What Is The Difference Between The K-Café And K-Café Special Edition? The difference between the K-Café and the K-Café Special Edition coffee maker is that the latter comes with a nickel colored finish, a metal handle, and a metal drip tray. As for features and settings, they are exactly the same. What’s The Difference Between A Latte And A Cappuccino? The difference between a latte and a cappuccino is that the former consists of a coffee shot of espresso, steamed milk and a thin layer of foam, whereas a cappuccino has a coffee shot of espresso, less steamed milk and a much thicker layer of froth. Cappuccinos are often served with a sprinkle of chocolate powder on top, too. Reveal more in Keurig K-Cafe special edition coffee maker review.
Pros & Cons – Keurig K-Cafe special edition coffee maker
Pros
- The setup is easy and it works like pretty much a “plug and play” kind of device.
- Brewing capacities and with different functions, offering 6,8,10 and 12 ounces with the SHOT and Strong Brew options.
- Brewing times are fast
- Easy cleaning
- Frother that works like a charm
- Good looking design
- K-Cup compatible
- Compatible with Reusable kcups
- The price is really nice
Cons
- The biggest Con with this machine is that few units apparently experienced electrical issues after a few months of use. Keurig offers great customer support and it doesn’t happen too often. It’s worth mentioning as this issue is something that became a problem for some customers. But Keurig did worked well with their customer service.
- Will not work like other machines, as this is a pod brewer that may not be for everyone.
- The footprint is larger than the usual due to the frother, which may be inconvenient for some customers.
Features and Specs
- Special Edition: This particular edition of the machine will give you a fancy nickel colored finish that stands out from the rest.
- Versatility: Use the K-Cup pods to brew from a simple coffee to amazing lattes or cappuccinos.
- Shots: You can get a shot by simply pressing the button SHOT which yields a concentrated version of your favorite K-Cup pod, which allows making specialty drinks.
- Dishwasher safe: The Frother can be thrown into your dishwasher without issues.
- 60 oz water reservoir
- Smart start: Heat up and serve in one process
Keurig K-Cafe special edition coffee maker review
The main reason why I still am a morning person; Keurig. Their coffee machines have always made coffee making extremely convenient and easy, basically fool proof. The Keurig K Cafe Special Edition is no exception. I love the fact of being able to make my own cappuccinos and lattes with ease.
On top of that, I can make a cappuccino or latte faster than ordering one and going to pick it up. Thanks to the large water reservoir at 60 ounces, you can make countless cups without having to refill all the time. When I take the Keurig Cafe and compare it to my Keurig K Select, there’s one HUGE change that I really like. I am able to select a cup size (6, 8, 10, or 12) without having to wait for the machine to heat up! I mean to some, this may not seem like a huge deal. But for me,
I really like the fact that I don’t have to wait for the water to heat up like I did with the Keurig K Select. Now when it comes to the output of the coffee/espresso that you can get out of the Keurig Cafe, it’s definitely not by any means terrible. Of course you’re not going to get the best espresso when you compare it to something like a Jura machine. We have a Jura at work and the output that the Jura provides is pretty stellar. But you can’t really compare the two cause it’s not really fair. The Keurig Cafe still provides some pretty decent coffee. But if you’re heavily into your coffee, you’ll probably notice the difference along with the absence of crema in your espresso shot.
But there’s definitely something to mention here about the Keurig Cafe and that is the frother. Making froth to go with my coffee is so easy to do. All you literally have to do is pour milk into the the frother maker and hit a button. If it doesn’t get easier than that, there’s lines inside the frother maker to designate cappuccino or latte. The froth that the Keurig Cafe produces is excellent.
Let me just add, clean up is also extremely easy. When you hand wash it you don’t have to worry about scrubbing cause nothing sticks. If you don’t feel like hand washing it, you can just throw it into the dishwasher. Overall, I am thoroughly impressed with the Keurig Cafe machine. The Keurig Cafe is definitely not going to produce the most amazing coffee out there, especially if you consider yourself a coffee connoisseur. But if you’re looking for pretty decent coffee, crazily easy cappuccino or lattes and super easy clean up; the Keurig Cafe is definitely the way to go.
Cleaning & Maintenance
When cleaning the Keurig K-Cafe machine, we have to pretty much worry about 2 main areas; the frother, the most important because of the milk, and the pod compartment, which can get a little bit dirty.
First, the frother: yes you will have to clean it every time you use it. Because, well, that’s what you have to do with milk. But this frother is dishwasher safe, so that’s a big plus. Since, if you have one, throwing it in there and forgetting about it will make cleaning easier. However, if you have to hand-wash it, the material is easy to clean and the size is good enough to be able to reach all the surface inside.
The second point is the pod container – which will obviously get slightly dirty. However, the materials are easy to clean and coffee tends to be easier to wipe. It will not stink like milk if you forget to clean for a few hours.
The overall maintenance and cleaning of this machine are meant to be convenient over everything else, like most pod using machines, whatever brand they may be.
Which one is better – Keurig Special Edition K-Cafe Single Serve vs Keurig K-Select Single Serve?
Keurig Special Edition K-Cafe Single Serve
The Keurig Special Edition K-Cafe Single Serve also makes coffee, but it does it with premium nickel-colored finish and metal handles and drip tray. You could pop in a pod and have your basic cup of coffee, or you can use the coffee shot feature to brew a concentrated shot of coffee (ersatz espresso) to add to your latte or cappuccino. Yes, you’ll need milk for those—so it’s a good thing the K-Cafe has a milk frother built in.
But that frother isn’t like an espresso machine—it’s not a wand that steams milk. Rather, it’s set on a heating plate That may be fine for lattes, which only require warm milk, but cappuccinos are made with frothed milk that you’d need a wand for. Not to mention that lattes and cappuccinos are generally made with espresso, not concentrated coffee.
Keurig K-Select Single Serve
The Keurig K-Select Single Serve is the entry-level Keurig machine that you see in kitchens across the world. While it’s not a mini-machine, it’s what people think of when they think of a Keurig. It brews multiple K-Cup pod sizes and has an option for a strong brew. The simple buttons are easy to use—you know, like pushing a button. The standard matte black is $99 while the color-themed version (white, blue, red, etc.) add a few dollars to the price.
There is no pod reservoir, so you do have to remove one after each use, but the water reservoir is removable, so it’s easy to refill. There isn’t too much more to this machine. You know what it does. It fits a travel mug if you remove the drip tray and alerts you when the machine needs to be descaled (do this often). The selling point of the K-Select Single Serve is quick brewing for your on-the-go life.
Keurig K-Cafe special edition coffee maker customer review
but the “strong” option on the machine gives me the next best thing with a dark or espresso roast
I did a bunch of research to find a K-Cup compatible machine that also makes lattes/cappuccinos, while offering an “espresso” option. I know that’s a lot, but that’s what I wanted! 🙂 As far an I can see, there is nothing that compares with this machine. True, it does not make a “legit” espresso, but the “strong” option on the machine gives me the next best thing with a dark or espresso roast. (The “strong” option can also be used to make a stronger brew of regular coffee.)
The milk frother is wonderful. My mother is VERY picky about her latte foam and she was amazed at how good it is. So I bought her this machine for her birthday. It does all this AND it makes lattes/capps in Keurig time. I researched a few other machines that offered similar options, but they brewed coffee at a glacial pace, and I don’t have that kind of time to wait in the morning. Finally, it is SUPER EASY TO USE (which is also why I bought it for my mom), and I like that because I’m easily confused before my first cuppa in the morning. Now, I will say that I’ve only had the machine for about two weeks, so I can’t speak to it’s longevity. Fingers crossed for that. Cheers!
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