Krups FMF4-14 10-Cup Coffeemaker Black and Stainless Steel

We bought this unit a couple of weeks ago expecting a product that would make good coffee. It does not make good coffee. The coffee comes out too strong but lacking in robust flavor. How do they do this? I'm not sure; I use the same coffee from the same grinder with the same water in my Braun Flavor Select and get excellent coffee - full flavor and good extraction. I tried using more beans but just got stronger coffee without more flavor. I also messed with the 'small pot' control and got slightly improved coffee but still nothing like what I expect. Functionally the unit has some problems, as well. It is difficult to empty the carafe completely; the little rubber feet come out when I slide the thing across the counter and the level indicator is hard to see. Poor use of money, materials and energy. Read more

I bought this unit on New Year's Eve of 2004. I have been a faithful KRUPS customer when it comes to their coffee machines. This is the first unit I purchased that I am really disappointed in. The overall design is good but the materials used and thought behind it must have been out to lunch when this product was first designed and then reviewed in the QUALITY ASSURANCE department. The coffee is hot and the thermal pot keeps it that way for a couple of hours. One of the features I purhcased this unit for. I had the Duo filter unit previously for 10 years. The Duo unit worked fine but wanted to update it. The first FMF4 unit I purhcased I returned within a week since the water level indicator started to get air pockets in it and getting a proper measurament was a guessing game afterwards, I did not spend over a $100 to play let's guess the water level. I returned the unit (under the impression that this particular unit must be faulty.) I exchanged it for the same model. I read the instruction manual like you should. The manual should be written only for the model that you purchased not any other model that you didn't. Saves a lot of time and confusion. When pouring the water into the resevoir and watching the indicator to make sure that there is no air pockets forming. The air pockets did not return for a while. Was feeling like I did the right thing this unit is working fine it just must have been the unit itself. Spoke to soon. The air pockets have returned. Sent KRUPS an email to report this particular problem, the return email was no help on this at all. I found a way to eliminate the air pockets and make the numbers much more legible at the same time. The water indicator is probably installed improperly at the factory with a little adjustment the numbers show up like never before and I have not had an air pocket since. At the top of the water indicator there is a little rubber gasket or plug. The tube is plastic/rubber. I bent the tube until it was able to come off the coffee maker. I blew into the tube to get the airpockets out. When re-fastening the tube to the unit I turned the tube until I saw the numbers that are printed on the tube became larger and legible. If you decide to do this make sure that you keep an eye on the little rubber plug since it seems to like to fall off and disappear on you. Like I said prior, this has seemed to correct the air pocket problem and I can now read the numbers on the indicator much better than before. I did the same procedure on my parents who have the same unit and also the same problems and theirs works fine as well. After over coming that little obstacle, the unit worked fine. There is more though. The thermal pot is hard to put back into the unit when the filter holder is in. I have to hold the back of the machine in order for it to go back in without it moving all over the counter, when removing the carafe while it is brewing, it does not pause like it is supposed to, it just keeps on dripping (sorry I do not have a quick fix for this one). The door that the filter holder resides in is poorly made and flimsy. I do not think that this door is going to hold up for 3 yrs let alone 10 like my other KRUPS. The holder as I have read in the other review does not sit that securely in the door as well. Another potential problem to deal with in the morning or whenever you use the machine. The newest and latest mishap with this unit is the little white rubber gasket inside the filter cup. I made a pot of coffee one morning and while emptying out the filter, the little white gasket fell off causing the lever underneath the filter cup to come apart spring and all. I had to rummage through the garbage to retrieve this little white gasket thing once I discovered that, that was the missing peice which would fix this problem. Once I have found the missing part (another brillant thought out design), I put it back on the little plastic stick inside the filter holder and once again another problem fixed. Outside of the problems listed above, the unit is great. The unit makes a good pot of coffee after the anxiety of making sure the unit is set up right before you hit the brew or on button. I have to ask KRUPS though, WHAT HAPPENED? This unit is not worth the $129+ I spent on it. It was a poorly designed unit not given much thought on the placement of the electronics (display/control buttons), the materials to construct the machine are flimsy at best. Not impressed. Just like a review I had read before witing my own Mr. Coffee is just as good at half the cost. Read more

I purchased a Krups coffee maker, Type FMF4, on May 4, 2005. I specifically chose a Krups coffee maker as a replacement for another Krups coffee maker that we had used for many years. The previous Krups unit gave quite satisfactory service, hence the reason for choosing another Krups coffee maker which I expected to be as good or better than the original. However, I have been dissatisfied with the new unit for a number of reasons ranging from, what I believe to be design flaws, to marginal service from a Krups Authorized Appliance Service Company. I will begin with the design faults: 1. Our unit is equipped with a stainless steel thermal carafe and, therefore, as a matter of principle, gains no advantage from outside heating. Yet, the heating element at the base of the carafe does, indeed, heat the plastic base of the carafe resulting in a strong plastic odor every time the coffee is brewed. In a glass carafe the heating would not be a problem but in fact is an advantage, but since manufacturing has chosen to make all units the same, the plastic gets HOT! 2. When water is added to the reservoir, air bubbles are often trapped in the water level indicator. Thus, it is impossible to determine the volume of water that has been added unless it is pre-measured in another vessel. Whether the water filtration system is in place or not makes no difference. Incidentally, the gauge is more difficult to read than on the previous model. 3. After using the unit for about 2 months (approximately 60 uses) the display window showed "CALC" indicating that descaling is required. I was very surprised by this since I use ONLY water that is first softened and then passed through a reverse osmosis unit (RO). There is virtually no method of obtaining purer water! Nevertheless, I performed the descaling operation as described on page 11 of the manual using 8 oz. of white vinegar. The CALC warning disappeared for 3 days after which it reappeared. 4. Although the carafe is quite attractively designed, it does not pour well. It is nearly impossible to pour the last bit of coffee from the carafe without spillage all over the table. So, why am I bothering to write you with my concerns? I can truly say that I am terribly disappointed in this current Krups product. It does make good coffee but it is a nuisance to use. I believe that more evaluation should have been performed before this product was marketed to eliminate these faults. This is why I bring it to your attention. Obviously, I will not be purchasing another Krups product. Read more