Hamilton Beach 43254 Ensemble 12-Cup Coffeemaker with Glass Carafe, Black
by Hamilton Beach
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Our Price: $45.05
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Category: Kitchen
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Product Summary
Manufacturer: Hamilton BeachBrand: Hamilton Beach
Release Date: 2004-10-25
Model: 43254
Color: Black/Stainless
Product features:
- 12-cup coffeemaker with user-friendly control panel and digital display
- Programmable clock/timer for "wake-up" coffee; brew-pause function
- Glass carafe with stay-cool handle, measuring marks, and drip-free pour spout
- Nonstick hot plate; 2-hour automatic shut-off for safety; easy-to-clean removable parts
- Measures approximately 11 by 8 by 14 inches; 1-year limited warranty
Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Hamilton Beach 43254 Ensemble 12-Cup Coffeemaker with Glass Carafe, Black
Customer Review: Average Of 4 Stars? At Best I'd Give It 3...
Summary: 2 Stars
Every time I have used this coffee maker I've always told myself to write a review about it on amazon. It's probably because every time I use the coffee maker I want to shove the memory out of my mind so fast that I always forget to review it. Well I finally remembered and a month after my purchase here is my review:
My old coffee maker broke and after a bit of research I saw that the Hamilton Beach 43254 maker would be a very good replacement. It shipped promptly. I took it out of the box, plugged it in and I had the timer/clock set up within seconds. It was very easy to program and I was very happy with my purchase so far.
I then went to make the coffee. I took the pot from the maker and filled it with 8 cups of water. I opened the enormous lid (which covers the water hole) to find that the lid would only open so far before it hit the bottom of the cabinets lining the kitchen. I had to move the coffee maker to a more open space on the counter so the lid would open fully. Then I saw the golf-ball sized hole that I was to pour the water into....trying to pour the water into the hole without splashing it into the filter cup is fun game - the hole is extremely small and if you move the pot while pouring the stream of water will ricochet off the sides of the hole and splash into the filter cup. With time it has gotten easier, but it was very unnecessary for the designers to make such a small hole.
I then poured my grounds into the filter and waited for morning. I woke up to the smell of great coffee. The coffee tasted excellent and was the perfect temperature. The coffee stays hot in the pot for a long time.
That night, I went to make my coffee again: I open the lid and to my surprise condensation started dripping from the bottom of the lid into the water hole as well as onto my counter-top. I then found wet coffee grounds in the filter holder that had spilled over the top of the filter during the coffee making process (the water pours into the filter too fast and it floods over the top of the filter taking grounds with it). Needless to say it is extremely monotonous having to use multiple sheets of paper towels to clean a mess every time I make coffee.
The coffee maker is easy to program, it looks great, and it makes fantastic coffee but there are so many problems associated with it that the cons outway the pros. I would love to know if the CEO of Hamilton Beach has ever used this coffee maker. I have gotten used to it (thus I am keeping it) but my blood-pressure still spikes when I even think about making coffee.
2/5
UPDATE (October 29 2010)
Has it really been over half a year since I bought this machine? Well, since writing the initial review I have gotten more used to the problems this machine gives me on a daily basis (this is mostly because I ignore the problems until I can ignore them no longer). Well, a problem arose last night that I couldn't ignore: Before I poured out the unused coffee from that morning I looked inside the pot: inside, floating around the liquid, were many, many, many grounds of coffee. I then took the filter holder out of its compartment and looked in: coffee grounds were caked up all over (bypassing the filter altogether, thus getting into the coffee pot). Cleaning the filter compartment is a PAIN because there are so many nooks and crannies to get a paper-towel around. I ended up using a cooking-brush to get most of the caked-on grounds off.
Another thing that keeps bothering me is the condensation forming on the underside of the lid. Except for one time (when my house was 80+ degrees due to an AC malfunction) there has always been condensation that flows off onto my counter/into the water hole whenever I open the lid.
Again I'll say: the coffee tastes and smells great. It is always warm. Due to unplugging/power-outages I've had to reprogram the clock once or twice but it only takes seconds to set.
My rating is still 2/5 stars. I really hope the designers at Hamilton Beach start to live by the old slogan "Keep It Simple Stupid!" - there are so many unnecessary components to this machine (removable filter holder, hinged water spout, etc).
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Description of Hamilton Beach 43254 Ensemble 12-Cup Coffeemaker with Glass Carafe, Black
Combine function and fashion with the Hamilton Beach 12 cup Classic Stainless Steel accented coffee maker. The coffee maker has accelerated brewing and chlorine removing water filter to enhance the taste of your morning beverage. The drip free carafe eliminates spills.Drip Coffee Machines
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