I'm skeptical about pods being recycled at all.  A huge amount of recycled material ends up in landfill because it's not clean.  Who is going to scoop out the residue in the pod before it goes to the recycling facility, which only handles clean recyclables?  My guess is nobody, but the lip service makes the consumer feel better.

Year, now we are gonna see a whole  new swath of brewers I bet.

Alterra coffee aint cheap thats for sure 

I've picked up a few of them over the years at Estate Sales.  We used to be able to get the discs at Bed Bath and Beyond in stock.  Now it looks like you can get them but they have to be shipped to our store here in Little Rock.  I didn't hate them but I did hate the fact that I had to use their own discs.  I've given mine away.  A guy I work with loves them and wanted to have spares in case his died so off they went to him.

I think that Kerig and all the rest of these single cup coffee brewers are only good if you like very weak coffee, or are willing to brew and drink small cups of coffee, no more than 8oz.  They just don’t hold enough coffee to give a good, strong cup a joe.  

If you want to brew one cup at a time, use a Melitta 1 cup pour over and you can use enough coffee to make it as strong as you want it to be.  And its a whole lot less expensive.  

Granted it doesn’t provide the cache of having yet another appliance on your counter, but the trade off is space on your counter for other things that really do what they are supposed to do.

And there is less non biodegradable crap going into the landfill so you won’t be contributing more to climate change. The paper Melitta filters are biodegradable.

Eddie

I've never owned a single cup brewer that uses pods, but have enjoyed decent coffee from them.  They sure do beat the alternative of a big urn that's been cooking the brew for hours if you happen to be in a waiting room or are having complimentary breakfast at a hotel, etc.

I bought a Bonavita automatic drip machine a few years ago at one of the last remaining Sears stores in my area.  They had the best price.  I cruised ebay and found a never-used Chemex 6-cup carafe with glass handle (so it can go in the dishwasher) plus a box of 100 filters and ditched the Bonavita's filter basket and carafe.  It's a lot easier to remove and toss the Chemex filter cone than deal with the filter basket, and the Chemex makes a superior, smoother cup of coffee.  Or, in my case, two mugs full of coffee.  I highly recommend this system for those who buy beans and grind them each morning.  I have a '60s vintage KA grinder next to the Bonavita and use freshly ground beans from a local independent roaster.  This system is far cheaper than a Chemex Otto, and a lot less clunky and complicated than a more expensive Technivorm.

I’m all about a really good cup of coffee.

I roast my own beans every week or two and grind them just before I make a pot of coffee.  

For me the important factors besides a good freshly roasted bean is the pre-infusion and the temperature of the water.  I’ve tried most of the makers that boast these features and none of them do as well as you will when you do a manual pour over.

Behmor Connected brewer: the brewer makes an OK cup of coffee, but the thermal carafe does not keep the coffee hot.  I have to transfer it to another container to keep it warm.

Chemex Ottomatic: I have the original version that does not do a pre-infusion.  It also brews at about 190 and I like closer to 205.  I am told the newer version does a proper pre-infusion but I don’t know if it brews any hotter.   The coffee is not bad it just never seems hot enough for my taste.

Technivorm: I have an older model that doesn’t have the pre-infusion but it does make a nice hot pot of coffee.  It’s faster but the Technivorm filters don’t filter as well as I like.

I haven’t tried the Bonavita, but I’ve read about them. They are supposed to make a decent cup.

So long story short, I’ve stopped using the automated machines for the most part.  I have a six cup Chemex.  I grind the beans, heat the water and use the pour over method.   I like the old-fashioned method just like many of us on this site for so many of the things we do.

I do it about every two weeks usually and I do two pounds at a time.  I buy the beans online, on sale and usually pay less than $4 (last order all in was $3.88) a pound for the green beans.  I bought a Behmor Drum Roaster that does 1 lb at a time.  Each pound takes about 20 min roast and 10 min cool.  I'm not the psycho bitch from hell like some are with roasting as far as temps and moisture and god knows what else.  I buy the same green beans every time because I'm comfortable with that type.  I roast until just the start of first crack because I like a lighter roast.  When I hear the first few snaps I hit the cool button and that's really it.  I let the beans rest 24 hours.

Honestly, if I had a coffee roaster close by and I could buy it fresh roasted at a reasonable price I would likely do that instead.  Out here, for whatever reason, we don't have one or if we do I haven't found it so I do it myself.

Thomas, have you tried cold brewing?  I have a Toddy cold brew system and you can make it as strong as you like.  A friend of mine will let it sit for three or four days instead of just overnight, and it's pretty strong.  All he ever drinks is his own cold brew.

I use the concentrate from a Toddy for iced coffee mainly, but it makes a very smooth cup of hot coffee as well.

We are all so much alike and yet all so different.  

I actually picked up an older Bonavita a few years back at Savers.  My intention was to use it with my Chemex the way others mentioned here but it was the smaller version and the Chemex didn't fit.  It didn't come with a pot so I think I gave it away.  I don't remember.  What I like best about the Chemex is the filter.  It really produces a smooth cup of coffee free of the things that can make coffee bitter.

My first introduction was in the mid 70s.  A friend had this contraption where you put a pound of ground coffee in the top, fill with water and let sit for 24 hours.  You then pulled out the plug in the bottom of the upper container.  The brew went through a filter to produce a smooth thick brew.  You also mixed it with hot water and it made a cup of OK coffee.  I wouldn't use it everyday because I like the process as much as the result.  I love the smell of the ground beans and the coffee as its brewing.  But, for a quick cup it wasn't that bad as I recall.