Keurig B40 Single Cup Brewer Review

Keurig B40 Single Cup Brewer Review

Rated by Jennifer

4 Stars

The Keurig B40 single cup brewer is one of the “classic” series of coffee makers. Before I get into the meat and potatoes of this review , yes this is one of the classic 1.0 models and uses all standard 1.0 K-cups in operation, as well as the reusable My K-Cup filters.

In my research I discovered that the B40 joined the Keurig family around 2006, so it’s got what you might call a little “seniority” and it looks like it is still going strong and some people are preferring this edition over its 2.0 successors because it doesn’t have all the “bells and whistles” involved.

Dimensions

Approximate Measurements:

15.2″(height) x 12.8″(width) x 15.1″(depth) inches

Weight: 13.8 lbs

What’s Included?

Included with your brewer is a free sampler assortment of 12 K-cups and an included water filter contained within the reservoir that can be removed or replaced if necessary. The water filter can be used to improve your water quality and taste and if you use it you’ll need to periodically change the filter cartridges.

Inside the K-cup compartment is the funnel and the holder assembly (where the exit needle is located on the inside) which are top-rack dishwasher safe, so they can be dislodged if needed.

Manufacturer Stated: Limited 1 Year Warranty

Keurig B40 Brewer Main Features

• This 1.0 brewer has 6, 8, and 10 oz brew size options.
• Fully one-touch operation with low water level (blue), heating (red), and descaling (red) LED indicator lights.
• There is an auto-shutoff feature (located just above the power button) that goes off completely after 2 hours of inactivity that you can opt to use.
• The drip tray is removable and will accommodate most travel mug sizes. It will also allow for up to 8 oz of overflow-on a regular basis remove the tray and drain.
• The removable reservoir holds 48 oz of water.

The QuietBrew Technology enables low operation noise.

Keurig B40 Brew Size Settings

Some consumers were perplexed because they saw what they thought was this model but with only 2 brew sizes indicated. The picture on the sales page hadn’t been updated lately (I wasn’t the only one apparently, who noticed this)

In previous years, the B40 did start out with only one brew size and then later on, the small (7.25) and large (9.25) brew sizes. So you might say it got a little upgrading over the years since it goes back to 2006!

Keurig B40 Single Cup Brewer Consumer Reviews

First of all, a lot of people were in tandem with the temperature setting: that the resulting beverage is very hot, in some cases, needing to let it sit for a few moments to cool, which can be preferable to coffee that is not hot enough upon receipt. I completely understand where this is coming from, as I hate it when I am sitting upon a lukewarm cup; it can be very frustrating and just doesn’t “feel” right. I’d rather wait a spell for it to cool; which is the case with places like Dunkin’ Donuts and a few others. There is steam rising off of it and that is a good sign for me; apparently I am not alone in this.

Fast heating, coffee strength being adequate, and being able to get hot water on demand for other beverages…all these things checked out very well. I can’t see making tea the “old fashioned” way ever again when you’ve got this advantage. Yes, people are brewing good old tea bags.

Sometimes the “add water” indicator light throws some people, as this stalls the procedure, if water level is not an issue checking to see if the reservoir is lined up correctly in the base was a good troubleshooting step.

Pros

The main positives:

• The removable water reservoir is a great bonus, but the lid raises as well to enable easy refilling. Only what you’re going to drink at a stretch gets heated-not the whole reservoir. (The reservoir is also dishwasher safe, too…but don’t put the lid part in there.)
• This may be your machine if you’ve ever had trouble with the temperature being “just right”. The overwhelming majority said that the best thing about the B40 is that every cup is piping hot-letting it cool for a moment may be expected.
• The auto-shutoff feature is optional, so you will have to enable it with the button.

When you see a green light come on to the left of the button, then Auto-Off is enabled. A push of the button will “un-enable” it and the light will go out.

Cons

With the negative comments found within consumer reviews, they followed these issues:

• The water reservoir is not illuminated-this may or may not be a “con” for everyone; but wanted to point that out just the same.
• This model does not come with an adjustable strength setting. You are only able to change your cup/brew size in the event of seeking a stronger/lighter taste and flavor.

So it may be a little guesswork on one’s part with the different K-cup flavors themselves, making note of which flavors strike your fancy the most and going up a brew size for a less-strong taste or down a brew size for bolder taste.

Another trick some people told me about is to use cooler water to produce a weaker brew. How this works exactly, may have to do with the extraction process- water temperature can affect the strength of the ground extraction.

Creative Commons Attribution: Image courtesy of Tony Alter

Price

I think the price is reasonable and good overall; and since you can use any kind of K-cups or refillables you won’t have a lot of expenses in this area much.

Conclusion

It is comparable to the Keurig K45 Elite in terms of design and function. (I only wish it came in those other pretty colors like the blue or rhubarb.) Save for the absence of a few features and lack of other colors, I like it.

Overall it seemed that reviews for the Keurig B40 brewer were mainly positive or satisfactory save for the occasional “it’s OK” or not good. Hope that info about the brew sizes helps; I did not befuddle you too much, and good luck in your shopping endeavors:)