Cuisinart® Coffee Plus™ 12-Cup Programmable Coffee Maker with Hot Water System

This is my 3rd (over 15 years) machine. I think people would like this machine if they did a bit of research & read the specifications*prior* to purchase. Regarding bad smells & tastes of plastic, I've never experience this & feel badly for those who purchased dud machines. BB&B will replace them no questions asked. However, descaling with vinegar prior to first use ? Nowhere in the instructions does it advise to run vinegar thru the machine until it's time to descale. Why would you do that --there is nothing to descale. Yes, run hot water thru it 2x's to remove dust from packaging. And K-Cup use ? Where in the specs does it mention the ability to use K-Cups which had not been invented at time of manufacture ? This machine makes straight up coffee and hot water, so it functions as intended. I use the hot water feature to make Starbucks Via Latte's (sugar w/a dab of coffee# or some other brand of instant coffee or instant oatmeal or for tea. My biggest #only?) complaint wold be that if you want to make more than 10 cups and use the permanant, gold filter instead of a paper filter, the grounds will be overwhelmed by water which fills faster than can be absorbed and you'll find grounds in the caraff and most likely at the bottom of your mug. I don't use the gold filter when brewing large pots of coffee. I've also found the Pause&Brew function to be a bit tricky & it depends upon how you remove and return the carafe while the coffee is still brewing. Be aware of how you are removing the pot, do it slowly and be sure you are not pulling at an angle or you may end up with spilled coffee, from above, into the hot plate. I've done it when I'm not paying attention and it makes a mess. But it's not the machine at fault, it's me. Today I'm visiting the site because, yet again, I'm researching smaller, single- serve coffee makers to see if anything has come to market which people like. Apparently, the Cuisinart, single-serve maker is the most highly reviewed, tho costing twice that of the Keurig 250, it's outlasted all other Keurig's by 5-10 years. Which is why I trust Cuisinart.