This coffee maker makes a very large mess. Right out of the box it seemed to be working incorrectly with water leaking out the bottom of the unit with every brew. The controls on the front are intuitive enough but you will definitely need the user manual to set the delay brew feature (not a deal breaker in my book). Another thing to mention is that this unit is quite large. It fit under my kitchen cabinets with a little clearance but make sure to measure your space before purchase.