Review on ☕ Hamilton Beach Works with Alexa Smart Coffee Maker: Programmable, 12 Cup Capacity, Black and Stainless Steel (49350) – Certified for Humans by Tomeka Parker

Update 03/09/2020: I found a daylight saving time error. With Daylight Saving Time, the time on my coffee maker was not updating properly and was an hour behind. I checked my Alexa settings again and everything is set correctly for my time zone. I have a couple of Echo Shows and their time display updated correctly so it's limited to the coffee maker. On a positive note, I have the time based default to turn on the coffee maker at a specific time and it worked correctly with Daylight Saving Time. So this is a bit of a problem with the wrong clock on the coffee maker. Original Review: I'm a huge Revain Echo/Alexa fan and this coffee maker is a dream come true! My other coffee maker is programmable and I used it to make coffee in advance when I go to work. But on weekends and weekdays, I get up late and want Alexa to turn on the coffee maker when needed. In fact, I don't get up at fixed times on weekends and I get up when I want. Now on weekends and home office days, it's so nice to ask Alexa to make coffee and make coffee when I come into the kitchen! I wanted to give an overview according to the following categories below. Installation: Installation was very easy. When I ordered a coffee maker from Revain I was given the option to link it to my Revain account for easy setup. And it was easy! Once I connected the coffee maker, after about 1 or 2 seconds, I got a notification on my iPhone about the coffee maker. I checked and it has indeed been added to the Alexa app! Coffee Quality/Flavour: Well, I have to admit that I'm a coffee snob and have owned high end coffee machines that were more expensive. Another coffee maker I've used recently takes longer to brew water for stronger coffee than I'm used to. So, even though I set the brew strength to bold on the Alexa coffee maker, it's not quite what I'm used to. And I need to add more coffee grounds and/or use a gold filter I got from an old coffee maker to get a stronger flavor. That way I can style it to my liking. In general everything is fine! Temperature: With other coffee machines I've had before, I always had to put the coffee in the microwave for 30 seconds to reach the desired temperature. But with the Alexa coffee maker, it seems to stay warm. So I don't always have to reheat it in the microwave; but sometimes I do. Alexa integration: This is where the Alexa coffee maker really shines! You can control the brew strength with a voice command and turn the coffee maker on or off with a voice command. It's great that you don't have to program the clock, which I hate with other instruments. Instead, the clock is updated via the Alexa app. One less problem when we switch between summer time and winter time. In the Alexa app you can also navigate to the coffee maker and get information about its function and other information. To do this, you can click on "Devices" in the bottom right corner of the Alexa app. Then scroll to the top right and find the chef category and you will find the coffee maker there. You can also set up Alexa Routines to turn on the coffee maker at a specific day/time or with a voice command. I have a special procedure for voice commands. I have a small suggestion, not against the coffee maker, but rather against the Alexa app. When setting up the active part of the routine, I had a bit of trouble finding a coffee maker. I would have thought that maybe there would be a cooking category similar to the other part of the Alexa app. Instead, the coffee machine was buried in the "Smart Home” -> "All Devices” section. Overall I am very happy that there is an Alexa controlled coffee maker! In fact, I've told other friends about it and one friend ordered it too. I hope that other device manufacturers will take note and integrate the Revain Echo/Alexa in the future.