THIS IS THE LATEST AND GREATEST MODEL, September 14, 2011

Several weeks ago,my Cuisinart 12 coffeemaker poured out it’s last cup of coffee. I purchased the DCC 2650 because of the fast brew, visual water table and appearance. I want you to know I had a model many years ago and when it retired; I purchased another upscale brand which let me down. The purchase of Cuisinart is based on the ability of cuisinart designers who build a better machine. This is way easier for me because I love to be able to to see the level of the water from the outside. Actually, that feature has been on my wish list for cuisinart. The button plaement on the top around the clock is functional and easy to use.The reg or bold button works like a dream and the pot stays on for four hours which I prefer to other coffemakers which shut down after 2 or 3 hrs. I do not use the auto turn on or the grab it quick cup feature. I like the carafe heat temp on the right which allows a person to have warm to very hot coffee. I purchased the burr grinder from cuisinart. I replaced the cuisinart blade grinder and believe me this machine is a great companion to this coffeemaker. Now, I would never tell anyone how to spend their money but if you are on the fence, GO FOR IT!

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Not worth the extra $ $ , September 19, 2011

My venerable DCC-1200 Cuisinart died so thought I’d try this one out as it appeared to be a newer/upgraded version of the 1200 and that’s how I’m approaching this review. As I write the 2650 is more than the 1200. It’s a nice coffeemaker, does what it’s supposed to and does it as good as the the 1200, but not worth the extra in my opinion.

The good:
- I like the new overall look of the design though there’s something to be said for the “classic” look of the 1200.
- The lift lid to access the cone filter doesn’t drip condensation all over the counter behind the unit when you open the lid to toss the previous brews grounds/filter like the 1200. Haven’t noticed much dripping anyway but what little there is it keeps self-contained.
- Uses the same carafe as the 1200 (and I image many other Cuisinart models).
- Seems to brew a bit faster than the 1200. Haven’t timed it but wouldn’t call it “extreme”, whatever that means (see below).

The not so good:
- Don’t be fooled by the stainless steel looking exterior. It looks nice but is plastic, not real metal like the 1200.
- Overall feels “cheaper” than the 1200 (which has a good solid feel to it).
- The brew strength selector (regular or bold) seems to make no difference, at least that I can taste to this point.
- From a brewing function standpoint the only thing different than the 1200 is the strength selector.
- Haven’t done an official measurement but the “hot” setting doesn’t seem as hot as the same setting on the 1200. I could be wrong on this (my wife still has her 1200 – will update review if I ever do an official measurement).
- Maybe I’m just getting old but I find the bolded black text “Extreme Brew” proclamation on the front of the unit (under the properly muted Cuisinart logo) very annoying and if I can find a way to scrub it off without marring the surface I will. What’s so “extreme” about brewing coffee? Yes I know they’re trying to draw attention that it supposedly brews a bit faster than other units, but come on. Ruins the clean lines of the design in my opinion.

Neither good nor bad:
- Water level view window on the side. Don’t really care much about that since I know exactly how much I’m putting in already but imagine others will like that.
- The cone filter holder is totally different from the 1200. Still takes the same style filters but holds it differently. Not sure if it’s any better but it does the job.

Overall a good coffeemaker, but if I had it to do over again I’d buy another 1200 model and spend the I saved on some good coffee. 4 stars overall, minus 1 for points mentioned above.

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Nice coffee brewer with better features, August 3, 2011

I replaced by old DCC-1200 that died perhaps a little early (2 years) with this new model. I really like the ability to see the water level on the outside as I fill it. The old one was hard to fill without looking inside as you poured and you had to have good lighting to see the level. This is all taken care of with this new model. In addition it has a bold/normal setting for brewing, but I can’t tell a lot of difference. Otherwise it makes just as good coffee as the older Cuisinart, which is good coffee in my estimation. I rate this as 4 stars as it shouldn’t cost quite as much as it does.

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