About two weeks ago, standing in my kitchen and while drinking a cup of coffee, I became quite angry with Mr. Coffee.   I’m not talking about the actual coffee; I’m being quite literal and speaking about my tired and rundown coffeemaker by “Mr. Coffee.”  While staying with friends, I had been introduced to their Tassimo.  For years I had been lying to myself and saying that my trusted coffee maker produced just as good of a cup of drip coffee as these fancy schmancy machines.  I was dead wrong.  It was time to jump into the 21st Century and enter the world of single-serve coffeemakers.

I settled in with my computer to investigate the selection of newest home brewers available.  After careful consideration, I figured out that it was between a Tassimo and a Keurig, but had a hard time deciding between the two.  I chose to put the machines side by side for comparison so that I could see the pros and cons of each.  Here is what I found:

	TASSIMO	KEURIG
PRICE:	$129.00 – $199.00	$79.95 – $249.95
MODELS:	3 Different Types of Machines	9 Different Types of Machines
CUP SIZE:	8oz cup.  Some T-Discs available for larger cup size.	Machines can be programmed to choose cup size.  4, 6,8,10 or 12oz cup, depending on machine.
COFFEE PODS:	Uses patented T-Discs.  Computer barcode on each disc tells the machine exactly which beverage to make, inclusive of the “perfect temperature.”	Patented K-Cups.  Each holds precise amount of coffee or tea, guaranteed to deliver freshness and flavor in every cup.  Also offers “My K-Cup,” which allows user to fill pod with their fav coffee/tea.
COFFEE POD VARIETIES:	There are currently just over 40 brands partnering with Tassimo including: Gevalia, Maxwell House, TAZO, Twinings and more	There are currently 200+ varieties of coffee and teas partnering with Keurig, including: Folgers, Green Mountain Naturals, Celestial Seasonings, Donut Shop, revv and many more.
PROS:	Tassimo can make Lattes, Machiatto’s, Cappuccinos and specialty drinks – all in one machine, with one touch.	The Keuring brews your coffee in under one minute and has a huge selection of regular coffee and teas to choose from.
CONS:	8oz max cup size. Lack of selection when it comes to coffee and teas.	Machine cannot make foam.  In order to complete your latte or cappuccino, you have to order a “One-touch Milk Frother.”

After studying the above, it hit me in a very simple way.  For those who simply enjoy their standard drips – no foam, whipped, soy, double twists and so on, but do enjoy a wide variety of flavored and unflavored coffee and teas, then the KEURIG is for you.

If you enjoy specialty drinks like Lattes, Cappuccinos, Hot Chocolate or anything that requires foam, then the TASSIMO is the right machine for you.

 

Both machines can be found at Bed Bath and Beyond.

Happy Brewing!

Jana Gersten