We Tried Keurig's First-Ever Smart Coffeemaker

Tested by Aly Walansky for Food Network Kitchen

Many of us swear by a signature cup of coffee to start our day. However, if you're stuck with an old-school coffee machine, that cup might be a bit disappointing. Keurig is hoping to change mornings for many of its fans with a brand-new brewer with lots of customization options. We were curious about their claims of a smart brewer that could perfectly brew any kind of K-cup coffee, so we put the new K-Supreme Plus SMART Brewer with BrewID to the test. Here's what we thought.

How the K-Supreme Plus Smart Brewer Works

While Keurig users are accustomed to popping their favorite K-cup pod into the machine, pressing a button, and getting a fresh cup of coffee, this brewer takes it to the next level. This new connected brewer can recognize the specific K-cup pod brand, variety and roast you are attempting to make and automatically adjusts the strength and temperature settings to that which is perfect for that particular pod’s grounds for a perfect cup of coffee.

To set up the brewer with the full smart functionality, you'll first need to download the Keurig app and create a login. Once the brewer is plugged in, just scan the QR code at the back of the machine to set up a BrewID account in the Keurig app on your smartphone and get connected.

All the Ways to Customize

If you are into having your coffee the way you like it when you like, a customizable programmable Keurig may be your new best friend. This is also helpful if everyone in the household has their own way of enjoying their morning coffee. Maybe dad likes his coffee sized for his travel mug and extra hot or extra strong, while mom prefers 6 oz. of robust strength at a more moderate heat. The settings can be customized to five different cup sizes, five strength levels, and six temperature settings. It’s also WiFi-enabled and syncs with the Keurig app, so when anyone runs low on their favorite pod, they can utilize the auto-delivery feature to re-up their supply just before caffeine-withdrawal sets in.

Another fun feature of this new model is that it uses five streams of water instead of one to saturate the coffee grounds as it brews (you’ll notice five holes in the K-cup vs. one when you pull it out of the machine.) It functions similar to a rain-style head on an automatic drip machine for a better bloom and bolder flavor for your coffee. We did notice a fuller flavor from every cup we tried. The same brand and variety of K-cup tasted richer and had more flavor in the new model compared to the K-Classic model we had been using. It also has a 78 oz. removable water reservoir, meaning unless you are drinking a whole lot of coffee, you won’t need to refill it nearly as often as you are used to — it's about 13 6-ounce cups of coffee.

Who It's Best For

Those of us who are pretty precise about how we enjoy our coffee (and prefer a single-cup brewer) will appreciate all the customizations and intuitive nature of this machine. However, anyone who only cares about an easy and fast quick jolt of morning caffeine can probably stick to the more basic models.

The Keurig K-Supreme Plus SMART Brewer with BrewID is available now for $199.99 on Keurig.com; and will be available in major retailers starting this fall.