Do you want to make your cup of coffee at home but the hassle of manual espresso machines puts you off from buying one?
The convenience and user-friendly interface are the main selling points of Keurig machines. With a Keurig coffee maker, there’s no need to make your hands dirty. All you need is a single-serve K Cup and you can have your coffee ready in less than a minute.
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The Keurig K-Select is a convenient coffee maker that won’t break the bank, and hopefully, our review will make clear whether it’s the right fit for you.
What are some of its features? Is it easy to use and maintain? And what does the coffee taste like? We’re going to answer those questions in this Keurig K-Select review.
Keurig K-Select Coffee Maker
The Keurig K-Select single serve coffee maker combines sleek design and more intuitive features to help you brew your perfect cup every single time. And for those who like a stronger cup of coffee, the Keurig K-Select brewer is the perfect choice.
Why Keurig K-Select?
While it is enjoyable to make time for brewing a delicious pour-over coffee on a Sunday morning, not many of us want to spend significant time and effort before work just to get our much-needed caffeine fix.
It was the convenience of the single-serve coffee makers that attracted the working crowd too. The first distribution of Keurig machines began in offices in New York City and New England in 1998. And it wasn’t until 2004 that they’ve started being used at home.
Today, owning a Keurig coffee maker is common and there are multiple models to choose from. The Keurig K-Select represents a middle-of-the-road option that is simple to use, affordable, has a decent functionality, and makes a consistently good coffee.
Here’s the review of the main aspects that you should consider before buying a Keurig K-Select for your home.
Functionality
No matter what your preferred coffee cup size is, the K-Select is versatile enough to satisfy your needs. You can choose from 4 different cup sizes, 6, 8, 10, or 12 ounces. And with a generous 52-ounce water reservoir, there’s no need to refill the machine after every few coffees, as it is often the case with the cheaper Keurigs.
While the K-Select lacks some of the interesting features of other more sophisticated models like the “Iced” button or the temperature control of K-Elite, it has some extras to offer. One of our most favorite features is the “Strong Brew” setting that can add an extra kick to your coffee, no matter what size you choose.
The drip tray is removable which allows you to fit your travel mug or thermos up to 7.4″ tall. Perfect for making a quick coffee for your commute.
Ease Of Use
Keurig coffee makers are known to be user-friendly and the K-Select is not an exception. The operation is intuitive and self-explanatory. All you have to do is choose a cup size, put in your K Cup and you will have your cup of coffee ready in 60 seconds at the push of a button.
And if there’s more than one person in your household waiting to satisfy their caffeine habit in the morning, you’ll appreciate that it takes less than 60 seconds for the machine to heat up and be ready to brew another cup making this model perfect for those looking for a fast coffee machine.
This model uses quiet brew technology which makes it less noisy than other Keurig models and many single-serve coffee makers. So you don’t have to worry about waking up those who are lucky enough to still be in bed.
It features helpful “Add water” and “Descale” indicators and the machine turns off automatically after two hours of inactivity, making the coffee maker more sustainable and energy-efficient.
Taste Of The Brew
As the coffees from Keurig machines go, theK-Select is successful in providing consistent and tasty brews. Even though they use 15 bars of pressure, Keurigs will never be able to extract a coffee comparable to a strong concentrated shot of espresso, but if you like the taste of drip coffee, the K-Select can brew a good one.
This coffee maker is compatible with a wide range of K Cups, branded as well as the non-branded ones. We would recommend investing in reusable K Cups that allow you to use the ground coffee beans of your choice. This gives you more flexibility with brewing as well as being better for the environment and eliminating the waste from single-use K Cups.
The main challenge to the taste to watch out for is the mineral build-up that can cause trouble with brewing. The descaling indicator in K-Select helps to prevent this problem.
Design
The design of K-Select is sleek and stylish. It’s not one of the smallest Keurig machines and you need to make sure you have at least 12.5″ height of clearance to make it fit on your kitchen top.
The bigger size rewards you with a water reservoir that has an above-average 52-ounce capacity. This prevents the nightmare of constant refilling.
The variety of colors to choose from makes it easier to style the coffee maker with your kitchen. It comes in navy, matte white, vintage red, and the stylish matte black.
Maintenance And Cleaning
The K-Select is constructed from a fingerprint-resistant material which saves you constant wiping of the machine, especially helpful if you get it in a matte black color.
The drip tray can hold up to 8 ounces of overflow which is pretty generous and it can be cleaned in the top rack of your dishwasher.
The main reason for most of the maintenance problems with your Keurig is the mineral build up in the water reservoir that shortens the life of the brewer and is the reason why the coffee maker will struggle with the brewing process.
Descaling the machine regularly, ideally every 3 to 6 months, helps to maintain the taste of your cup of coffee. The Keurig K-Select includes a reminder that flashes when descaling is needed, helping to keep the brew consistent. Using filtered water goes a long way to prevent the mineral build-up too.
Price
Keurig K-Select is one of the budget-friendly coffee makers that will set you back less than $150. When it comes to its affordability, the more important aspect to consider is the cost of the K Cups.
Because this coffee maker uses single-use pods, if you want to be using this machine, you need to be buying new K Cups regularly. This, of course, adds up. In 2010 the company sold more than $330 million worth of brewers and well over $800 million worth of K Cups.
However, there are possible solutions to this problem. Some of the ways in which you can save money are either looking up the cheapest K Cups online and buy them in bulk or getting reusable K Cups. These will not only save you money but also allow you to experiment and use whatever ground coffee you want in your Keurig K-Select, whether that’s your favorite Costa Rica or Kenya.
Keurig K-Select Coffee Maker
The Keurig K-Select single serve coffee maker combines sleek design and more intuitive features to help you brew your perfect cup every single time. And for those who like a stronger cup of coffee, the Keurig K-Select brewer is the perfect choice.
Keurig K-Select Is NOT For You If…
While this coffee machine is great for those looking for a simple brewer that is quick, user-friendly, provides simple operation, and brews consistent coffees, there are coffee lovers that will not enjoy this machine that much. We would advise you not to buy the Keurig K-Select, if…
You Want To Brew Milky Coffees
As much as the Keurig K-Select can satisfy your craving for black coffee, it won’t be of much use to you if you enjoy milky lattes and cappuccinos. The lack of a steamer wand means that you cannot top your strong brew with silky foam.
If you are looking for a coffee maker intending to make flat whites as well as black coffees, we would recommend looking at entry-level espresso machine under $200 that has a steam wand or an automatic machine that can steam the milk for you.
You Want More Control Over The Brewing Process
While the sound of having your morning coffee ready within a minute sounds appealing, there is a certain joy from grinding, tamping, and extracting the coffee yourself. The more control will also reward you with a more superior taste of your espresso.
And for those more advanced lovers of drip coffee, the manual brewers like Kalita Wave, Chemex, or Aeropress opens whole new coffee horizons at a much more affordable price.
The functionality of Keurig K-Select is enough to satisfy the needs of a beginner, if you are passionate about coffee, it is bound to limit you over time. That’s why if you are looking for a machine that would allow you to have more control over the brewing process, look into manual espresso machines or pour-over methods instead.
You Want To Expand Your Coffee-Making Skills
Similarly, even if you are a beginner but you are keen to gradually build up and develop your coffee-making skills, the Keurig K-Select won’t allow you to progress very much.
With other coffee brewers, you can experiment much more than with the Keurig. With manual espresso machines, you can steam milk, use different extraction techniques, and even do latte art. So if you feel like you have an inner barista that needs to be stimulated, the Keurig won’t be for you.
Keurig Competition And Alternatives
Keurig K-Select Coffee Maker
The Keurig K-Select single serve coffee maker combines sleek design and more intuitive features to help you brew your perfect cup every single time. And for those who like a stronger cup of coffee, the Keurig K-Select brewer is the perfect choice.
And if the convenience of Keurig machines still sounds appealing, but our Keurig K-Select review made clear that it’s not exactly what you’re looking for, the Keurig offers a wide choice of machines that could suit your preferences.
If the convenience and an affordable price tag are your main factors when looking to buy your Keurig machine, the K-50/K-55 models provide a similar experience at a lower price.
More compact design at the expense of a smaller water reservoir but a comparable cup of coffee can be expected from the Keurig K-200 model that is slightly cheaper than the Keurig K-Select.
And for those looking for an advanced Keurig with more add ons like the iced coffee option, a larger 75-ounce water reservoir, and a useful hot water option for tea or hot cocoa, the K-Elite would be a great choice.
Keurig K-Select Review – The Verdict
The Keurig K-Select provides a good coffee machine for those who are looking for convenience, consistency, and speed at an affordable price.
Our highlights of this machine are the different cup sizes, the large 52-ounce water reservoir, a strong brew option, and a user-friendly intuitive interface. Together with the removable drip tray that allows a large travel tumbler to fit under the machine and easier maintenance.
Overall, the Keurig K-Select offers good value, decent customizability, and a good look for your kitchen. And if you are a coffee-brewing beginner who doesn’t mind some of the limitations that Keurigs come with, this machine would be a good choice.
Stay caffeinated!
Keurig K-Select Review: Providing A Consistent Brew Within 60 Seconds
Whether it's a morning or afternoon pick-me-up a single-serve coffee maker such as the Keurig K Select can be extremely useful.
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