I've been using this Mr. Coffee FTX23 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker for almost 30 days and I've found that my original opinion was wrong. When I originally bought this coffee maker, I was very upset over my Black & Decker 12 cup programmable coffee maker malfunctioning. I was forced to buy another coffee maker and was really fearful that I would end up with something else as equally disappointing as the Black & Decker. I ended up with this Mr. Coffee coffee maker because I know my grandmother has been using Mr. Coffee for as long as I can remember and I wanted reliability - with a capital R!
At first when I brought home this Mr. Coffee I was just plain angry. I had already spent about $25.00 on a Black & Decker that turned out to be a piece of junk in my opinion and then had to turn around and spend another $40.00 in less than a month. I didn't really like the way this Mr. Coffee looked. The round clock with digital hands instead of numbers did not turn me on. I bought it anyway and grumbled the whole time I was taking it out of the box.
I can't tell you the last time I actually had to get the instructions for a coffee maker but I sure did with this Mr. Coffee. This coffee maker has buttons, dials and gadgets galore. It only took one read through the instructions to figure it out. It was actually more of figuring out which button and/or dial was for what and how each worked. As I figured out a couple of the features, like being able to set the hot plate temperature, I remember thinking "that's pretty neat".
I've now used this coffee maker at least once, and usually twice, a day for almost 30 days. It has never missed a brew and never made a mess. It comes on exactly when it's supposed to, it beeps when it's done brewing and it brews the strength of coffee I set it too. I can sneak a cup while it's still brewing and it doesn't affect the flavor or make any mess at all. I can set the temperature of the hot plate that keeps the caraffe warm to determine how hot I want my coffee kept. This coffee maker also tells me how long ago the coffee was brewed or the pot turned on. After two hours, it turns itself off and beeps to alert me that it's turning off.
The flavor of the coffee is really good. It has a brew strength selector so you can choose a regular brew or a strong brew. I like the strong brew. It also comes with a water filter, which would probably help the flavor too, but I don't use it. The water appears to come out in a spray instead of just a single flow which I believe helps the flavor as well.
While it wasn't the prettiest coffee maker with its high tech submarine kind of look, it has certainly grown on me. I still can't hardly read the clock because of my eyesight, but that's ok because I feel like I can rely on my Mr. Coffee to perform just as it's supposed to.
As of right now, I'm giving this Mr. Coffee FTX23 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker, 3 out of 5 beans on looks and 5 out of 5 beans on performance and reliability. Of course, I've learned my lesson and still retain the right to change my mind.
~~**Update: June 2005 - This Mr. Coffee Maker is still going strong! Not one incident of clogging up and overflowing. The clock is still as accurate as day one and the coffee it brews is still just as good!
Help Tsunami victims just by buying a 12 bag of coffee! The goal is to raise $1 million and this company is donating 100% of the net proceeds from every single 12 ounce bag sold. This coffee is drip grind and shipped directly from Tully's Seattle roasting facility directly to you.
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