Hamilton Beach Personal Cup Stay or Go POD Brewer Review

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(More customer reviews)Back when the Senseo coffee makers were first introduced, I recall them giving away coffee machines to get them in the hands of coffee drinkers and hopefully gain favorable word-of-mouth marketing. Unfortunately, some of those coffee machines developed problems. I remembered that when I declined to receive my free Senseo machine. Fast forward to today and it appears they not only addressed their mechanical problems, but now they've allowed other companies to make machines that use Senseo coffee pods. I was finally willing to give the Senseo system a shot, with the Hamilton Beach Stay or Go Coffeemaker.
PROS:
- Very inexpensive
- Quick to brew
- Easy clean up
- Pods are reasonably priced
CONS:
- May require 2 pods for a travel mug
- Not many 3rd party pod makers
- Not the highest build quality
I was a heavy coffee drinker in college and at my first office job but have otherwise been a casual java drinker since. I had owned coffee machines in the past but typically went the route of the Peet's, Starbucks, Caribou, etc. It was easier, more social, and usually tasted better. Going through the motions with a coffee maker at home was an arduous task, which often resulted in me having to throw away many bags of coffee due to expiration. I'd recently received a Keurig-based machine for review and really enjoyed it. When I got the chance to try a Senseo (pronounced, SEN-SAY-OH) coffeemaker, I was excited to compare them.
The first thing I noticed was that the build quality didn't really seem all that great, but for the price, I guess I shouldn't expect the quality of the pricier Keurig. The reservoir is large enough to hold water for an average-sized travel mug/tumbler. Unlike my Mr.Coffee Keurig, you can actually fit a travel mug underneath the drip. Unfortunately, a travel mug is NOT included with the coffee machine. To use it with just a normal coffee mug, you can remove the stand and flip it around to raise the mug closer to the drip. A drip tray is at the bottom of the stand and the entire stand is removable for cleaning.
To brew the coffee, you just remove the brew basket and place a pod (or 2 if you wish) in the basket. Then, put as much water as you intend to brew (up to 14 ounces) and hit the ON switch. It finishes brewing within just a couple of minutes. Clean up is as easy as a Keurig because you just dump the pods out of the brew basket and just rinse the brew basket. The difference in cleanup is that the Keurig requires some regular maintenance to remove scaling and hard water buildup. The Hamilton Beach Stay or Go's brew basket is all you really need to clean and it is dishwasher safe.
The coffee itself tasted good and 18 pods are included with the coffee machine. I can't say for certain if it tastes any different than a Keurig because I don't have the exact same coffee to brew in each machine to tell the difference.
The difference to me is the variety of coffee available for each. It appears that Senseo is the primary maker of pods for their machines. I saw very few 3rd party pod makers for Senseo machines, while Keurig has a much greater selection of coffee flavors as well as makers. I think in general, the K-Cups are a bit more expensive than the Senseo pods but I found the difference to be insignificant in my opinion.
Overall, the Hamilton Beach Stay or Go pod coffee maker is a good value. It brews quickly and clean up is a breeze. While it is probably cheaper in the long run to own a Senseo machine and to buy pods, I prefer the wider selection of K-Cup coffee. If you enjoy specific blends that Senseo already makes however, then the Hamilton Beach Stay or Go is a good simple choice.


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Hamilton Beach Personal Stay or Go POD Brewer. For fresh coffee made fast, look no further. The Personal Cup\' Brewer makes a single cup the easy way. Instead of messy coffee grounds, it uses affordable and delicious Senseo Coffee Pods.

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