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I'm not surprised by their popularity. I'm going to set aside coffee quality for a second - because the truth is, the average consumer doesn't seem to care abo
by no_wizard 3y ago
I'm not surprised by their popularity.
I'm going to set aside coffee quality for a second - because the truth is, the average consumer doesn't seem to care about this beyond a certain threshold, which judging by the popularity of these Keurig and Keurig-like products, the options clearly meet - and I want to focus on what it delivers.
What it delivers is consistency. You put a pod in, fill up the water as needed, and press a button. Rinse and repeat, and you always get the same specified amount of coffee. Its precision consistent. No making a big pot of coffee only to waste it.
Not to mention, its simple to clean up. Just throw the pod away. No grounds, no coffee filters, just pop the pod, and on to the next one.
As far as convenience goes, it hits all the notes.
It may not for you, of course, but the average consumer is still buying these systems and its only growing.
Given how cheap it is to make these systems, I'm really not shocked it went to the consumer relatively quickly and didn't settle as an office only thing.
Now, they are an environmental catstrophe, that is true, and thats a great reason to transition away from these systems
- starttoaster 3y agoThey make those re-usable K cups, which I've never used and can't speak to how well they function or reduce waste. But I suppose they were never as popular to buy and use because then you have to do all of the things about making coffee that make it less desirable than just dropping by Dunkin Donuts on the way to work.
- abfan1127 3y agoI use a re-usable K cup. Its still very convenient. I grab a clean one, add grounds, install in the machine and get my coffee. When I get multiple coffees in a day, I just dump and re-use the same K-cup. Its still really convenient.
- antisthenes 3y agoThat sounds less convenient than putting in a disposable paper filter into a machine and dumping grounds into it, adding water, then brewing 4-6 cups at once. Maybe you have to wait a little longer, but you don't have to worry about cleaning and adding grounds.
- 1letterunixname 3y agoSame. Disposability and waste is false convenience with externalities.
- legitster 3y agoI think more importantly, K-Cups can be stored for long periods of time. If you are not a daily coffee drinker, and you want to make coffee with the same infrequency you use all of your other kitchen gadgets, your grounds will be stale between cups.
- ortusdux 3y agoConsistency is/was one of the main selling points of starbucks. They famously burn their espresso shots, which leads to a more consistent flavor.
- duxup 3y agoThat’s why I use mine. Grab Costco pod, cup, done. I can go usher the kids off to school. And the coffee is pretty good. I’ve honestly not made coffee any other way.
- lolbase 3y agosuperautomatics provide similar benefits with less environmental impact. Unfortunately, most people prefer the lower up-front cost and higher operational cost of a Keurig or a Nespresso to the higher up-front cost and lower operational cost of a superauto.