Ninja Pods & Grounds Single-Serve Coffee Maker, K-Cup Pod Compatible, 56-oz. Reservoir, 6-oz. Cup to 24-oz. Travel Mug Brew Sizes, Iced Coffee Maker, Navy, PB041NV

I Do The Speed LimitUnited States

Just what I needed for excellent flavored ground coffee

Flavored ground coffee blends gum up the innards of sophisticated, expensive grind/brew/pour espresso and coffee machines. I have a Nespresso machine for wonderful espresso and lungo pours and I have a De'Longhi that grinds and then gives me all kinds of pour choices. But this Fall I wanted pumpkin spice, and some Barnie's blends and an interesting Mexican chocolate flavored coffee that I found. So I went looking online for a machine--not too expensive, but not too cheap either--that would provide me with the means to make a consistently hot, very rich, cup of flavored coffee with cream, worthy of drinking. I found this machine and I already love it. And it sits nestled between my Nespresso and De'Longhi machines on my coffee bar. In fact--and maybe because it is a novelty for me to be able to have wonderful flavored coffees at my fingertips--I have been using it more often than my other two, more expensive machines. But beware, or be aware: The price you pay for more flavorful coffee, will not be the one-time cost of this machine. It will be the fact that you will go through a bag of ground coffee way quicker than you ever imagined. I accept that. Because this machine makes the best cup of flavored ground coffee that I've ever had. This machine covers all the bases: Using the included filter in the brew basket, and with an ample water reservoir (56oz) at its back, it brews whatever ground coffee your heart desires, whatever grind, however much grounds you add to the filter, and however much water you press the button for. It has three lighted buttons for choosing a milder (Classic) or stronger (Rich) or even iced coffee. It makes for almost overwhelming opportunities to get the exact coffee you are looking for. And, hey, if those choices do overwhelm you, you can use the pod adapter in the brew basket and insert any kind of K-cup (not paper though), and just choose the amount of water for a single-serve. (But I don't use K-cup very often, so my review will not be addressing that feature.) And, the machine senses whether you have the filter or pod adapter in the brew basket and proceeds accordingly. I also have not tried the iced coffee feature. But from witnessing all the different ways this machine can provide you with the perfect strength coffee, I'm positive the iced coffee feature works well. Just use a vessel that can tolerate both hot and cold and fill it with ice, hit the proper button and let the hot coffee trickle into it. From reading reviews and the manuals that come with this machine, I assume that this is a relatively new product for Ninja. The manuals talk of a 4 ounce pour and a frother arm--both of these features are not included on this machine. And that is not an issue for me, the person who already has both of those features on other machines, but it might make a difference to you. So, to be clear this machine does not create froth (from your own heated milk in your own cup, which will be available on another model), nor does it give you the opportunity to make a 4 ounce pour. I am plenty okay with the 7 choices (of 6 ounces to 24 ounces) of water volumes. As this is a single pour machine, (then clean the grounds out of the filter basket), I will use my own quality carafe if I want to make enough coffee for a few morning cups or if I am entertaining a guest or two. But, and this is a possible fault: 24 ounces only stretches to three 8 ounce cups of coffee or 4 six ounce cups of coffee with cream, for instance. And, I'm adding this to my original review: I'd like to find a thermal carafe that fits under the spout of this machine. One that has a pour spout and a lid and no handle. Because I've been using a double-walled stainless steel travel mug and of course those do not have pour spouts--so it's a very messy pour from travel mug to coffee cup. The carafe without its lid would need to be no more than 8" tall and hold at least 26-28 ounces to the rim. I find several on Amazon, but none show the height without the lid. Nor is it obvious if the handle is part of the lid, because I'm thinking a handle would not allow the carafe to fit close enough to the machine's dispenser. What else I've experienced so far: --This machine makes coffee that is plenty hot, so hot that I can only take a tentative sip at first (and that is with cream included.) --It takes longer to brew than a Nespresso machine. It takes less time to brew than a drip machine. And the more water you use, the longer the brewing time. The reason: This machine allows the hot water to sit and stew in the grounds to provide a stronger, richer, flavor. Some quicker machines use pressure to build flavor and richness. But then machines built on the use of pressure do not allow ingredients other than coffee beans, so no flavored coffee grounds. --Brewing is done in stages that appear as lighted bars on top of the machine. It is nice to be able to see the progress. --The cup tray raises and lowers easily to accommodate different size vessels. The coffee does pour rather close to the machine. And the spout does not push in or out. It is a bit restrictive if you use certain uniquely-shaped vessels. --The pod adapter and filter both fit in a storage bin on one side of the machine. --The included spoon hangs from a hook on the other side of the machine. --Speaking of spoons and spoonfuls: You may be surprised how quickly you go through a bag of coffee..... --You will need to make decisions about how much grounds and how much water and what size vessel. You will need to know the volumes of your different cups. Or, if that is something you don't want to do, use the K-cup feature and you'll only need to decide on the water amount and the cup size. --Cleaning is relatively easy, just the brew basket and filter or pod adapter. --Descaling is easy too: 16 ounces of white vinegar or a descale solution and water and a 2 quart vessel and push a button. It takes 75 uninterrupted minutes.

HopeUnited States

Fabulous!

I'm loving my new Ninja. I've had SO many different types of coffee makers. My favorite is a stovetop percolator. This is perfect especially since you can use pods or the basket filter. I don't like the mess with the reusable baskets but oh well. I now use a small filter & it works great inside the basket filter to cut down on the messy grounds. The size is perfect & thin & love the water container in back. I use filtered water. Mine seemed noisy at first, but not a big deal I guess. I didn't hear the maker on any of the videos that I watched prior to my purchase. I already have a frother, so I didn't really need that. I have Our Place & Beautiful appliances so the cream color matched those pieces good enough. I did have some tiny droplets dripping from the condensation on the side, but that has stopped. I don't see it being any hotter than any other coffeemaker. My last was a 4 cup stainless carafe Cuisinart, which I loved, except for the burner black covering wore off after 2 years. I think the heat is fine & I haven't used the auto shut off yet bc I unplug all of my appliances after use & just plug them in when I use them. So far, I'm loving the basket more than pods. I like strong french roast coffee, so I use the basket w/ Gevalia French Roast in the morning- using less than a regular machine, which is great & I love the rich button. I have found that SBX Italian roast pods are fantastic. If you use a big mug just up the oz. I use a decaf pod in the evening, or just use empty pod basket for hot water. for tea or cocoa. I'm very pleased with the construction of this model w/ the cord caddy, storage drawer, spoon holder & water storage. It's fabulous! Very pleased. *UPDATE: I purchased tiny filters for this & they work great but they're a bit expensive. I have filters from my previous machine & have found that using a "regular small basket type filter" is able to fold over one side of the permanent filter just a tiny bit after fitting it into the basket. This works much better than the expensive super small filters & less messy because those tiny ones still allow some seepage of grounds into the gold basket. (That's just me, but I don't like the mess w/ only using a permanent filter). I wash the permanent filter by hand w/ a brush (& a toothbrush if needed) to make sure it's spotless after each use. The brush works quick, great & removes oils & grounds from top piece. I really, really love this coffeemaker. It's one of my favorite purchases. I use it 3-4 × day. It works perfectly.

M. GlennUnited States

Better than Keurig

I have owned every Keurig there is for many years, and they all have one thing in common- They Quit Working! This usually before you have made enough cups of coffee to pay for them over buying at Starbucks. It’s always the same thing, they stop pumping water. Very frustrating! However, this new Ninja is the BOMB! It is low profile, good materials, easy to read settings, very well made, more functionality than Keurig, and easy to keep clean. You can grind your own beans for strong expresso type coffee, or use K Cups, or use an aftermarket fill your own K cup, that actually fits. I have only had this for about 6 months, and I love it. My only concern is longevity, but time will tell. If it breaks about when the Keurigs do I will be back to downgrade my review, but so far it performs like my other Ninja products which is outstanding. You do need to let the cup sit there for a minute for it to quit dripping, no big deal. This morning, it did something new; I ran out of water half way into the brewing cycle with a half cup of coffee. It shut off and told me to add water. When I did, I pushed the start button and it picked up brewing right where it left off! You won’t get that type of functionality with an overpriced Keurig.

DavidMexico

Muy buen producto, peroo...

ACTUALIZACIÓN después de 9 meses: La cafetera dejó de detectar la funcion de cápsulas. (Se le cayó un imán al adaptador de pods) SOLUCION: el adaptador para cápsulas de la cafetera tienen un pequeño imán que se le cayó sin darnos cuenta por suerte lo encontré y lo volví a poner donde va y volvió a detectar las cápsulas sin problema. yo compre la version color beich pensando que la unica diferencia entre la beich y la de color negro era la maquina para hacer espuma, pero resulto que la de color beich no trae una funcion llamada ¨SPECIALTY 4 oz¨, que es la que te permite hacer los shots para los lattes y capuchinos. Asi que si piensas comprar una de estas dos versiones recomiendo la que tiene la maquina para hacer espuma por su funcion extra y la diferencia en precios es minima. para que puedan sacarle mayor provecho a la cafetera. En conclusion La de color beich funciona excelente y la recomiendo bastante, pero si pudiera comprarla otra vez compraria la de color negro con la funcion especial para capuchinos y lattes.