Krups FME2 12-Cup Coffee Maker

The manufacture and design of automatic, programmable drip coffemakers is hardly rocket science, but considering some of the recent blunders by a few companies, one might think the opposite to be the case. Almost to the day, I wrote a review two years ago on what I consider to be the all time worst: the Cuisinart DGB-600 "Grind 'n Brew" coffeemaker. I found it to be a very expensive device that made weak and generally flavorless coffee; used far too many beans to make that weak coffee; had a carafe that dripped all the time; and, worst of all, was a royal nuisance to clean. Since writing that review (which has now been read by over 7,000 readers!) I've met several other folks who own (or "owned") one, all of whom absolutely hate the device.

I replaced that Cuisinart with a Melitta ME-10S programmable pot which lacked a built-in grinder (not a good idea in the first place as a separate grinder does a better job), but which also had a thermos. It made delicious coffee, but had one drawback that I suspect is endemic to all pots with a thermos, and not a heated, glass carafe: the coffee was too cold. Users were advised to heat up the thermos by rinsing it with hot water before making a pot of coffee, but that's of little benefit to one programming the pot for coffee the following morning.

When the clock quit working, I ditched the Melitta and went on a trek for yet another coffeemaker. As I've had numerous Krups models in the past with which I was generally pleased, I looked for that brand in particular. I settled on the FME-2, which is a programmable, 12-cup pot, with water filtration and a heated, glass carafe. Not much different in design from an older model that I had used for almost 10 years before it died.

Unlike the digital clock on the Melitta (which was almost impossible to see unless you lifted the appliance and tilted it - not something you're likely to do when it's full of water!), the clock and programming function is fairly easy to set on the Krups. So too is filling the carafe - it is glass, so it's easy to read the markings. Running the machine in its manual mode of operation is simple and straight forward. There's also a beep to alert you when the coffee's finished brewing which can be shut off, if desired.

The swing-out basket for the grinds is easily removable for cleaning, and snaps back in place firmly (unlike that on the Cuisinart which often popped open, either spraying coffee grinds all over the place, or leaving a sloppy mess of brewed coffee all over the counter).

There is also a method of setting the amount of time for the heater under the carafe from 1 to 5 hours. Best of all, it makes truly delicious, piping hot coffee. So, why not 5 stars?

Well, this device sets an all-new standard for stupidity in terms of function and programming. With practically any programmable coffee pot, one does the following: set the clock; set the time for the appliance to turn on; and either start the appliance manually, or press a button or switch to start it at the programmed time. The FME-2 works in an entirely backward fashion: once the clock and the programmed time are set, the machine works automatically all the time. That means that it starts each and every day at the programmed time, whether or not you told it to, and whether or not there's any water or coffee in it! With this coffeemaker, you don't tell it to start, but rather, not to start automatically.

I have never spent more time reading and re-reading instructions to see what I was doing wrong, but it ain't me folks, it's the appliance itself! There's a button to touch to turn off the programming, and that's the only way to not have the appliance not turn itself on each and every day. Frankly, I think that's a pretty ridiculous design, as I suspect, many consumers might buy this coffeemaker, set it to the desired time, and then go away for a week or two, not realizing that it's going to turn itself on, and then sit empty, and hot, each and every day those poor folks are away.

With the singular exception of this truly stupid design, everything, or almost everything, else is top-notch about this Krups coffeemaker. The only other item of questionable value is the water level indicator. I only realized today, having had the appliance for over a week and after reading the lone other review here on epinions on this device, that there even is a water level indicator on the left side of the device! It's all but impossible to see, given the fact that this coffeemaker is black, and because such appliances spend most of their lives under a cabinet, and not in particularly bright light.

Fortunately, the water level indicator is hardly a major issue: the markings on the glass carafe do just fine in determining the amount of water to put into the appliance. Too bad someone thought it necessary to re-invent the wheel, and designed this otherwise fine device to work in a manner totally contrary to that which all other such devices work, and have worked for decades.

This one caveat aside, the Krups FME-2 is a pretty good machine. But this is one helluva dumb caveat indeed.