Category: Keurig Brewers
Tassimo vs Keurig Whats the Difference?
| January 9, 2011 | Filled under Keurig Brewers |
Are you new to the single serve coffee revolution? Maybe you are thinking about a brewer, but are unsure what product to chose: Keurig K Cups or Tassimo T-Discs. Take heart that at the end of the day, they all eventually produce the same cup of coffee. They are both single serve coffee brewing machines and both use a prepackaged coffee container. It can be confusing though, trying to figure out which is the best system. Let compare Tassimo vs Keurig so you can decide for yourself which is best for you:
Brewing Machines:
Both the Keurig and the Tassimo work in essentially the same way. Confirm the water reseviour is full (it can hold from 48 to 64 ounces of water). Put the appropriate prepacked coffee unit (either a K-Cup or Tassimo T-DISC) into the brewer. Close the top and push the button (don’t forget to put a cup under the brewer, otherwise you will have a mess). In about 60 seconds you will have a nice hot single serving of coffee.
Tassimo makes several different models of brewers and then other companies such as Bosch and Braun make brewers that use the Tassimo T-DISCs. They range in price from $79 to over $200 depending upon the model and features. A unique design is with its computer controlled brewing system, the brewer reads a small bar code on each disc. It then adjusts the brew automatically to maximize taste. Unlike the Keurig brewers, you can also customize the strength of your drink to your taste by selecting an option on most brewers. Anyone that likes there coffee a little stronger, may appreciate this feature. On average, there appears to be more models to chose from for the Tassimo because they allow anyone to produce their brewing system. Another very interesting feature that is held by only the Tassimo T-Discs is that because of the bar code on disc, you can purchase espresso, cappuccino, and other premium drink mixes with ingredients beyond just coffee and the brewer will adjust automatically to make a perfect drink. This is why this unit is often called the beverage delivery system instead of just a coffee maker.
The Keurig brewing system is a little more automatic. It is also controlled by a microprocessor, but you can not change the strength of brew on most models. This may not work for some individuals that like there coffee stronger or weaker than average. Models vary in adjustment features such as cup size and brew temperature. One downside is that this unit requires a 4 minute heating time to get the refill of water up to the proper temperature (only happens when you refill the reservoir). There are other manufacturers, if you read closely, that will also use the K-Cup, although licensing requirements do not allow them to call their model a K-Cup brewer.
One odd item that I noticed was that some (of both the Tassimo vs Keurig) of the more expensive models have timers like a traditional coffee maker may have. Since it only takes 30 seconds or so to brew a cup of coffee using this new machines, why would you put one on a timer? Old fashion coffee brewers can take 5-10 minutes to brew a pot of coffee and then they keep it warm using a carafe or heating element for hours. A single serving cup would get cold quickly if you didn’t pick up within minutes of it brewing!
Single Serve Packages
These small prepackaged coffee containers are really the brawn behind the brains of the brewer. Each unit has been carefully measured and sealed to maximize shelf life and flavor. The cups contain not only the coffee, but a coffee filter. They have a protective covering to protect the coffee from moisture, light and oxygen. Simply pop each into their respective brewer (Keurig vs. Tassimo) and with a push of a button, produce a cup of coffee in under 1 minute.
A unique feature of the T-Disc from Tassimo is that each disc has a small bar code printed on it that tells the brewing machine the optimal brewing conditions for your drink. This information is recommendations added to the discs by the roast masters at the coffee manufacturer to maximize flavor. The machine will make small adjustments to the brewing time, amount of water and the temperature off the water to perfect your single serve coffee. Additionally, this bar code allows manufactures to produce other drinks beyond coffee like hot chocolate or even Lattes and Cappuccinos. The computer reads the bar code and sees that for a Cappuccinno for example, it must brew longer and with more heat. Espresso drinks actually require two brewing cycles as you first brew the espresso and then you brew the milk ingredients (such as for a Latte). The brewer must be cleaned using the rinse cycle after any dairy products or hot chocolate.
Keurig has probably the largest selection of coffee and tea varieties because it licenses the K-cup technology to various coffee manufacturers to produce the cups and put their own coffee in. You will find that most of your typical retail coffee shops such as Caribou Coffee, Tully’s, and Gloria Jeans will have K-Cups available, but surprisingly there are no Starbucks k cups as the company only produces their products in the T-DISC. If you are looking to save money, you can buy Keurig K Cups Cheap from Amazon and other on-line retailers in bulk.
As you can see, there isn’t a perfect coffee maker, Keurig vs Tassimo, for everyone. Much of it depends upon what you are going brew and your budget.
