Keurig Platinum B70 Review
Keurig Platinum B70
Buy For $169.95
The Good:
- Easy To Use
- Makes A Quick Cup Of Coffee
- Easy To Clean
The Bad:
- Price Per K-Cup
- Isn’t Tall Enough For Travel Mugs
- How Environmentally Friendly Is It?
For a long time I wanted a single serve coffee machine like the Keurig Platinum B70. It seemed like the perfect solution for those mornings when I’m in a rush to get out the door or am just so sleepy that I can’t even make coffee right. A few weeks ago, Keurig sent me their Platinum B70 for review. After many uses, including several way too early mornings, the B70 review process is complete.
The best feature of the Keurig Platinum B70 is the ease of use and the speed compared to a traditional coffee maker. All you have to do is add water, put the K-Cup in the basket, choose the cup size, hit brew and let it do it’s magic. From start to finish, it takes less than a minute, not counting the four minutes that it takes for the water to pre-heat the first time.
It’s also very easy to clean. Since I received it, I’ve only had to clean it once and that was just to clean up some splatter with a wet paper towel. It took about five seconds to clean, versus a traditional coffeemaker which does take more effort and time.
I really didn’t have high expectations for the taste of the coffee. I only expected something that was slightly better than instant coffee. However, the K-Cups were a lot more closer to the taste of coffee made with whole beans. It wasn’t exactly on that level, but it was a more complete taste than I expected.
As far as the taste variation between different sizes, between the regular sized coffee mug and a travel sized coffee mug there was only a minor taste difference between them. Even the largest size didn’t taste watered down.
There were some questions about noise from the machine. At the loudest point, when the water coffee was pouring in the mug, It wasn’t much louder than a coffeemaker brewing. I could go to the next room and not hear it at all.
The only real drawbacks that I saw were the price and how environmentally friendly is it?
The prices that I saw broke down to about 50 to 65 cents a cup. Still a lot cheaper than buying a cup of coffee every day, but buying bags of coffee would generally be a cheaper. I saw a pack of K-cups that was a little less than $14 for a 22 pack. For the same price you could get more coffee out of a regular bag of whole bean coffee.
As far as energy used, if you leave it on, it does continuously heat the water inside. I’m going to try to find out exactly how much energy that uses. Of course the solution for that is pretty easy, all I had to do was turn it off and when I wanted another cup of coffee, just turn it on and wait the four minutes for it to heat.
The K-cups can only be used once before they need to be thrown out. They’re not big, but they take up more space than a traditional coffee bag.
One minor design flaw is that it’s not tall enough for a travel mug. The easy solution is just to brew the coffee in a large mug, then pour it into the travel mug.
I read several reviews online that mentioned issues with the water pump failing or the whole machine just stop working after two or three weeks. I put a lot of miles on the machine since I first got it more than three weeks ago and I’ve had no problems with it myself.
Overall I love the Keurig Platinum B70, especially on the early mornings when I’m running behind and have to head into the office. The taste isn’t the same as with coffee made from freshly roasted whole beans, but it was far better than I thought it would be. I’d have no problem recommending this model to anyone thinking about getting a single serve coffeemaker.
Are you thinking about buying a Platinum B70? Did I answer all of your questions?
Do you have Keurig Brewer? Which one and what do you think about it?
—
Fine Print.
Category: Coffee Equipment Reviews
About the Author (Author Profile)
Mike Crimmins is the highly caffeinated blogger behind Daily Shot Of Coffee. Besides drinking way too much coffee, he's obsessed with the Yankees and getting dirty on his mountain bike.Subscribe
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to receive more just like it.
Loading ...
You know, generally I find the coffee from these machines to be unremarkable, but not undrinkable. Where they really shine, in my opinion, is in an office setting. No more coffee from those office pots that have been cooking away for an hour or more and have been reduced to battery acid. Not to mention the smell of burned coffee that can make an office unbearable. However, I have had the same concerns with regard to the environmental impact.
I’m actually debating bringing this machine to my day job office. However, I think I want to keep it at home for those early mornings when I’m headed to the office.
My wife had wanted a Keurig brewer for a few years but I was a firm believer in whole beans ground prior to brewing. I did not expect much from the K-Cup as I had tasted pod coffee and was less than impressed. When the gift arrived I quickly advised her that my burr grinder and coffee maker would be staying put. After setting up the new Keurig she proceeded to make us some coffee. After sampling my first cup I was intrigued, it wasn’t bad… it was actually very good, albeit a little on the mild side. Then I proceeded to brew a Newman’s Own Extra Bold – WOW! This was a better than average brew, bold yet smooth no bitterness or burnt taste.. I then thought back to how the taste compared to coffee that had set for an hour or more; I also factored in the cost of brewed coffee poured down drain and it made sense to me. 14 mos later we are on our second Keurig brewer (larger water reservoir, larger cup size, quieter water pump), the original one is now our daughters for her college dorm room. Everyone who has visited and had a cup of coffee is amazed by the flavor. Is it expertly brewed french press coffee; no. But it’s a heck of lot faster, easier and better tasting than what a majority of people brew at home.
Which do use more now? The Keurig or the Grinder/Coffee Maker?
Use the Keurig exclusively. Still have my grinder but now brewer. I actually use a hard plastic top/lid that i bought off of ebay to use my own grounds in a used K-Cup that has been cleaned and rinsed. Great way to have some Gevalia Le Procope which is my favorite coffee every now and then.
we have both an older Special Edition Keurig and a Mini unit.
the SE is used at home and we take the Mini on the road
with us on extended travel or vacations.
both seem to make a pretty decent cup of
coffee.. and i also use them to make hot
and iced teas.
the keys?
simple and easy to use, making as much single cup coffee
as we need when we need it and not spoiling or wasting coffee,
i DO prefer the bean route when i have setup time or
am in the mood but these things have definitely changed
the way my wife and i and our extended family drink
and enjoy brewed coffee.
having tried about 2 dozen types of Kcups, i do
find the flavored coffees a mix of great and
so-so tastes. some of them haven’t been much
to talk about.
i have reordered the fair trade organic coffees
more often now and find them the best
solution to a good cup.
the BOLD coffees have more grounds in the
cups and i try to use them as often as possible.
i agree…it would be greener to have Kcups
which biodegraded in the landfill. maybe this
is something Keurig is working on now.
also, i agree with the comments about the spout
being shorter than a tall thermos or commuter cup.
i mentioned this to the factory last year and they
said they had heard that same comment quite
a lot.
our older unit is a bit buzzy when the pump is working
and the newer ‘quiet’ units have improved on this.
since convenience is a big thing in my busy life,
i do use the Keurigs more often.
Thanks for stopping by and leaving the comment howard. From what I’ve seen so far, I couldn’t agree with you more.
I loved having a Keurig when I was at my parents house in NY for a few months. We would get a box of decaf k-cups for dad and a variety flavor box for me and I loved having a different kind every day.
The only thing is…. I don’t just drink one cup a day. I drink like 3. And there are what? 24? 18? K-cups in a box or something. So I needed a new box like once a week. at $9.99 a box………
Let’s just say when dad offered me the Keurig to bring back to FL with me when I moved I said no thanks! I’d rather spent $9.99 on a bag that will last me a month!
.-= Stiletto Sports Jen´s last blog ..Pretty in Played: The Best Dressed Pro Golfers on the PGA Tour =-.
I know you and there is no way a bag of coffee lasts you a month! But I understand what you’re saying. It’s a trade off between price and convenience.
I am a fan of the Keurig. Been hooked for about 2 years. After about 2 weeks of using the units the coffee tastes better and better. Then they seem to hit a “sweet spot” where every cup is fantastic.
BIG problem recently though. The pump system on the new Special Edition seems to be faulty on a bunch of units. My 2nd Keruig maching is this model and the pump has seemed to fail . Contacted Keurig but havent heard back.
This will force me back to Starbucks for a while or “gasp” back to the drip system. Dont know if I will survive.
Hopefully they get back to you soon, I’ve heard nothing but good things about their customer service so I’m surprised that they haven’t.
Funny thing. Got an email this morning with a shipper of a new unit. I should be back in business this week. Hows that for customer service. They are simply replacing the unit no ifs ands or buts. Good job Keurig customer service.
I will be staring longingly at my kcups until mid week.
Hows this for customer service. New brewer arrived today just 3 days after the complaint. Back in business. A few break in days and its good to go…… by the way if you get a Keurig, dont judge the coffee by the first 10 cups or so. Once it gets a few cycles through the coffee taste gets better and better.
Glad to hear the problem was resolved. I noticed the same about my Keurig Brewer, the taste was different after a few cups.
Hi Mike,
You’re a lucky guy – that Keurig looks great sitting on your counter! I have been considering the Keurig B70 for awhile, but just when I was ready to go for it, it seems like there have been a lot of recent quality control complaints. I might just wait a little longer, although I did see that Cuisinart is making a single serve brewing system that uses the K-Cups. It’s the SS-700, and it has many of the same features as the B70. Curious if anyone has the Cuisinart machine and if they would recommend it…
if Keurig could think through a mod to the K-Cup holder,
a person might be able to put a small filter into the cup area,
fill it with the amount of grind appropriate,
and close the lid with a good seal around the rim of
the cup area and then brew.
that would take the plastic holder out of the
equation as far as landfills go and just leave
a ground filled filter to dispose or recycle.
K-cups have a small filter inside anyhow.
I’ve heard that they have something like that, where you can use your own coffee inside their reusable kcup sized filter. However, I haven’t come across one to try yet.
We are looking at getting a Keurig for our office. However, management would like it to be a non-coin operated machine. If someone brings in their own k-cups, that is fine. The problem is, there are no coin-operated k-cup dispensers; they are all brewer based.
Has anyone seen a dispenser for the k-cups themselves?
ok …the wife broke down and got us a newer ‘quiet’ model.
it is a heck of a lot quieter and otherwise
about the same as the noisy old thing we
still have in storage. maybe a nephew will enjoy it at college?
it works fine besides for the pump symphony.
i do notice that the cup height is still
a bit too short for some of my travel mugs.
i have to select the shorter squatter ones
to fit directly under the brew opening.
[i'd rather dispense directly than transfer
from one to another... lazy me.]
to Fran;
we all smuggle our k-cups into work.
it got out of hand otherwise.
you know ‘who took the food i had in the
fridge problem’? just apply that to
k-cups and you know how it went down.