Performance:

Initially I had no intention to use the iCup, but since they threw it in I figured I would give it a shot. Using coffee that was fairly coarse I filled the cup and set it to brew 8oz. Initial impressions were favorable; aroma and taste were more pronounced than a typical Kcup. But the last ounce or so was full of grounds. While some grit is common with gold tone filters due to the larger mesh, this seemed worse than normal. I suspect the difference comes from the SpinBrew needle. Since this actively stirs all of the grounds I think it promotes the finest grounds to fluidize and move to the filter where much of it goes through. Perhaps the use of a paper liner would fix this. It would also make clean up faster. Overall I am not sure how often I would use the iCup; perhaps on weekends when I have more time to clean it.

The Dial-a-Brew feature allows each user to find their perfect brew by fine tuning the brew size, and it works great for the most part. What I mean is adjustments are very quick and easy to make and are clearly displayed, but the actual volume is slightly off. I found the 4oz selection did indeed provide 4 oz, but the 8oz and 12oz were slightly under the claimed size. Not by much by they did come up short. To be fair, while the volumes may not have been exactly what the unit displayed, I did find they were repeatable. So if you find the 8oz setting gives you the brew you like; you can rest assured that each day it will taste the same at that setting.

SpinBrew does indeed do something. Opening a Kcup brewed on the K550 vs the Opus, it was clear the SpinBrew does engage more of the grounds. So if both brewers use the same amount of water, the K550 has a greater chance of over-extracting the grounds directly below the needle causing bitterness to your brew. The SpinBrew on the other hand distributes the water to extract from a greater percentage of the grounds. But this can be a double edged sword. If the grounds are not extracted enough you will be left with a weak cup of coffee.

I am not sure I would say the taste difference is as earth shattering as the marketing would make you believe, but I did notice a definite difference in the Kcups I tried. The aroma and flavor were a little more pronounced, plus it seemed smoother. I also noticed less aftertaste with the SpinBrew. If your Keurig has the Strong selector it will pulse the brewing. This creates a slightly stronger cup with more aroma than standard, but it still fell a little short of the Opus. Overall if you don’t expect too much you will likely be quite happy with the added flavor and smoothness.

One aggravation I encountered was with the energy saving features. This brewer automatically enters an energy saving mode after 2 hours of inactivity. At that point it reduces the reservoir temperature. After 26 hours it completely shuts down. While the Keurig has a similar feature you can completely disable this through the touchscreen. This becomes important if you are running out the door in the morning and need that quick convenient cup of coffee. Once you open the head it will start heating, a process that will take 90-120 seconds depending on how long it has been hibernating. One work around seems to be leaving the head open. Doing this keeps the heater active, so if you don’t mind paying a slightly higher electric bill to get out the door faster, this may be an option for you.

It should also be noted that this brewer doesn’t have the feature set you find on the K550. For instance; there is no control over the lighting, no filter, no reminders for filter or to descale the unit. In all honesty, I don’t think these are deal breakers either. I have found that Keurig’s reminders for filter and descaling are too frequent anyway, I think they are just hoping to keep their consumable sales up.



Conclusion:

The Dial-a-Brew knob is awesome. I love being able to quickly and easily change the brew size. I also appreciate the extra 2oz it can brew over my Keurig. Using the 12oz setting with a really robust coffee provided a nice travel mug that wasn’t too watery. Having 0.5oz increments allows you to fine tune your beverage to your liking much better than Keurig’s 2oz jumps. The SpinBrew technology certainly seems to increase the quality of the brew over standard single serve machines.

In the end I think it comes down to what you need/expect out of your brewer. With the Freedom Clip, the K550 gives you the capability to brew just about anything you would like. But of course there is a catch. The way this over-ride works is by fooling the sensor into thinking a valid Kcup is present. So even if you insert a valid carafe pack you will have a max brew size of 10oz. Not much of a carafe. Granted you can remove the clip but if you are a frequent carafe brewer I suspect this will be more trouble than it is worth and you’d be better off with a separate machine. In all honesty I don’t frequently brew a carafe, but I do appreciate having that ability without having to drag out another appliance or take up counter space. So for my use; while I appreciate the better flavor and aroma from the Opus I am not sure it offsets the added versatility of the DRM defeated K550. Had I tested this 6 months ago before the DRM was easily defeated, this brewer would be the clear winner. Now if only iCoffee can come out with a brewer that can brew the carafe packs; then I can have it all. For those of you who will only brew Kcups I would recommend you give the Opus a try.

Presently the Remington iCoffee Opus sells for about $140 US at Bed Bath and Beyond. This makes it much more wallet friendly than the Keurig 2.0 K550 which will set you back around $200 US! This pricing difference and all the other features of the Opus help it to earn the Bigbruin.com "Recommended" and "Great Idea" awards.



Pros:

» Dial-a-Brew works great. Makes you wonder why others don’t have something similar.
» SpinBrew does provide a smoother more aromatic brew.
» Unit is well constructed.
» Can accept a taller travel mug than the Keurig.

Cons:

» SpinBrew marketing overstates differences. Taste is better but their marketing makes you think your socks will be blow off.

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