Home > Consumer Reviews > Black & Decker AM8 Home Caf? Single Serve Coffee Brewing System, White

I bought a Senseo about a month ago and I was so impressed that I considered buying another one for the office. However, I got a $10 off coupon in the mail for this unit, plus it was cheaper to start with. So I figured, "What the heck".

I like the fact that you can use a taller cup with this unit and it is better geared towards the US palate than the Senseo (the Senseo defaults to a much smaller water-to-coffee ratio and you end up with something between coffee and espresso unless you brew a double cup.)

I also like the water resevoir on the B&D better than the Senseo. Though I suspect that the double resevoir that Senseo offers would win out over the B&D.

The Home Cafe isn't as nicely engineered as the Senseo and it does leak when it's brewing. It seems to be a function of how you place the pod and close it up, but you shouldn't have to be that picky about placement. It also tends to splash as a result of the height and the way that the water comes out. If you use a taller mug, it's not much of an issue. But if you use a standard coffee cup, you'll need a cloth nearby for the tiny drips and splashes. It's not like it pours gallons of coffee all over the counter, but it is a nuisance factor.

If I didn't have a choice, I'd buy the Home Cafe and be pretty happy about it. However, having a Senseo at home, I find it difficult to tolerate the little idiosyncrasies of the Home Cafe at work.

I'd personally recommend spending the extra money for the Senseo. The Keurig is also a good option, but it's significantly more expensive for the machine and for the k-cups. It does produce an exceptional cup of coffee, though.

Now if only all of these guys would get together and use ESE pods instead of these proprietary things we could get all the variety we want and pick the machine that worked best for us.

I bought the Black and Decker Home Cafe system two weeks ago and it's been trucking along just fine. I really feel sorry for all of the other previous users who've experienced problems. It's evident B&Ds first wave of units must have had some serious flaws, and I lucked out buying one that works!

That being said, this thing makes one darn good cup of coffee. I used to work in a cafe and the coffee (especially the flavored ones) taste just as though they are right out of the old brewing machine we used to use that cost a couple of grand. I use Folgers 100% Columbian for a regular cup of coffee, and prefer Milstones Hazlenut & Creme when I want something flavored which tastes (and smells) AMAZING. The Hazlenut & Creme actually tastes better then the Hazlenut we had at the Cafe!

The only flaw I would say this machine has is the tendency to have slight coffee splatter since the coffee drips directly into the cup. The manual says to avoid this by using a 'taller coffee cup' but the distance between the spout and the a regualr cup is quite far. How many coffee cups have you seen that are 7 inches high?? Unless you use a traveling coffee tumbler, then your mugs are probably at the most 4 inches high and there is going to be some splatter. Other then that, this unit works perfectly.

We tried this, and returned it a week later for the Senseo, which works terrifically so far.

As stated in other reviews, the design is really flimsy plastic and can break easily.

The coffee comes out just hot enough, so unless you are going to drink immediately, it will be cold.

If you do not use a very tall coffee cup, the water jet is so high from the base that the coffee dispensing out hits the bottom of the cup and splashes out, which could burn a person as well as wasting your coffee.

And as others have stated, it is really quite loud in a vibrating noisy way. It starts off somewhat quiet but as the week goes on the noise gets louder with use. It got so loud that I ran in the kitchen and shut off my dishwasher thinking it was malfunctioning only to find that it was the coffee machine making the noise.

Needless to say, we didn't use it after that and enjoy the Senseo much more. If you really want it, wait a few months until everyone realizes it is a piece of junk and then buy it at Big Lots or another "buy out discount store" for ten dollars, which is more than it is worth.

Thanks for reading and hope it helps. We read reviews before we buy anything, so if you have another product you can review, please do so. We can save each other a lot of time passing the word around. Good luck.

I like my coffee, probably not as much as others who will review this, but I drink 2 - 3 cups a day during the work week and can tell a decent cup of joe from an average cup. This machine makes consistently good coffee.

My unit DOES NOT LEAK when brewing. However there is SOME splash if the coffee cup isn't very tall. I usually use the double pod 14oz. option which may result in a less forceful stream of coffee. There is some after-drip that is a little annoying, not a big flaw in my opinion.

I value my time, a trip to Starbucks or Dunkin' Donuts every morning isn't convienient for me. This is the ticket. I am a single guy with no need to brew 10 cups of coffee every morning or guess how much coffee to grind, scoop, etc... This unit is the ticket. I've had Senseo coffee before, it is VERY strong, and good, this is good too.

Hopefully other coffee manufacturers (*cough* DUNKIN' DONUT'S *cough*) will soon make some pods for this unit. I didn't think I'd like Folger's and I did. Always have liked Milstone coffee so hopefully a bigger variety arrives soon!

This is a great little machine that makes really good coffee. It isn't Starbucks, it isn't Dunkin Donuts, but it is far more consistent than breaking out the 12 cup coffee maker for 2 cups of coffee, a lot quicker, more convienient, and I'd even venture to say better 8 times out of 10.

I'd say get it if you value your time!!!

I purchased the Home Cafe in April and until June couldn't find coffee pods locally. However the Senseo pods are identical.

Before going through the coffee sample the machine started to spit hot water on the sides of the brewing cup. If I turn it over and place the pods in the side for holding two pods it works better, but the coffee isn't as good. It is getting worse and logging on at the Home Cafe site they won't reply to emails.

This morning I brewed a 9 oz cup and left the room. When I returned there was approximately 6 oz in the cup and 2-3 oz all over the counter and on the floor. I've had to constantly clean coffee stains from the counter in a 12 radius from the machine. Even when it doesn't leak it tends to splatter out of the cup as it fills.

Very disappointed.