I wasn't hoping for a lot given the price and the size of this coffeemaker, but I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I almost didn't buy this after reading some of the negative reviews but I now understand why some reviews are as such - you need to follow the directions. If you don't, then don't blame the coffeemaker, blame the coffee MAKER. I like to make iced coffee so I had to play chemist trying to get the proper water to coffee ratio but once I did this little gem makes as good a cup of coffee as I've had in bigger more expensive products. Added plus is it's programmable and has its own replaceable permanent filter so no papers needed, and takes up very little space on my small countertop. I highly recommend.