As the sufficiency of the Schick Quattro continues to manifest itself, I have thought about other things that I could replace with cheaper alternatives. However, as John Lennon, or perhaps someone else, said: "life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."
Hence my new cheap alternative: a Black & Decker 12-cup coffee maker. Previously, I had owned and enjoyed a much fancier Krups coffee maker of the same capacity. However, the Krups did not like its storage spot underneath the kitchen counter (a necessity given our small apartment kitchen). OK, I dropped it several times, chipping away at the plastic exterior and eventually shattering the carafe.
I had spent about $50 on the Krups and didn't want to spend a lot of money on a replacement (long story short, we're moving in a few months and if we have adequate counter space in the new apartment, I had planned to treat myself to a big-boy coffee maker). Thus, I opted to spend $30 on a new coffee maker.
The results? Pretty good.
Of course, I use good coffee, since I have learned from extensive testing that cheap coffee sucks. That said, good coffee doesn't cost that much more. Zabar's sells several roasts at $7.98 per pound (yes, I see the links for $9.98 per pound; it costs less in the store). After tinkering with the ratio of grounds to water, I found that the cheap coffee maker worked as well as the more expensive one.
Naturally, time will tell. Durability or longevity often mark true quality. So maybe the coffee maker will fall apart in a few weeks. Until then, however, I'll keep looking for the discount rack alternatives.
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