I love the new look! We had the older version for about 6 years. This new one is sleeker and much easier to clean and keep clean (the inside where the grinder sits gets cakey due to condensation). I got it for $149, used Amazon Prime, and had it in a few days! I love it. If you're thinking of getting this grind and brew with stainless carafe, it is nice. Some parts will have to be replaced over the years like the older version, but the taste of the freshly ground coffee every day is worth it. I never pre-heat the carafe like the directions say because that defeats the purpose of the timer. I've never had an issue with the coffee temperature, it's always hot! I also recommend hand-washing over dishwasher. The carbon filters are similar to Brita and can be found for cheap at Kohl's. One other note is it only makes 10 cups as opposed to the typical 12 cups. This is fine for me because it's just me and my husband, but if you need to make a ton of coffee regularly, this may not be a good choice. Overall, I love it and I'm glad I traded up!
We had a DGB-600BC and used it daily for about 4 years. The grinder assembly finally seized and we could no longer remove it. We had been looking around for a new coffee maker, anyway, so we went ahead and bought this one (DGB-650BC) at a local store.
We've been using it for a couple weeks now and it makes a fine cup of coffee, just like the last one did. I noticed right away, that a few things that turned out to be issues with the last model had been fixed or improved upon with this one.
1) The grinder compartment is much better separated from the water reservoir and also designed better for all the grounds to go into the filter basket. The older model always left a bit of a mess, both in the grinder compartment and on the little shelf that separated the filter basket from the coffee pot, and around the burner plate. I haven't seen any of that mess with this model. I can't tell you how happy that makes me.
2) The little shelf I spoke about in #1 is now gone. That's a plus. Since this maker is designed better, it isn't needed anyway. Also, this shelf caused build up around the door latch making it hard to shut after a very short time. I'm glad it's gone.
3) The filter basket door mechanism is far better designed. The old model I had to slam shut, sometimes repeatedly, before it would stay shut. This one has a much better and more sturdy hinge mechanism and latch.
4) New to this model (the old one didn't have this) is a window on the side so you can see how much water you're pouring in. It's clearly marked and has a red floating ball to make it easy to see. I really like this feature.
The grinder seem a little louder than the old one, but I've never met a coffee grinder that wasn't loud and it's only for a very short time. I love having freshly ground coffee first thing in the morning.
As far as cleanup goes for the grinding assembly and filter basket, it only takes a minute or two. Aside from the coffee pot itself, there are 5 pieces to clean and it really is quick and easy to empty the filter basket and rinse the pieces.
In short, this is fine coffee maker, much improved from the DGB-600BC, and I am happy we upgraded to it.
Buy Cuisinart DGB-650BC Grind-and-Brew Thermal 10-Cup Automatic Coffeemaker, Brushed Metal Now
Let me start by admitting that I am a novice when it comes to drinking coffee, much less owning coffee machines. This is the first coffee machine I've ever bought, but I've been very happy with it thus far. If you purchase it, definitely read the directions as there are a couple of small points they bring out, that you wouldn't otherwise know. (For instance, when you place the goldtone coffee filter in, the handle which can rest in either direction, must face outwards.) I just mention this, since I am usually one to NOT read directions, and I'm sure most others who have owned coffe machines wouldn't either, but it seems valuable in this particular case.
The main reason I went with this unit, was Cuisineart had the only ones in Bed Bath & Beyond which can be programmed to grind then brew. I leave it on my desk at work, and have it programmed to grind/brew right before I arrive in the morning. And it's awesome. Only used it several times so far, but no complaints. Cleaning is relatively easy but (like any other coffee brewer/grinder I assume) you have to clean it every day. Not a big deal though, so far I've just been taking the grinder and filter parts out, and rinsing them out. Not sure how important it is to use soap...
The most valuable thing I can tell you, that you won't read on the box, is that the thermal caraffe REALLY DOES work great. I don't pre-heat the caraffe, since I have it sitting out from the night before. I have mine programmed to start brewing at 8:30am. And believe it or not, despite the fact that there is no heater that runs after it's done brewing... the coffee stays HOT for a long time. It stays piping hot for several hours, and even at 2:30pm, it is still drinkably warm. I never expected it to stay that warm for 6 hours, far exceeded my expecations.
Easy to program, but you have to remember to press the Program button each night before. Although, that's not really a big deal since you have to add water and all the other stuff anyway. It's a safety feature really.
Grinder noise isn't super loud, and it only runs for 60 seconds so who cares. Mine is sitting on my desk in my cube, but I program it to run before most people arrive in the office so it's not a problem.
Very short 2ft. power cord with the unit, which will be great for kitchen countertops where you can put it by an outlet, otherwise you might need an extension cord.
Can't speak about reliability. Hopefully they fixed some of the issues people had with this unit's predecessor. Will revise my review later if I have issues.
I've rated it 5 stars, for $129 I feel that I got what I expected and paid for, and really don't have any complaints. I also haven't seen ANYTHING in the market that does what this does, in the same price range. Is there not a demand for coffee grinder/brewers? I mean, why wouldn't you want to have something that you can program to do both before you even wake up? For me, there was no other choice.
Cuisinart has a more expensive model than this one, but it was $70 more and the only feature that really seemed to be valuable was it's "burr grinder" which is supposedly better. But it didn't seem like that was worth $70 more to me, so I thought this was the best value.
Read Best Reviews of Cuisinart DGB-650BC Grind-and-Brew Thermal 10-Cup Automatic Coffeemaker, Brushed Metal Here
I ordered this coffee maker knowing that Cuisinart produces very fine products but I have to say I am not real happy with this particular product. The grinder grinds the beans VERY coarse which doesn't make a very strong cup of coffee so I'm back to grinding my coffee with my burr grinder. The setting for 1-4 cups does not make the water warmer as advertised (it comes out luke warm) so I just don't push that button when making a small pot of coffee. I do find that when brewing a full pot it does keep the coffee hot for quite a while. I think, if I order another Cuisinart coffeemaker in the future, that I will pay a little more and get the coffeemaker with the burr grinder and with a hot-plate instead of the thermal carafe.
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For those who want grind and brew features this is the best product for the money. There are the higher priced models but some of us have to stay on a budget. Compared to the earlier version, I've had 3 of the earlier ones; they do tend to break down after 2 years. This model has significant improvements. The best is that it is so much easier to clean the grinding area. The earlier model was next to impossible, this more open design makes it possible to actually get those beans that get into the grinding area out.
In reading the other reviews I did have a few concerns.
1. The sediment from the filter: Well that's the reality of permanent filters. So it's convenience of not having to get those paper things out and over to the trash. If that detail is annoying use paper. Even the high priced machines have that issue and Cuisnart clearly informs you of this issue with a notice before unpacking the product.
2. Noise: The review that goes on about how noisy this machine is. Gad face reality, these are coffee beans getting ground up in somewhat large area in an enclosed area without a lot of sound insulation. It is going to get loud. No louder than a regular coffee grinder and a lot quieter than a garbage disposal. To avoid having the noise in the morning I do the unthinkable, grind the beans the evening before. OK, I'm not a purist.
3. Coffee not the right temp: Face reality, the carafe is going to be the same temp as the room it's sitting in. So it like most people who turn down there temp in their house at night to let's say even 68 degrees at night or even 70, the the physics say the carafe temp is going to be 70. Now, brew coffee and when it gets into the insulated carafe the temp is going to average out. Since the insulated model doesn't have a warming plate, you're may want to take into consideration that you're brewing into a room temp carafe and the coffee temp is going to cool down. Cuisinart clearly informs you that simply warming up the carafe with hot water before brewing takes care of this issue. I easily deal with this when the machine starts brewing you have a good 30-45 seconds before the first drop comes out and the machine does have a function to keep coffee from coming out unless the carafe is properly placed. That gives plenty of time to run some hot water into it, get the inside temp up and the result is coffee at the perfect temp. Now I do have to say that it is very easy for me because I have one of those instant hot water faucets at the sink so I don't have to wait for the hot water to start flowing.
There have been some very good user oriented changes to this model. It's not perfect, but for the money it's the best you're going to find on the market. Take the critics in these reviews with a grain of salt.
Of course one of the reasons I am really, really happy with this machine is that I ran into it when Amazon had it on sale for $110 with a $30 rebate from Cuisinart. My final cost was $85!! I called customer service to see how the rebate would work. They told me a mail-in coupon would come with the product. When the product arrived ( 3 days later, and I used the free standard shipping during the holiday period) there was no rebate coupon. I called customer service and their response was "we'll just add a $30 credit" to your account. I was expecting getting a run around anticipating that they would put the problem off on Cuisinart. But no, Amazon steps up to plate, resolves the problem in less than 1 minute and the credit appeared on my credit card the next day. Now that is customer service!!
My hats off to Amazon to putting the customer first. Beyond the coffee maker at $85 final cost with free shipping, I have to say that Amazon has matured into a very customer focused retailer. They have moved beyond good prices and the convenience of shopping at home; they are real competition to the brick & moter stores. Amazon's focus on the customer actually gives the retail experience a lot of us remember in the "old department store" days.
I have never taken the time to write a product review, but I do enjoy having them available to get unbiased reviews and input. This time I felt it was only fair to take the time to put a realistic perspective to some of the negative reviews while at the same time expressing my positive experience with Amazon. For me Amazon has primarily been a convenience factor, now I shop with them because of their dependability and customer service focus. Price is not the driver for me anymore. I've just learned that if I really want customer service, the most reliable and predictable place to shop is Amazon!!
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