz mug of coffee.

According to the senseo website, we are paying about 9x more than you.
 
EricNau said:
They said the coffee was good, just not for the price, and it seems coffee is cheaper over there.
At the Senseo website, for us it is $18.99 for an 18-pod-pack :eek:
That's over $2 for an 8oz mug of coffee.

According to the senseo website, we are paying about 9x more than you.
Click to expand...

Jeez that's insane. :eek: That's almost 10x what we pay here! (EDIT: oh wait, that's what you said :) ) And to think that people were initially complaining here that a cup of coffee from a senseo cost 50% more than a cup of regular coffee.

In that case if you live in the USA don't bother with the Senseo ;)
 
Depends how much of a coffee geek you are...

There are some who refuse to drink anything that wasn't roasted and ground within the last 2 weeks; there are others whose favourite coffee is instant granules.

Similarly there are different levels of coffee machine. The pods are very, very easy to use but you have less control over the strength of your coffee (I prefer a double+ espresso in my latte) and they are dearer than buying good quality ground coffee.

There are several machines out there that do both. Mine has one basket for doing ESE pods and one for proper ground coffee. Best of both worlds...

Important things to look out for is how much bar pressure they have, higher is generally better and more prosaically, how fast they heat up. One of my old ones couldn't be brewed from for about 20 minutes; not good in the morning. My current one is ready to go in under 5.
 
mfacey said:
Jeez that's insane. :eek: That's almost 10x what we pay here! And to think that people were initially complaining here that a cup of coffee from a senseo cost 50% more than a cup of regular coffee.

In that case if you live in the USA don't bother with the Senseo ;)
Click to expand...

I'm sure it can be found cheaper other places than the senseo website, but that's the only place I could find that sold it online.

But the senseo is a new thing for America (I think, I only heard about it on month ago), so things will probably start getting cheaper soon. :cool:
 
EricNau said:
They said the coffee was good, just not for the price, and it seems coffee is cheaper over there.
At the Senseo website, for us it is $18.99 for an 18-pod-pack :eek:
That's over $2 for an 8oz mug of coffee.

According to the senseo website, we are paying about 9x more than you.
Click to expand...

Wait, just checked the site. The $18.99 is for 72 pods (4 pack). Its still like 3 times what we pay here though. Guess it must all be imported from Holland.
 
EricNau said:
I'm sure it can be found cheaper other places than the senseo website, but that's the only place I could find that sold it online.

But the senseo is a new thing for America (I think, I only heard about it on month ago), so things will probably start getting cheaper soon. :cool:
Click to expand...

Actually its been around for more than a year already. My father lives over there and has had one since something like the middle of October 2004.
 
mfacey said:
Wait, just checked the site. The $18.99 is for 72 pods (4 pack). Its still like 3 times what we pay here though. Guess it must all be imported from Holland.
Click to expand...
Oh, ok, that's not too bad then. I just looked again and what I saw was the "18 pods per bag" - I should have read more carefully.
So assuming you drink one 8oz mug a day, it would be about $.50 - not too bad. But I think most probably drink two mugs, so it's about $1 a day.
 
I have a senso and it's the best thing I have in the kitchen. First, I am a one cup pup type of girl. The pods are 18 for like $4 in the stores and I use other brands as well, but the senso fit the best. I have clear coffee mugs and I can assure you that the layer of froth on a 8oz cup is about 1 1/4". Yum. Their coffee is not as great as say seattle's best, but I like it better than starbucks. I use the coffee mate cafe latte poweder and that makes it about 3/4" more frothier (if that is a word).

I like the machine it is easy to use and easy to maintain. It is sort of loud, but i don't mind it and personally it takes less than a minute so you can't go wrong. I just set it up the night before sometimes and then as I walk by the kitchen to grab my keys I hit the button. Setup and clean up is under 5min including brew time. You can't beat it.
 
What about a simple French Press? Cheap and makes some of the best coffee that I have ever tasted.

Grind your coffee in the morning while the water is boiling. Empty the grounds into the glass carafe. Pour water that is just off the boil over the grounds. Let steep for 4 minutes. Push down the plunger............and whalla............a fantastic cup of coffee............all depending on your choice of beans of course.
 
mfacey said:
Wait, just checked the site. The $18.99 is for 72 pods (4 pack). Its still like 3 times what we pay here though. Guess it must all be imported from Holland.
Click to expand...

Do they grow a lot of coffee in Holland? :D

I've seen some compatible coffee pod packages for various pod coffee makers. Maybe, they could put together a conference to work on coffee brewing standards. Of course, then, we might never get coffee in the U.S.A. as they might over competing standards as they did on AM stereo, stereo t.v., high defintion DVDs. Besides, at the conferences, what kind of beverages would they serve? It would be tough for them to sell coffee.

A friend of mine was mentioning that they have a Keurig commercial machine at work and I've noticed that the consumer models have been appearing in Linens 'n' Things lately. Any thoughts about those? (I have a Krups dual coffee and cappucino maker.)
 
bousozoku said:
Do they grow a lot of coffee in Holland? :D
Click to expand...

Not at all :p

And, Senseo is the best! Serious, in the beginning it was also expensive in my country but it is getting cheaper and cheaper very quickly.
 
mfacey said:
Jeez that's insane. :eek: That's almost 10x what we pay here! (EDIT: oh wait, that's what you said :) ) And to think that people were initially complaining here that a cup of coffee from a senseo cost 50% more than a cup of regular coffee.

In that case if you live in the USA don't bother with the Senseo ;)
Click to expand...
I guess we in the USA are okay to pay 10X the $$ for a cup of coffee, but if you try that crap with our gas,:mad:
 
Ergh, brewed coffee, like dirt in water I don't know how you guys drink that stuff. Get a decent espresso machine, a Saeco or a high end Krups and drink coffee as it should be. I worked for a while in a Starbucks over there and I have never seen such weak coffee, for the size of those damned cups you use you'd need 2x the number of shots.

Forget the pods, they're crap. Go for espresso and if you can't get a proper (and I mean proper, not some cheap-arse Breville) machine, get a stove top 2 cup maker and a milk frother.
 
dali said:
Not at all :p

And, Senseo is the best! Serious, in the beginning it was also expensive in my country but it is getting cheaper and cheaper very quickly.
Click to expand...

When I first saw the Senseo advertised at Target, I thought that it was perfect for convenience-oriented U.S.A. but that anything that's so packaged gives you exactly what they want, not what you want.

I'm not even sure drinking the coffee is important at all. It's more about smells. I was in a Sam's Club wholesale club store the other night and they were selling Millstone or Eight O'Clock coffee. The thing is...I didn't see it, I smelled it, and my nose doesn't work well. Freshly ground beans and brewing coffee can make your house smell amazing and put a smile on people's faces.
 
Chundles said:
Ergh, brewed coffee, like dirt in water I don't know how you guys drink that stuff. Get a decent espresso machine, a Saeco or a high end Krups and drink coffee as it should be. I worked for a while in a Starbucks over there and I have never seen such weak coffee, for the size of those damned cups you use you'd need 2x the number of shots.

Forget the pods, they're crap. Go for espresso and if you can't get a proper (and I mean proper, not some cheap-arse Breville) machine, get a stove top 2 cup maker and a milk frother.
Click to expand...

I'm actually pretty happy with this one.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...4-3040501-4423920?n=507846&s=kitchen&v=glance

Instead of pouring water into a tank on the side of this coffeemaker, water is poured directly below a lid that lifts up from the warming plate. When the unit is turned on, steam pressure forces just enough water up a tube hidden in the coffeemaker’s frame and through the grounds, which rest in a compact filter right beneath the lid.
 
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