
Keurig 2.0 DRM Freedom Clip - mattstrayer
https://www.gourmet-coffee.com/Keurig-DRM-Freedom-Clip.html
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amikula
While I applaud the spirit of the Freedom Clip, I have a better idea if you
object to the DRM in Keurig's new product: Don't buy Keurig. There are plenty
of alternatives. Why participate in the ecosystem at all if it means buying a
product from a company whose products you object to? Buy a Mr Coffee if you
have to have a K-Cup brewer.

~~~
olefoo
Or go to your local coffee retailer and aquire a french press and a grinder
and start making better coffee.

There are about 80 better ways to make coffee than a keurig machine; you just
need to figure out the two things keurig does adequately; delivering a
measured amount of water that is hot but not too hot and a measured amount of
properly ground coffee.

And really, does keurig have the faintest idea as to what you consider good
coffee?

~~~
willis77
> a measured amount of properly ground coffee.

And it's not even doing this well. More accurate to call it "a measured amount
of ground coffee, 'aged' 8 months in a warehouse."

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Bud
Nobody should be promoting this inferior, environmentally disastrous product
on this site, really. Makes terrible coffee, the pod design is not recyclable,
and hot water + plastic is a bad equation both for coffee quality and for
human health.

Edit to add: I do of course concede that DRM is evil regardless of context and
must be defeated.

~~~
Dylan16807
Inferior to what?

What's wrong with the biodegradable pods used as an example?

~~~
Bud
Inferior to basically any other method of brewing coffee. Even among pod
systems, for instance, it's markedly inferior in quality and environmental
impact to, say, Nespresso, which uses all-aluminum pods which are fully
recyclable (Nespresso even composts the coffee inside the pods).

Nothing's wrong with the biodegradable pods, although those aren't going to be
ideal for quality either, and those are a tiny slice of the market.

The simple fact is that this is an awful product that is doing vast amounts of
environmental damage. Read up a bit yourself and you will see what I mean.

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_impact_of_K-
Cups](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_impact_of_K-Cups)

~~~
morganvachon
I have a Keurig at home, and I exclusively use the reusable metal mesh filters
you can find right next to the machines themselves at the supermarket. The
only thing that gets "thrown out" when using those are old coffee grounds, and
I don't throw those away, they get added to my garden soil for extra
nutrients[1].

I realize that I'm probably in the minority among Keurig owners, and I
certainly wish the company itself would be more responsible and make 100%
recyclable pods. The way I see it though, the machines themselves are nearly
loss-leaders; Green Mountain (parent company of Keurig) makes almost all of
its money on the throwaway pods, and they aren't getting a dime out of me.

[1] [http://www.sunset.com/garden/earth-friendly/starbucks-
coffee...](http://www.sunset.com/garden/earth-friendly/starbucks-coffee-
compost-test)

~~~
daxelrod
At that point, why do you use a Keurig at all? What's the benefit besides the
convenience of the pre-measured, pre-ground pods?

~~~
VLM
Instant hot. You can buy a instant hot water dispenser for your sink, and
decades ago they were really cool and lasted for a decade, but the modern ones
are all precision engineered for maximum profit to fail in less than a year,
requiring plumbing work to replace. There are desktop hot water dispenser
products but they cost about as much as a loss leader k-cup machine.

Also my wife has one of those re-usable coffee grounds things but sometimes
you just want a quick cup and don't want to fool around. Today I'm running
late and if I had an extra 5 minutes I'd stop at starbucks and blow $5 instead
of 0.50 on this disposable cup or $0.005 on home ground. I drink black tea and
I have an emergency stash of tea kcups. I think it slightly inferior but not
that bad. It is much more bitter than my looseleaf home brewed. Obviously my
kcup tea always tastes kinda coffee-ish which is a little gross.

------
swang
As someone who is not a heavy coffee drinker can anyone explain what the
attraction of Keurig is without ranting about something dumb like "Everyone's
a sheeple!" or "Because the masses don't care about flavor!"?

Is it because it's quick? Or just hassle-free? According to some comments here
their coffee pods also aren't recyclable, which seems like it wouldn't mesh
well with coffee drinkers in SF.

~~~
Qworg
Quick AND hassle free. I don't have time in the morning to prepare coffee -
the kids have to get to school. The literal two button push to get coffee is a
lifesaver.

~~~
long
Why not just take caffeine pills then?

------
jorjordandan
Nice! Now if only we could finish reverse engineering the Tassimo barcodes..

[https://reverseengineering.stackexchange.com/questions/3919/...](https://reverseengineering.stackexchange.com/questions/3919/reverse-
engineering-t-disk-barcodes-for-tassimo-coffee-makers/6851#6851)

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kyledrake
I like what they are doing. But my response to DRM coffee machines is
basically this:

[http://www.amazon.com/Bodum-Brazil-French-Press-
Coffee/dp/B0...](http://www.amazon.com/Bodum-Brazil-French-Press-
Coffee/dp/B00008WU9F)

~~~
blahedo
My coffee-drinking life got so much better when a friend gave me one of these
a couple years ago. Easier _and_ better-tasting than the alternatives (a
"normal" coffee pot on the one hand, and Keurig-type machines on the other).

Note to anyone considering these: make sure you get coarse-ground coffee if
you use a French press. It makes a big difference.

~~~
pivo
The next step is to get a burr grinder and grind the beans to the right
coarseness just before you use them.

------
colinbartlett
Every time this is mentioned, the discussion devolves into coffee aficionados
saying this and that method of coffee delivery is far superior and it
exasperates me.

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hugodahl
Love that this is by the Rogers Family. I but their coffee is k-cups at Costco
- at first out of curiosity and price, but now because I've found that it's
pleasant and helps bring clean water and education in their growing regions.
Much like 3 Avocados, except for 3 Avocados doesn't do K-cups.

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mathgeek
Will be happy to replace my taped-on version with this in a few weeks. The
fact that this is the company I already buy all my coffee from is quite
satisfying.

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FlailFast
This makes me so happy. If they get a C&D, I'm sure/hope the schematics are
leaked for a 3d printed version.

In the long run, you can't stop the signal, Mal.

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undrwatr
Aren't there different brewing temps/times? Shouldn't this have a little jog
wheel on the side to select the possibilities?

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phi16180
Why does it brew in the absence of the DRM code? Why would you ever design the
null test be equivalent to the success case?!

~~~
NickNameNick
The "DRM" seems to be a small led/sensor combination that tests to see id the
lid of the K-cup fluoresces in a particular way. The clip obscures the sensor,
and provided a surface with the right kind of fluorescence.

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fonnesbeck
If you are getting your coffee from a pod, then DRM is the very least of your
problems.

~~~
masterleep
The holier than thou coffee aficionados on this site are hilarious. I wish I
was in the K-cup coffee business and they were my non-K-cup competitors, since
they do not seem to understand why so many people like K-cups.

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frozenport
Wait, why can't you cover it with tape?

~~~
healsdata
According to the article, the machine reads a special ink from the lids of the
cups. My assumption is that the orange dot on this clip contains that ink so
as to fool the machine, not just block the reader.

~~~
frozenport
Fair enough, cover it with a discarded cup+tape?

~~~
taspeotis
That's what these guys [1] did.

[1] [http://www.keurighack.com/](http://www.keurighack.com/)

------
ryansouza
Awesome

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pistle
Wait gourmet-coffee.com is touting a means to deliver coffee from a pod
machine?

ripped-abs.com shows how to make load pennies into their satchel-socks

turbro-touring.com shows you how to adhere inlet vent stickers to your fenders

There is nothing gourmet about the brownness that comes out of a Keurig

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marincounty
I don't think I'm alone in think the only way I would use a Keurig system is
if it was given away on Craigslist. I would then buy this devise that mimics
their special ink, and buy a reusable cup. (I do see those little cups
everywhere, along with plastic tooth picks. I know both products have a
biodegradable units, but the ones I see are not biodegradable. Edit--I don't
know why I see the used Keurig cups. Maybe, I'm mistaken? I do see the Dentek
tooth picks everywhere, and Jonny you should be ashamed. I guess that sailboat
in high school wasen't enough? Oh yea, I never see the biodegradable picks--
because they are more expensive. Lower the price, and do the environment a
favor, before government steps in and bans your product--like Pull Tabs?
Inside rant!

~~~
freshyill
I actually saw a woman driving her car with one of those flosser things in her
mouth today. First time I've ever seen one in the hands of a person outside of
a house or store. I'm certain it's now free of captivity and back in its
natural habitat of the street.

